Micah Parsons Penn State
Atlanta Falcons News NFL Draft

Is Micah Parsons worth No. 4 pick of Atlanta Falcons?

Former Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons put on a show at his pro day last week, but is he good enough to be a Top 5 pick in the NFL Draft?

Micah Parsons played two seasons at Penn State and put up terrific numbers. He had 83 tackles in 2018 and 109 in 2019 before opting out of the 2020 season.

At his pro day last week, it was obvious that Parsons had been working hard to get ready for the NFL Draft as his numbers were eye popping.

While not exactly an apples to apples comparison to the NFL Combine, it’s close enough that every team in the league sends scouts to watch and evaluate in person.

Parsons pro day numbers were as follows:

Height – 6’3
Weight – 246
Forty – 4.39
Bench – 19 Reps (225)
Shuttle – 4.40
L-Cone – 6.89
Vertical – 34
Broad Jump – 10’6

To put that in perspective, Tampa Bay linebacker Devin White had 140 tackles for the Super Bowl Champions in 2020. In 2019, he had a 4.42 forty, 22 reps, 4.17 shuttle, 7.07 L-Cone.

Parsons was bigger, stronger, faster, and quicker through the L-Cone, while White was quicker in the shuttle.

Devin White was selected with the…. fifth overall pick by the Bucs in the 2019 draft.

Parsons is much more than a combine warrior though. We spoke with Penn State reporter Mark Brennan of FightOnState.com about Parsons and how he looked day in and day out in Happy Valley.

Linebacker isn’t a positions of need so to speak for the Atlanta Falcons, but who doesn’t need a 245 pound, 4.39 wrecking ball on defense? Pairing Parsons with fleet footed Deion Jones on the Falcons defense is a tantalizing proposition.

Scott Kennedy
Scott Kennedy is an Atlanta native and 20 year media veteran including time as Director of Scouting at Scout.com, Managing Editor at 247Sports, VP Content Operations at Sports Illustrated and more. Scott has appeared as a recruiting and NFL Draft analyst on dozens of media including ESPN, NFL Network, USA Today, NY Times, and more.
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