The Parsons problem: Steelers must be versatile to slow Packers' pass rush

One of the pleasant occurrences of the 2025 season for the Steelers has been the job that the defense did against Cleveland defensive lineman Myles Garrett.

When the former Defensive Player of the Year came through Pittsburgh two weeks ago, he left with just two tackles, none for a loss, one solo and no sacks.

“I thought we did a good job with the tight ends, a variation of body types, and running backs out there trying to chip (Garrett), just to kind of slow him down,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said after that 23-9 win.

So, just run that back and do it again Sunday against Green Bay’s Micah Parsons, right? They are both All-Pros. That’s an apples-to-apples comp, isn’t it?

“Eh, more like oranges to grapefruits,” former pro and college scout Matt Williamson said to me on Fox Sports Pittsburgh 970 Wednesday night.

That’s fine. I always enjoy a good fruit salad.

Williamson’s point was that efforts to slow any gifted rusher may be similar in intent, but the execution of it — and the way those players attack opposing offensive lines — are different.

“They’re two different people in terms of what makes them great in how they get to the quarterback. How they’re deployed, the distribution of rushes, number of rushes,” coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “Both (Cleveland and Green Bay) play behind their four-man rush. Both guys are edge players, capable of moving around to either side. The same could be said against any of the elite rushers — Maxx Crosby in Vegas.”

Garrett is almost 6-foot-5 and 275 pounds. Parsons is about an inch shorter and about 20 pounds lighter. Garrett primarily rushes from the right defensive end position over the left offensive tackle.

He’ll vary his pre-snap alignment more than, say, T.J. Watt does from the left outside linebacker position with the Steelers. But Parsons attacks from more locations. As TribLive’s Joe Rutter pointed out Friday, ProFootballFocus.com analytics conclude that the Penn State product hasn’t spent more than 41% of his snaps at any one spot on the defense this year.

“He moves around a little bit more than maybe Myles does. Those two are in the conversation of the very few players in the league that you actually have to have four hands on at all times,” Rodgers said Wednesday, mentioning Watt as well. “Went against Micah before. He’s a phenomenal player. He’s a future Hall of Famer. He’s a game wrecker. You’ve got to know where he is at all times.”

In other words, simply loading an extra offensive lineman and a tight end outside of Broderick Jones at left tackle all day isn’t going to be a cure-all against Parsons. He’s adept at rushing from the inside as well.

Parsons is capable of lining up over left tackle before the snap and zipping two gaps down the line between the center and guard. So Isaac Seumalo, Mason McCormick and a banged-up Zach Frazier are going to have to be as sharp in their pass blocking skills against Parsons as Jones and Troy Fauntanu will have to be on the outside of the line.

Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith also mentioned Parsons’ pass-rushing partner, Rashan Gary, as a complicating problem for his offensive line. He has 5½ sacks just like Parsons does.

“None of them is the same player. There are certain things you try to do to neutralize them, but they all have different skillsets scheme-wise, and how they’re playing. Not just on third down, but on early downs,” Smith said. “Micah and Rashan Gary, those guys are great rushers and have good internal rush. It’s always a challenge.”

In theory, if Jones and/or Fautanu have extra help on their outside shoulders, they can hedge against Parsons or Gary exploiting the gap between them and the guards. Similarly, the guards can perhaps cheat to the gap they think may be the most vulnerable opposite wherever Parsons or Gary line up. At some point, though, the dominoes fall to where Frazier may be left alone with whatever remaining interior heat is coming from the rest of the Green Bay defensive front.

Last week, the Packers racked up six sacks in a win over Arizona. Parsons had three of them. Making matters worse, the Packers are excellent at getting opponents into pure passing situations. They are the second-best run defense in the NFL, yielding just 76.5 yards per game.

Rodgers has taken just two sacks over the last four weeks. The pass protection has been improving over the last month after a rocky first two weeks. At times, Rodgers’ own quick release and Smith’s play calling have been the best protectors for the 41-year-old QB. That might have to be the case again this week.

For Rodgers’ sake, he better hope a grapefruit a day keeps Parsons away.

LISTEN: Tim Benz and Joe Rutter preview Sunday night’s Steelers-Packers game.