Green Bay Packers superstar Micah Parsons is more than halfway through an intensive rehabilitation process following an ACL tear late in his first season with the team, but as it turns out, the health issues in his knee were even worse than that.
Parsons spoke with members of the media on Wednesday, June 3, during which he disclosed that he also underwent surgery to repair meniscus damage, per Rob Demovsky of ESPN. Parsons hit the five-month mark of his rehab on May 29 and noted that he has four more months remaining, essentially acquiescing that he will probably miss the first three or four games of the 2026 season.
“The goal has always just been not right now, but longevity with my career here. And I think they want that approach, and we have a pretty strong nine-month rule,” Parsons said. “Just through the research and the data, there’s no good outcomes with players coming back early from ACL, especially if you had another — other things that had to get fixed up.”
Micah Parsons Packers’ Defensive Equivalent of QB Jordan Love
GettyGreen Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love.
Green Bay bet bigger on Parsons last offseason than on any player since the team alienated future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers by selecting Jordan Love late in the first round in the 2020 NFL draft.
Love, as it turns out, paid off. Rodgers held the starting job for three more seasons, winning two MVPs along the way. The Packers then dealt him to the New York Jets at seemingly the perfect moment, transitioned to Love and have made the playoffs in each of the past three seasons.
Parsons is similarly important to Green Bay’s success on defense as Love is on offense, and the package of two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark, which the Packers sent to the Dallas Cowboys in return for Parsons last summer, appears to have clearly been worth it — even after his ACL tear.
During his first season in Green Bay and fifth campaign in the league in 2025, Parsons earned a spot in the Pro Bowl (his fifth time), first-team All-Pro honors (All-Pro honors, first- or second-team, for the fourth time) and finished top three (3rd) in Defensive Player of the Year voting for a fourth time.
Packers Dangerously Thin on Pass-Rushers in Micah Parsons’ Absence
GettyGreen Bay Packers edge-rusher Lukas Van Ness.
Parsons accomplished all that despite missing most of the preseason in Dallas due to his holdout, joining the Packers just days before their 2025 season opener and learning the system on the fly, then losing the last three and a half games of the campaign to the knee injury. He finished the year with 27 QB hits, 12.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss.
The news on Parsons’ health Wednesday was something of a mixed bag because of his outsized importance to a defense resetting in 2026 under new coordinator Jonathan Gannon. That Parsons is on track is excellent, particularly considering the revelation about his meniscus surgery.
However, that said track appears to destine him for the physically unable to perform list to start the season is a tough blow. Players who go on the PUP list must sit out at least four weeks and, in return, the team opens up a roster spot without having to cut the person in question. That means Green Bay is likely to play the first 25 percent of its schedule without its best defensive player.
Even more problematic is that Parsons plays a premier position, at which the Packers’ roster is dangerously deficient in his absence. The team dealt Rashan Gary to the Cowboys for a fourth-round pick this offseason, leaving 2023 first-round pick Lukas Van Ness as the top edge defender.
The problem is that Van Ness, when healthy, has not been particularly adept at pressuring opposing QBs off the edge with just 8.5 sacks across his three-year career. Thus, Parsons’ likely absence for the first month of the campaign necessitates that Green Bay pursue a veteran pass-rusher who can help both before, and after, his eventual return.
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