Micah Parsons injury update offers clarity on his status ahead of Packers regular season opener and what it means for Green Bay
Edge rusher was at practice for the Packers on Monday.
The Green Bay Packers will likely have edge defender Micah Parsons on Sunday, in some capacity, against the Detroit Lions in the regular season opener on Sunday. It’s unclear how much Parsons will play, but an epidural injection to avoid pain is in consideration.
According to ESPN’s NFL insider Adam Schefter, Parsons is handling an L4/L5 facet joint sprain in his back. That’s the reason why the player wasn’t practicing for the Dallas Cowboys before the trade—in addition to the contract drama that ultimately led to his trade to Green Bay.
The Packers will not release an injury report until Wednesday. Nonetheless, Micah Parsons practiced on Monday on what seemed like a limited capacity.
“Looking at a couple reps that 1 [Micah Parsons] had today,” Rashan Gary said after practice, “it’s going to be real crazy and scary for teams.”
Because Parsons missed basically the entire training camp in Dallas, the Packers could be more cautious on how they utilize him against the Lions anyway. With Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness leading the rotation, it’s realistic to expect that the new acquisition will play a limited number of snaps, prioritizing obvious passing situations.
Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer had said before the trade that “it sounds like the MRI came back pretty clean” when asked about Parsons’ tests.
The Packers acquired Micah Parsons for two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. He immediately signed a four-year, $186 million extension with Green Bay—with extra $2 million available in incentives.
Edge group
Besides Parsons, the Packers defensive end room has Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness as previously expected starters. Kingsley Enagbare and Brenton Cox are the primary backups.
The position also got a reinforcement at practice on Monday. Rookie fourth-round pick Barryn Sorrell, still recovering from a sprained MCL, returned to the field. Fifth-round rookie Collin Oliver, who’s an edge/off-ball linebacker hybrid, starts the season on PUP and will miss at least four games.
The Packers face the Lions in a big NFC North matchup on Sunday at 3:25 p.m. CT. It’s the first time that the Packers open a regular season at Lambeau Field since 2018, when the head coach was still Mike McCarthy.
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