Rob DemovskyOct 16, 2025, 05:30 PM ETCloseRob Demovsky is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Green Bay Packers. He has covered the Packers since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2013. Demovsky is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year as selected by the NSSA.Follow on X
Greeny calls tush push an ‘abomination’ (0:48)Mike Greenberg and Dan Graziano don’t hold back when expressing their disdain for the tush push. (0:48)
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Micah Parsons hates the tush push, thinks offensive players get away with holding far too often and had to change his face mask during the last game because he got poked in an eye and popped a blood vessel on a play that didn’t draw a penalty.
And the Green Bay Packers defensive end said it all knowing that it could come back to haunt him — both when his team plays the Philadelphia Eagles next month and when the NFL hears his comments.
LaFleur said earlier in the week that he believes Parsons is “frustrated by it, and there are some that are egregious, and I think those need to be called.”
“Nah, I don’t think it matters,” Parsons said. “The refs are going to call what they call. All we can do is just hope we get called a fair game. I don’t care what the fans want sometimes. If your team holds, they should get better tackles, better guards. S—, don’t blame that on us.”
According to ESPN Research, Green Bay has had only six holding penalties called on its opponents this season, tied for the third fewest in the league (although the Packers have already had their bye week and have played one fewer game than all but five other teams).
Parsons leads the NFL with 4.6 pressures per game, according to ESPN Research. He was credited with five pressures Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals but did not record a quarterback hit for the only time this season.
Parsons also said there’s a double standard when it comes to player safety. He said that when he got poked in an eye by a Bengals player and popped a blood vessel, there was no call for illegal hands to the face. He said he changed to a more protective face mask during the game.
Those weren’t Parsons’ only comments that might get some attention. Parsons posted on social media his disdain for the Eagles’ tush push play after they ran it four straight times in last week’s game against the New York Giants.
The Eagles have lost two straight games after starting 4-0, and despite their success with the tush push, they have scored just 17 points in each of their past two games.
“S—, if you ask the Eagles’ offensive players, they’ll probably say, ‘That’s the best thing we’re doing on offense right now,'” Parsons said. “It’s the most consistent thing they’ve got. That might come [back] and bite me one day.”
“That’s the part of being one of the best. That comes with some territory, parts that you hate and the parts that the league lets go. They know you can tell how they call the games. They don’t call offsides for offense, but they’ll call it on defense. They won’t call offensive pass interference, but they’ll call defensive pass interference. We know what they’re trying to do. They want to load the points up so fans can be happy. They’ll call defensive holding, but they won’t call offensive holding. Let’s just wake up.”
Greeny calls tush push an ‘abomination’ (0:48)Mike Greenberg and Dan Graziano don’t hold back when expressing their disdain for the tush push. (0:48)
Mike Greenberg and Dan Graziano don’t hold back when expressing their disdain for the tush push. (0:48)
CloseRob Demovsky is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Green Bay Packers. He has covered the Packers since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2013. Demovsky is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year as selected by the NSSA.Follow on X
“That’s definitely a conversation pregame,” LaFleur said.
It doesn’t sound as if Parsons believes much will change.
The day could be Nov. 10 when the Eagles play the Packers at Lambeau Field.