Cowboys star Micah Parsons not convinced 49ers 'are at a higher level than us'

For any casual football fan, there was no mistaking which team was better on Sunday night.

The unbeaten San Francisco 49ers ran roughshod over the Dallas Cowboys in a 42-10 blowout behind four touchdown passes from quarterback Brock Purdy and four forced turnovers from the defense. The Niners dominated the stat sheet as well, racking up 421 yards of total offense to the Cowboys' 197.

Yet Cowboys defensive end Micah Parsons was not convinced by what more than 71,000 in attendance witnessed Sunday at Levi's Stadium.

"I don't think they are at a higher level than us," Parsons told reporters after the game. "I think we're the same caliber playoff team. Same talent. Same standards. I just feel like we need to reconsider … and fix some things … The score don't really shape what happened out there."

Parsons was not his usual dominant self either. He finished the game with no sacks and just two quarterback pressures, according to NextGen Stats. It was the first time in nine games that he didn't have at least five quarterback pressures, a streak that dated back to Week 15 of last season.

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"I've never seen a champion not be battle tested. We're just getting tested early," Parsons said of the 3-2 Cowboys. "Tonight, we just learned a lesson … Sometimes you got to look at these losses as a blessing and just say thank you."

The Cowboys will look to get back on the winning track next Monday night when they travel to face the Los Angeles Chargers.