Micah Parsons Awards Odds Close In To Join Lawrence Taylor

• Micah Parsons is currently second on the odds boards at +300 to win the Defensive Player of the Year honors.
• He trails only Myles Garrett (+250) with four weeks remaining in the season.

DALLAS – The Dallas Cowboys’ first-round pick has proven to be one of the best defensive players in the league in just his first year.

The Case For Micah Parsons To Be DPOY

Micah Parsons is a special talent. He was the No. 5 player in his high-school class but was listed as a defensive end. When he played for the Penn State Nittany Lions, he became a linebacker. Thus, his NFL career has highlighted his versatility and efficiency that not many others have.

Legal online betting sites have responded by making him one of the favorites to win the Defensive Player of the Year award.

Parsons ranks seventh in the NFL with 12 sacks on the season, but the most impressive part is the fact that he’s not a full-time pass rusher. He’s currently only rushing the passer on 52% of his total snaps.

This gives him a higher Sack%, Hurry%, Hit%, Knockdown% and Pressure% than the man ahead of him on the odds board, Myles Garrett.

Of course, Garrett likely sees more targeted double teams than Parsons, but the production in the pass-rushing game is very similar while Parsons has his coverage/linebacking numbers that Garrett doesn’t have at all.

The History Parsons Would Make

A rookie-winning Defensive Player of the Year is not unheard of, but it is remarkably uncommon. There’s only been one other player to ever accomplish it, Lawrence Taylor. Considering Taylor is thought to be the greatest defensive player of all time, that would be pretty good company to join.

The Cowboys’ upcoming schedule features some lackluster offensive teams in the New York Giants, Washington Football Team and Philadelphia Eagles, who combine for a 16-23 record. This gives Parsons more than enough opportunities to make a strong push at the end of the season and get ahead of Garrett on the NFL betting sites.

News tags: Dallas Cowboys | Defensive Player Of The Year | Lawrence Taylor | Micah Parson | Myles Garrett | NFL