Packers’ Micah Parsons on ‘Anger,’ Potential First Game and Children’s Book

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers edge rusher Micah Parsons is an All-Pro pass rusher and now a children’s author.

The Hungry Gray Lion, which was co-written by Lavaille Lavette, will be available in February.

“I think it’s about the adversity and challenges I went through in my life and how I just stayed resilient and how when you can adapt to that lion mentality, you can do anything,” he said after practice on Tuesday. “We just thought it was a good idea to share that story worldwide.”

Parsons said he’s been working on the book for more than a year-and-a-half.

“It was a way to get to as many kids as we wanted to. I think this was a great opportunity to do that when the opportunity came to me,” he said.

The first-team All-Pro plays with the mentality of a lion, which is the animal he chose for the main character. Where did that mindset come from?

“I would say as a kid, my dad threw me in as many different sports as I could do and he was like, whether you win or lose, I’m proud of you. But I always wanted to win, and I was really tore up when I didn’t win. I always wanted to win and I just hated to lose, and I did everything I possibly could to win and it just developed in me over time.”

All-Pro Packers star Micah Parsons has a new title.

Author.@_micahparsons11 wrote a children's book called The Humble Gray Lion through @sourcebookskids and @joyful_pen_books. The message? “Real leadership comes from character, courage and heart.” ⬇️https://t.co/C2zo7T783z
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) August 2, 2026

Parsons tackled a number of topics during his 18-minute conversation with reporters. Here are some of the highlights.

The Comeback

Parsons said he’s made “a lot” of progress since he last talked to reporters in June. “We’re right where we need to be,” Parsons said, which includes running again. He arrives at Lambeau Field at 7:30 a.m. and remains at the stadium until the walk-through practice is done at about 7:30 p.m.

Parsons in June said there’s a strong nine-month rule following ACL tears before a player is cleared to return to football. Tight end Tucker Kraft, though, beat that by a couple weeks.

However, as Parsons reminded reporters, their injuries were not the same.

“I’m not even going to put a set return date because, obviously, me and Tuck had two different injuries,” Parsons said. “Him having the isolated ACL vs. me battling between meniscus and ACL, so when Tuck was walking at four weeks, I’m still on crutches. I did seven weeks of crutches, so you could just add those three weeks right there.

“It’s a whole different rehab program because you’re trying to protect the meniscus. I don’t even like to compare. I’m happy that Tuck’s back and he’s in a great shape and position, because I know how much he wants to win and I know much this offseason meant to him and just to be back with the team, so I’m just happy about that. I just work every day so I could join those guys.”

Trusting the Knee

Whenever Parsons is cleared to return, will there be any trepidation about the strength of the knee?

“I think you trust it by the work you put in during the nine- to 10-month extensive process that you have,” he said. “I think that’s kind of where the trust [comes] in how you play. We’re still trying to figure out how to put me through those things that I go through in a game of the intensity that I play at. We’re still trying to process that and go through those changes because, obviously, it’s a different level of intensity from how I play and how I rehab. We’ve got ways to go to get to that yet.”

On Instagram recently, Parsons said he’s “not chasing the player I used to be. I’m chasing the standard I owe myself, my family, and everyone who believes in me.”

He went deeper into that thought on Tuesday.

“I think to say you’re going to be the same player as [before], I think when you come out of these situations, you’re either going to be better or you’re worse,” he said. “And for me, I’ve done everything I possibly can to be better. …

“Like, people are worried about the knee. They should be worried about how I’m going to play when I get back. The anger, the frustration, the things that I’m going to have to let out because of how long it’s been since I played. So, I think that’s what people should really worry about. Like, ‘How great is Micah going to be when he gets back?’ Not about when I get back, because that’s the short term. It’s about how great I’m going to be, how I can help my teammates, and how far we’re going to go into a playoff run.”

The Storybook Comeback

Parsons had 12.5 sacks in his first 13 games and the Packers were 9-3-1 when they visited Denver. That’s the game in which Parsons’ career changed.

He said he doesn’t think about why it happened, though he thought “accumulative things” after pushing to get on the field for Week 1 without a training camp might have factored.

He feels great about his knee going forward, though.

“I think based off of how I feel at this point, I feel like a much better player in the sense of how I feel. I feel more stable. I feel stronger. I probably was blind to a lot of things that I probably should have been working on that I got a chance to correct and get stronger during this process.

“It’s almost like you know baseball. I talked to a baseball guy. He’s like, ‘We want a pitcher that kind of go through the Tommy John [surgery] because it’s like he got it out the way,’ you know? So, hopefully, I got my injury out of the way, and I can, based off what others try to say, give me another six to 10 years. So, I’m really excited about that.”

If Parsons returns to practice nine months after surgery, it would be before the Week 4 game against Tampa Bay. That puts into play Week 6 against his former team, the Dallas Cowboys.

“I think it’s very realistic,” he said. “Me and the staff, we’ve got to put the work in. We’ve got to get to the point where I’m feeling great and we say, ‘Micah, you’ll be in a really good phase.’ Is it possible? Yes. So, I wouldn’t say it’s not possible but, at the same time, in these next 10 weeks – 10, 12 weeks from now on – we’ve got to do our part to make it possible. It’s not off the board but we’ve got to put the work in.”

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