Micah Parsons is frustrated with what he believes to be a lack of penalties called against Packers opponents. But Parsons's frustration runs deeper than that.
It all started during the star pass rusher's media availability Thursday, during which he was asked how "frustrating" it is that officials seem to miss holding calls that would benefit Parsons and the Packers. Parsons entertained the reporter's question—and then some.
"It's just one of them things, it is what it is," Parsons said. "Five years of not getting a call, you eventually stop worrying about it. I think I just gotta keep going. That's part of the challenges—like you just gotta keep going... That's part of being one of the best."
But what began as frustration with how the calls impact him personally escalated to Parsons accusing NFL officials of having an agenda.
Micah Parsons sounds off on how he’s officiated and refs in general:
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) October 16, 2025
“Five years of not getting a call, you eventually stop worrying about it.”
“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… pic.twitter.com/fieDTZpWl5
"You can tell how they call the game," Parsons continued. "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 immediately. We know what they’re trying to do. They wanna 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."
And besides Parsons's insinuation that the league desires a more offensive-oriented product, he also believes that the NFL's rulebook doesn't afford defenders the same protection it does for offensive players.
"I think there's like two or three a game," Parsons said when asked how many calls he believes are missed a game that would benefit himself. "...The ones that are close, like whatever, that's football. It's competitive. I get it. But the egregious ones need to be called. That's how guys get hurt.
Micah Parsons says he thinks “a lot of rules are bullshit.” He elaborates below.
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) October 16, 2025
“We put so much emphasis on protecting the offense. Protect the defense.”
“I might get a fine for this conference.” pic.twitter.com/reOAzUeE5b
"We put so much emphasis on protecting the offense. Protect the defense. A guy could be trying to catch the ball and you make a defensive play so he doesn't catch it and it's targeting, it's a flag. But a defensive end could be rushing and engaged with another player and a guy could come blow his ribs out. We're not considered defenseless.
"But like we said, it's an offensive league. I think a lot of the rules are bull----."
Parsons emphasized that if the league wants to protect players, it should "protect all players." And as for the "egregious" penalties that aren't called against Parsons's opponents, a topic also brought up by Packers coach Matt LaFleur earlier this week? LaFleur plans to address that subject with the officiating crew before Sunday's game against the Cardinals.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Micah Parsons Calls Out NFL Referees for Perceived Officiating Agenda.
