Micah Parsons Is Quietly Building a Monster in the NFL, and One Teammate Could Already Be the Next Julius Peppers.QQ

GREEN BAY, Wis. – In the high-stakes world of NFL pass rushing, where raw talent collides with relentless evolution, Micah Parsons isn’t just chasing sacks—he’s architecting legacies. The Dallas Cowboys star, a force of nature with 40.5 sacks in his first three seasons, has turned his gaze northward to Green Bay, where a young Packers edge rusher named Lukas Van Ness is on the cusp of breakout or bust. Parsons’ latest project? A audacious, some say reckless, blueprint to remake Van Ness in the image of Julius Peppers, the Panthers’ immortal disruptor whose shadow still looms large over Lambeau Field this weekend.

It’s a plan that’s already sparking whispers in locker rooms and on podcasts: Is Parsons, the self-proclaimed “film guru,” overstepping by molding a divisional rival’s prospect into a carbon copy of one of football’s all-time greats? Or is this the bold mentorship the league desperately needs to keep its edge rushers from becoming one-dimensional relics? As the Packers prepare to host the Carolina Panthers on Sunday—a matchup laced with Peppers’ Carolina ghosts—the controversy brews. Van Ness, sidelined by a nagging foot injury, admits he’s all in on the transformation. But at what cost to his natural game?

The genesis of this “Bold Reshape,” as Parsons dubs it in private texts to Van Ness (leaked to NFL insiders last month), traces back to a chance encounter at the 2024 Pro Bowl. Van Ness, the Packers’ 2023 first-round pick out of Iowa, was there as a rookie alternate, wide-eyed amid the league’s elite. Parsons, fresh off a 14-sack campaign, pulled him aside during film sessions. “Kid, you’ve got the frame of a freight train,” Parsons reportedly said, eyeing Van Ness’ 6-foot-5, 272-pound build. “But you’re rushing like a bulldozer in neutral. Watch Peppers. That’s your blueprint.”

Peppers, of course, is no stranger to Green Bay. The Hall of Famer bookended his 17-year career with stints in Carolina, but sandwiched in between were four ferocious seasons with the Packers from 2014 to 2017, where he notched 22 sacks and terrorized quarterbacks with a blend of power, speed, and surgical precision. Drafted second overall by the Panthers in 2002, Peppers retired as the NFL’s fourth all-time sack leader with 159.5, earning spots on the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-Decade Teams for both the 2000s and 2010s. He was a unicorn: 6-foot-7, 295 pounds of explosive athleticism, capable of bull-rushing linemen into oblivion or dipping around them like a ghost.

Parsons, who idolizes Peppers as “one of the GOATs,” sees echoes of that hybrid menace in Van Ness. But the Cowboys star’s vision goes beyond inspiration—it’s a full-scale remodel. Sources close to the Packers’ defensive room say Parsons has curated a 12-week “Peppers Protocol”: weekly Zoom breakdowns of Peppers’ tape, customized drills emphasizing long-arm power moves, and even nutritional tweaks to bulk Van Ness up to 285 pounds without sacrificing burst. “Micah’s not just suggesting highlights,” one Packers assistant coach told ESPN on condition of anonymity. “He’s scripting Van Ness’ rushes, down to the hand placement and hip flip. It’s genius, but it’s invasive. What if it erases what made Lukas special?”

Van Ness, a Barrington, Illinois native who grew up idolizing Peppers during his Chicago Bears tenure from 2010 to 2013, isn’t shying away from the spotlight. Speaking to reporters Friday ahead of the Panthers game—his first missed start of the season due to the foot issue—he opened up about the partnership that’s already elevated his film study habits. “We’ve had a lot of conversations about the different body types of players that we can replicate and watch,” Van Ness said, crediting Parsons for the push. “Micah’s really knowledgeable in terms of guys that are currently playing or have played that are similar body types or comparable to watch film of. I think that’s something that’s taken me to the next level—the film aspect. That’s a forgotten part of the game that a lot of people don’t appreciate enough: How do you watch film and watch players?”

At 14 years old when Peppers first donned Bears black and orange, Van Ness remembers the awe. “I grew up in the Chicago area, so he was someone that I looked up to,” he recalled. “Obviously, when I got drafted here and seeing that he was playing here, as well—that’s a pretty good player to replicate. So, I definitely watch his tape and I definitely see some similarities in the way that we play—a physical, run-you-over, power-type game.”

But Parsons’ plan demands more than nostalgia. It’s a calculated pivot. Van Ness entered the league as a raw athlete, explosive off the edge but prone to over-relying on athleticism over technique. Through nine games this season, he’s tallied 3 sacks and 18 pressures, a solid clip but far from the double-digit dominance Packers fans crave opposite Rashan Gary. The injury—diagnosed as a minor stress fracture—has given him unexpected downtime to dive deeper. “This is probably the first time that I’ve actually taken the time to reach out for video and have his film on my iPad,” Van Ness admitted. “This is a league where we’re all compared against our peers, so on my own time, I review and watch a lot of guys—like Nick Bosa, Trey Hendrickson, Brian Burns. There’s a bunch of them—a whole host of guys.”

“Everyone’s different, everyone has things they’re good at,” he continued, “but the more you can learn and watch, it’s only going to help you out.”

The controversy ignited last week when a clip from Parsons’ “Micah’s Movie Night” podcast surfaced. In it, the Cowboys linebacker—wearing a Packers jersey for ironic effect—breaks down a 2015 Peppers sack against the Lions, overlaying Van Ness’ college highlights. “Lukas, you’re built like J.P. [Peppers], but you’re playing like a college kid,” Parsons quipped. “Time to remodel. We’re turning you into a Hall of Famer, or at least a Pro Bowler who doesn’t get washed out by double-teams.” Fans erupted online: Packers diehards hailed it as “cross-conference brotherhood,” while skeptics decried it as meddling. “Parsons is trying to sabotage our guy by making him someone he’s not,” tweeted one prominent Cheesehead analyst. “Van Ness is a power rusher, not a finesse freak like Peppers.”

Even Peppers himself, now the Panthers’ outside linebackers coach, weighed in during Thursday’s media session, his endorsement laced with caution. “J.P., obviously, he’s a freak,” Peppers said of Parsons. “He’s one of the best, Hall of Famer, one of the GOATs. That’s kind of who I’m trying to get (Lukas) Van Ness to turn into with those freakish long arms and his power and what he did. Julius, he’s one of the great ones, and if you can get anybody to play the way he did, we’re going to have a lot of success.”

Peppers’ praise underscores the blueprint’s appeal: Peppers wasn’t just big; he was efficient. Double-digit sacks in 10 of 17 seasons? That’s not luck—it’s mastery of the “power-to-speed” transition Van Ness craves. “He’s obviously a bigger guy, a big body,” Van Ness analyzed, “but you can see the way he utilizes his speed and his get-off to his advantage, too. There’s guys who play with power and are bigger body types, but they tend to be slower off the ball. I think that’s what I see is the hybrid—to also add some speed into your bag on top of being able to physically dominate a guy.”

“That’s where I liked it in the way that he set up a lot of his rushes was, ‘I’m going to dominate you with power and then off of that is where I can start to dictate the game,’” Van Ness added, name-dropping Packers legend Clay Matthews as another influence. “Luckily, we’ve had some pretty good pass rushers come through here, so there’s a lot of good people to look at.”

Critics, however, point to the risks. Remodeling a 23-year-old’s game mid-career could lead to identity crisis on the field—think Myles Garrett’s early struggles post-technique overhaul, or the busts who’ve chased shadows of greatness. Parsons, ever the provocateur, doubled down in a post-podcast interview: “Controversial? Nah, it’s evolution. The NFL eats static players alive. Lukas is my little bro across the league—Packers, Cowboys, doesn’t matter. We’re building monsters.”

As Sunday’s clash looms, the Packers-Panthers script writes itself: Carolina’s Bryce Young dodging ghosts of Peppers past, while Green Bay’s defense hungers for Van Ness’ return as a reborn force. Will Parsons’ blueprint forge a new Packers icon, or fracture a promising talent? One thing’s certain: In a league of copycats, Micah Parsons isn’t following—he’s dictating the rush.

Van Ness, iPad in hand and Peppers on loop, is betting on the latter. “If it works,” he said with a grin, “we’re talking Hall of Fame conversations sooner than later.” Bold words for a sidelined sophomore. But in the NFL’s unforgiving forge, boldness is the only reshape that sticks.