“We Gonna Miss You”: Micah Parsons Shares Emotional Message After Personal Loss Ahead of New Season

Micah Parsons is dealing with a loss at home right as his season is about to begin. The Green Bay Packers pass rusher posted an emotional tribute to his grandfather on his Instagram Story, sharing a photo of the two of them together alongside his grandmother.

“Love you always gdad!! we gonna miss you! Protect me and sterlo! From up high!”

Credits: Instagram/@_micahparsons11

The circumstances surrounding his grandfather’s passing have not been made public. Parsons has also kept the rest of the details private, with his Instagram Story serving as his only public acknowledgment of the loss.

Parsons has spoken before about what his grandfather meant to him. In 2021, Parsons told Sporting News that his grandfather and his uncles, Marcel and Michael McDonald, had taught him lessons about honesty, respect, and earning what you get. Both of his uncles served in the military, one in the Army and the other in the Air Force.

“Some of the things that I learned from my uncles and my grandfather were honesty and respect,” Parsons said at the time. “Everything is earned and not given.”

Parsons enters Week 1 of the 2026 season after undergoing surgery on December 29, and has spent the months since rehabbing from the injury under a strict nine-month recovery plan.

“I think the goal has always just been not right now, but longevity with my career here,” Parsons said. “We have a pretty strong nine-month rule. It’s just all about, just through the research and the data, there’s no good outcomes with players coming back early from an ACL.”

That means he will miss Green Bay’s Week 1 opener. Parsons has been targeting a return around mid-October, although the exact timing will depend on how his recovery progresses once he gets back into contact work. Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said he believes Parsons will return “even better” than before.

Green Bay traded for him just 10 days before its season opener, and the blockbuster deal was followed by a contract that made Parsons the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history at the time. He quickly showed why the Packers made that investment, putting together a strong start to his first year in Green Bay before the injury ended it prematurely.

Before going down, Parsons had 12.5 sacks and 41 tackles in 14 games. Green Bay then dropped its final three regular-season games without him and lost to the Chicago Bears in the wild-card round.

Now, as Parsons works his way back toward the field, he’s doing it while also grieving a family loss just days before kickoff. It’s a reminder that even for a player whose season is being tracked play by play by an entire fanbase, life away from football doesn’t pause for a training camp calendar.

Parsons has been open about how far along he is in that process. Speaking to reporters over the summer, he described his recovery bluntly.

“So far, they say I’m flying, so whatever that means,” Parsons said. “I don’t think I’ll be on IR to start the season. I think, lofty, I’d be saying Week 1. But realistically, probably like Week 3 or Week 4.”

The Packers need Parsons back at the earliest. Tom Pelissero says there is a high chance he returns for the Cowboys game. But until then, this defense will have to hold off on their own.

“The thing that I noticed just watching from afar last year, there didn’t seem to be a leader on the defense once he went down,” Clay Matthews told USA Today. “Everyone kinda looked at one another [going] who’s going to take over here? And that’s why you saw them falter in the season.

“With him being down, understanding that he’s not coming back for several weeks, you know, that’s an opportunity for other guys to step up. And they obviously have a new coordinator, implementing a new defense, it has to be some type of optimism there and, you know, performance and what they’re capable of doing. So ultimately… defense, just hold on.”

Now, with the season about to begin, Parsons is looking forward to come back strong. He will hope his grandfather is watching over him this season, which will define his future with the Packers.

The post “We Gonna Miss You”: Micah Parsons Shares Emotional Message After Personal Loss Ahead of New Season appeared first on EssentiallySports.