Jared Verse is first rookie since Micah Parsons to do this

Will Rams’ Jared Verse also win Defensive Rookie of the Year?

Rams rookie Jared Verse is “only” on pace for six sacks, but he’s the first player since Micah Parsons to have three games with at least three QB hits in his first season. And if Verse finishes as strong as he’s capable of, he could have almost as many tackles for a loss and quarterback hits as Parsons did with the Cowboys in 2021.

Parsons was a first-team All-Pro with 13 sacks as a rookie in Dallas, and while Verse may not come close to winning Defensive PLAYER of the Year, as Parsons did. He’s becoming a shoo-in for Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Here are Jared Verse’s stats:

• 4.5 sacks, 54 tackles, 11 TFL, 17 QB hits, 2 FF, 1 FR

Here are Parson’s stats through his first 12 games in 2021:

• 10 sacks, 72 tackles, 16 TFL, 25 QB hits, 2 FF, 0 FT

Here is what Verse is on pace for:

• 6 sacks, 76 tackles, 16 TFL, 24 QB hits, 3 FF

Here is where Parsons finished in 2021:

• 13 sacks, 84 tackles, 20 TFL, 30 QB hits, 3 FF

As you can see, Verse isn’t on the same trajectory that Parsons was on in 2021, but it would only take one or two really impactful games for Verse to close the gap on everything except for sacks.

Next week’s game against the Bills could be difficult because Josh Allen (3% sack rate) is one of the hardest QBs in the NFL to tackle, if not the hardest. If there’s a rookie who can do it though, it’s Jared Verse.