It's hard to argue that edge defender Rashan Gary is the most valuable defensive player for the Green Bay Packers. Over the last two years, the defense has missed its two most important pieces, Gary and cornerback Jaire Alexander, for stretches, and it was much more difficult to replace the passer rusher. Last year, the Packers dropped from 2nd to 28th in pressure rate after Gary's knee injury.

Back from the ACL issue, Gary has been as productive as ever, and it's obvious that he deserves a big-time extension.

Just two defensive players are above 25% in pressure rate so far this year: Bryce Huff, from the New York Jets (29.9%), and Gary (26.3%). He's right ahead of Micah Parsons and Myles Garrett, widely seen as two of the most valuable defensive players in the entire NFL.

Extension talks

Rashan Gary is playing under the fifth-year option of his rookie contract. His base salary is $10.89 million. The Packers can extend him whenever they agree to a deal, and it would be possible to even open cap space in 2023 depending on the structure of the new contract. The amount of which the Packers can open is reduced every week, but it's still viable to finalize an in-season extension. And Gary's side is open to that scenario.

"Our plan is to operate professionally and remain open to reasonable contract offers in every phase of his career," Gary's agent Ian Clarke told The Athletic.

Recently, the San Francisco 49ers gave Nick Bosa a five-year, $170 million extension — $34 million on yearly average. But they are on different levels. Bosa was the defensive player of the year last season, and the defensive rookie of the year in 2019. He entered this season with 43 sacks throughout his career. Deservedly so or not, he's never been an All-Pro or a Pro Bowler, and he entered the season with 22.5 sacks.

According to Spotrac's market value tool, Gary is expected to make $26 million per year on his new extension — $104 million over four seasons.

The problem is that there are other edge defenders from the same 2019 draft class looking for extensions: Brian Burns with the Carolina Panthers, Josh Allen with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Montez Sweat with the Washington Commanders. And the more the time passes, the easier it becomes for one or more of these players to get paid. And if any of them gets paid, Rashan Gary will most likely surpass their total value. Gary and his representatives know that, and that's why they have been patient throughout the process and are in no hurry to get a deal done.

Usually, the Packers don't like to execute extensions much before when they have to. However, Gary is in the last year of his deal. If they aren't able to find a common ground before the end of the season, Green Bay will have a short window to negotiate, or the front office will have to apply the franchise tag on Gary. The tag is expected to be $20.9 million, and all the money immediately hits the cap in 2024. With an extension, it's possible to structure the deal in a way to alleviate the hit early on.

And if the Packers are forced to make a deal to avoid the tag or wait until after the other edge rushers are signed, they might end up giving Gary something closer to $30 million per season.

Rashan Gary is young, plays at a premium position, is extremely productive, and is a positive leadership for the roster. The ACL recovery was the last hurdle before signing the extension, and he's passed it. It's time for the Packers to pay him, and the more they wait, the more expensive it will be.

ESPN predicts what a contract extension for Packers LB Rashan Gary will look like

The Green Bay Packers aren't a franchise that typically makes a big splash in the free-agent market, but that doesn't mean they don't spend. Green Bay's philosophy is to draft well and pay their own players, instead of relying on the free-agent market for roster upgrades. That's why it seems extremely likely that linebacker Rashan […]