Paul Bretl | 8/31/2025
GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Packers trading for Micah Parsons was first reported on Thursday afternoon. He had his introductory press conference on Friday–just nine days before Green Bay opens the regular season at home against Detroit.
Up to this point, Parsons hasn’t been on the practice field yet this summer as he worked through a back injury and contract negotiations with Dallas. GM Brian Gutekunst said he was confident that Parsons’ back injury isn’t long-term and is something they’ll be able to work through quickly.
However, that doesn’t mean there won’t be a ramp-up period involved in Parsons’ acclimation process to Green Bay, which could impact Parsons’ workload in the season opener.
“I think we’re going to have to see,” Gutekunst said about Parsons’ workload Week 1. “We’ll have a chance to get him out there Monday and see where he’s at. Certainly, I think we’re hopeful that he’ll help us in some form or fashion in the opener, but I do think it’s on us to be smart and make sure that he’s ready to go.”
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The Packers players, including Parsons, will return to Green Bay and Lambeau Field on Sunday, following a few days off prior to the regular season getting underway.
On Monday, the team will be on the practice field, which will be the first time that Parsons will be able to participate this summer in some capacity, and it will give the Packers their first up-close look at the three-time All-Pro.
“I think more than anything we’ve got to get him here, we’ve got to see where he’s at,” Matt LaFleur said of Parsons. “I don’t believe he’s practiced so we’ve got to be very calculated with how we deploy him and just the number of snaps that he’s going to get.
“The first part of that is you’ve got to assess the situation and in order to do that you’ve got to have some sort of physical movement.”
Parsons joins the Packers after making the Pro Bowl four times in his first four NFL seasons. He’s also a three-time All-Pro, has recorded the most sacks since 2021, and has two 100-plus quarterback pressure seasons.
As the numbers and accolades illustrate, he is the ultimate disruptor. His ability to not only win but to do so as quickly as he does changes the calculus for opposing offenses. As LaFleur said from his own experiences, game planning for Parsons “keeps you up at night.”
So, regardless of what Parsons’ snap count total looks like in Week 1, this late addition to the Packers roster has thrown a huge curveball at the Detroit Lions, who now have to be fully prepared to see Parsons, who has the ability to alter a game even if on a reduced workload.
While the sacks and pressures will garner the attention–and understandably so–Parsons’ impact on this Packers’ defense will go well beyond his own column on the stat sheet.
As LaFleur described, offenses have to pick their poison, so to speak. If an offense is going to double-team Parsons, then that leaves Rashan Gary and others in one-on-one matchups. And if the opponent doesn’t double-team Parsons, well, the ball better be coming out hot.
There is also the versatility he brings to the defense, able to rush from multiple alignments, along with having played over 800 career snaps at linebacker, according to PFF. So it is not only Parsons’ game-wrecking abilities that have to be accounted for, but where he’s making those plays from will change as well, especially in Jeff Hafley’s defensive scheme.
“He says he’s got a lot planned for me,” Parsons said of Jeff Hafley. “I just got my iPad today (Friday). I’m going to look over it. I’m super excited. I know about his creativity. I’ve heard a lot.”
Even if Parsons were to be a full-go in Week 1, we still wouldn’t see the fullest extent of that versatility on display. That will come as he gets acclimated and comfortable with Hafley’s scheme.
Along with physically getting back on the football field, Parsons will be learning a new defensive scheme on the fly. There will be a lot of one-on-one time, said LaFleur, as the coaching staff works to get Parsons up to speed as quickly as possible. However, LaFleur is confident that Parsons will acclimate quickly.
So what will Parsons’ playing time look like against Detroit? Well, perhaps that is still to be determined after seeing how the week unfolds. I will also guess that the Packers will keep that a bit of a mystery throughout the week as well.
However, if you ask Parsons about his Week 1 workload, he feels good and wants to contribute right away. As he said, the Packers didn’t bring him here to sit on the sidelines.
“Physically, I’m great,” Parsons said. “I think I can contribute a lot. I’m going to team up with the doctors in creating a plan. We already talked about how we can ramp things up and get me into a flow where they feel comfortable and I feel comfortable.
“But my plan is to be here. They didn’t give up what they gave up for me to sit on the sidelines and make this big of a risk and change for me to do that, so I’m going to give them my all. “