Paul Bretl | 6/6/2025
GREEN BAY, Wis. — The current year is always the most important year in the NFL. However, that sentiment feels particularly true for Lukas Van Ness, a former 13th overall pick in the draft, who is now entering his third NFL season after not taking that proverbial Year 2 jump in 2024.
Production-wise, Van Ness finished last season with 22 pressures, which were just two more than he had as a rookie, and three sacks–one less than he had in 2023. Compared to the rest of his position group league-wide, Van Ness ranked 90th in pressures. As the pressure numbers indicate, the consistency was lacking as well, with him ranking 78th in PFF’s pass rush win rate.
“I think it comes down to consistency,” Van Ness said after Tuesday’s OTA practice. “Being the same guy every single day, doing what’s asked of you with minimal mistakes and I think that confidence comes from trust and if you can get your teammates to trust you, you can get your coaches to trust you, and you have confidence in yourself then you’ll be able to go out there and play free.”
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When the Packers selected Van Ness in the first round of the 2023 draft, it was known that he was more of a raw prospect. He had played fewer than 1,000 career defensive snaps at Iowa, and the majority of his playing time, until that final season, had come at defensive tackle and not defensive end.
The upside and physical traits that Van Ness possessed were too good for GM Brian Gutekunst to pass up, but reps were needed. Along with navigating the learning curve that comes with being a rookie, Van Ness was also playing a relatively new position and was seeing a lot of looks, formations, and techniques for the first time.
Time to develop, gain experience, and grow was always going to have to be a part of the equation when it came to Van Ness making the transition to the NFL. But now, on the cusp of Year 3, time is becoming less of an asset with each passing season, and the need for results becomes more prominent.
“Just reflecting back on 2024, going into Year 3, again, the expectations are always going to be highest for myself,” Van Ness said. “I push myself very hard, and there’s got to be stronger, faster, more sound with my fundamentals, and ultimately impact the game as much as possible.”
Injuries won’t be an excuse, but they are a reality of playing in the NFL and have an impact. Van Ness revealed on Tuesday that he played through the first 10-11 games of last season with a broken thumb. As Rashan Gary described, “hands are everything” for a defensive lineman, and without them, “you don’t have nothing.”
Although Van Ness’ overall production last season was lackluster, he did improve over the second half of the season, which also happens to be when his thumb was in better shape. Of his 22 pressures, 13 of them came from Weeks 12 through 18. He also showcased more consistency, ranking 27th in win rate during that span, and he was 19th in pass rush productivity, an efficiency metric weighted more heavily towards sacks, or finishing the job.
“I think it’s just trial-and-error,” said Van Ness about improving. “As you said, it’s been a lot of adversity, coaching changes, broken thumb, and I think you just learn through those challenges and again, going into Year 3, having my first OTAs, a lot of learning, I’ve just been able to find some confidence in myself and my abilities and this is a mental game so youv’e got to keep that strong throughout the whole season.
While production can often be the ultimate litmus test for whether or not strides are being made, processes and how a player sees the game unfolding in real time are perhaps an accurate portrayal of what’s to come long-term. Production can ebb and flow at times, but having an understanding of the game and what’s coming will consistently put a player in a position to make plays.
An example of this for Van Ness came in the Packers’ Week 12 matchup against San Francisco. In that game, Van Ness caused a forced fumble, but that result is not what’s noteworthy. Instead, it’s the process to get to that point.
In the locker room afterward, Rashan Gary mentioned that a few series prior to the fumble, Van Ness had noticed something in how the offensive line was blocking off of play-action and how the defensive front should then attack it. Then, when San Francisco presented that look again, Van Ness knew exactly how to respond; he took advantage, won his rep, and finished the play.
“I just think there’s a different confidence level with him,” Matt LaFleur said of Van Ness this offseason, “and I think the whole group as a whole, just our ability to get off the football. I think we spent a lot of time on that, and those guys have taken the coaching and embraced it and have really worked at it.”
This season, compared to last, we could see a lot more movement from Van Ness. Due to his thumb injury last season, he was forced to line up primarily on the right side of the defensive line. In the two OTA practices that we’ve been able to attend, during the two-minute portion and with the second team defense, we’ve seen Van Ness lined up inside at defensive tackle. In those obvious passing situations, this is one way for the Packers to get more pass rushers on the field.
“It is a very different game from the inside to the outside,” Van Ness said, “but I like to take my mechanics from the edge and kind of bring them inside and use them to my advantage. So while there are some changes it’s more just a mental flip going inside and you kind of just know you’ve got a little bit less space to work with, your moves have to be a little bit quicker.”
It’s not only with Van Ness, but across the Packers’ entire defensive front, more steady pass rush production is needed this season. To help cultivate that improved play, as both Kenny Clark and Rashan Gary described, the defensive linemen have been gathering at Clark’s house during OTAs for film study.
Matt LaFleur also made an offseason move at defensive line coach to bring in DeMarcus Covington, who is bringing new ideas after getting his “master’s degree” in football while in New England under Bill Belichick.
“More than anything it’s just mentality,” Van Ness said of Covington. “Teaching us that we’ve got to be aggressive. Teaching us, up front, it all starts with, he always says it’s three things: It’s the start, it’s the fight zone, it’s the finish. And if you can do all those at a very high level, and he does say that effort can take away from those mistakes, so we’re just priding ourselves on playing fast and make plays in the backfield.
There will also be a tweak in technique up front regarding what the defensive line is asked to do. Instead of being all about pinning their ears back and getting off the ball, as Clark mentioned, things will more so resemble what we saw from this unit a few seasons ago, when the emphasis was on reading and reacting.
Not to be overlooked either, is the continuity that comes with being in Jeff Hafley’s defense for a second season. A year ago at this time, the new scheme was being implemented. Now, there is a far deeper understanding of the system, and not only from each player regarding what their individual responsibilities are, but what the roles are of everyone around them, how those different responsibilities intertwine, and how offenses may attack this Packers’ front based on how they are aligned.
The ceiling for this Packers’ defense will be determined by how good the pass rush is. When a quarterback is under regular duress, every level of the defense benefits from that, and moving the ball steadily becomes a real chore. So as GM Brian Gutekunst put it earlier this offseason, if the Packers are going to accomplish the goals that they have in 2025, more consistency up front is a requirement, and big step forward from Van Ness is going to be a key factor in that equation.
“Everything seems a lot cleaner,” Van Ness said of being in Hafley’s defense for a second year. “A lot more crisp, just having some consistency with the coaching, and then obviously bringing Coach Covington in and getting a little new flavor in there with him. But you can tell. I think again, we’ve still got a couple more weeks left of OTAs but I’ve been really proud of the way we’ve come together and we’ve played and it’s making me excited for this fall.”