Green Bay Packers’ Major Weakness Looms Ahead of Training Camp

The Green Bay Packers anchored their defense around Micah Parsons last season.

The final weeks showed how difficult it was to hold the unit together once he was gone.

Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox named Green Bay’s pass rush its biggest weakness entering the 2026 preseason, with Parsons continuing his recovery from a torn ACL.

The assessment makes sense given the Packers’ trading of Rashan Gary, the only other player on last season’s roster who finished with more than four sacks.

Green Bay enters camp needing to replace most of its proven edge production while its best defensive player works through a recovery the organization won’t rush.

Packers Became Dependent on Parsons

Parsons gave the Packers the disruptive presence they expected after acquiring him from the Dallas Cowboys shortly before the 2025 season.

He recorded 12.5 sacks, 12 tackles for loss and 26 quarterback hits in 14 games. His 83 pressures led the NFL, via the Packers official website.

Green Bay was 9-3-1 when Parsons tore the ACL in his left knee during a December loss to the Denver Broncos. The Packers didn’t win another game and exited the playoffs in the opening round.

Parsons’ absence alone didn’t explain the decline.

Devonte Wyatt was also unavailable after breaking his fibula and tearing ligaments in his ankle. But the results still illustrated how much of Green Bay’s pressure plan flowed through Parsons.

Parsons produced 12.5 of the Packers’ 36 sacks last season. Gary added 7.5 before Green Bay traded him to Dallas in March for a 2027 fourth-round draft pick.

Together, the two edge rushers accounted for 55.6% of the team’s sacks.

Gary’s departure turned a temporary injury concern into a wider roster issue. Even after Parsons returns, Green Bay needs a trustworthy starter on the opposite edge.

The immediate timeline of Parson’s return isn’t clear-cut. Parsons said in June that he was following the medical staff’s nine-month rule after reconstructive ACL surgery and a meniscus cleanup.

That schedule could put him back on the practice field in late September, with game action coming after he completes the next stages of his rehabilitation.

Parsons is expected to begin the season on the physically unable to perform list, requiring him to miss at least four games.

“The goal has always been playoffs,” Parsons told Packers.com while explaining why he would not rush his return.

Packers Need Unproven Edge Rushers to Emerge

The Packers have more candidates than confidence behind Parsons.

Lukas Van Ness worked with the first-team defense during the offseason and is positioned for the largest opportunity of his career. The 2023 first-round pick recorded 1.5 sacks through five games last season before a foot injury disrupted his year.

He returned late and produced Green Bay’s only sack in its playoff loss. Van Ness has 10.5 sacks across his first three regular seasons and postseasons.

The Packers picked up his fifth-year option, but the former No. 13 overall selection must prove he can generate pressure as a full-time starter rather than a rotational option.

Barryn Sorrell, Brenton Cox Jr. and rookie Dani Dennis-Sutton are competing for work opposite Van Ness.

Sorrell produced eight tackles, one sack and a fumble recovery in a Week 18 start. Cox missed most of last season with a groin injury, while Dennis-Sutton enters the league as a fourth-round pick.

Green Bay signed Javon Hargrave to strengthen the interior.

The two-time Pro Bowl selection has 49 career sacks. In addition, he previously played his most productive football under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Hargrave recorded 3.5 sacks for the Minnesota Vikings last season, however, and cannot fill every role Parsons leaves behind. Wyatt is also returning from his significant injury after finishing third on the team with four sacks.

All in all, Green Bay’s opening stretch will reveal whether the pass rush can function without the three-time All-Pro.

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