A serious injury like Rashan Gary suffered in 2022 has a big impact for months and even years ahead. Last year, the edge defender was still in the recovery process, didn't participate in 11-on-11 practices until August 22, and his presence in week 1 was uncertain until the last minute.

Now, Gary is relieved to be fully healthy. That allows him to work on his game and on learning Jeff Hafley's system instead of rehabbing.

"I actually missed this," Gary said during the mandatory minicamp last week. "Having an offseason to do what I need to do, work on parts of my game that I really didn't have time to work on last year, it's very important."

That's significant for the Packers defense, obviously. Not only because Gary can get even better, but also because he can actually be on the field more. In 2023, he played only 52.84% of the defensive snaps, much less than the 68% and 70% he had put in the two previous seasons — considering only the games in which he played.

Part of that was a coaching staff approach trying to limit the starters' physical wear and tear. Preston Smith also played a relatively low percentage of total snaps (65.89%). But Gary, younger and more productive, could have played much more frequently.

Last season, Gary didn't surpass 30 defensive snaps in the first five weeks of the season. In week 1 against the Chicago Bears, he was on the field for just 12 plays. But even when he was fully healthy later in the season, his usage was limited. Gary surpassed 70% of the defensive snaps in a game only once in 2023, and it was in week 18 against the Bears.

Now fully healthy and with a new defensive philosophy, Rashan Gary expects to be even more impactful.

The first part of that process is understanding how to play in Jeff Hafley's scheme. Transitioning to a 4-3 defense that expects its edge rushers to play more with the hand in the ground, Gary is excited with the mindset required to be effective now.

"Attack, attack, attack. Aggressive, and I'm loving it. I’m loving it," Gary said. "Really just pin your ears back, relax and play."

Challenge

Rashan Gary has regularly been mentioned among the most efficient rushers in the NFL. Last year, the week 1 game against the Bears was a great example. He had five pressures in 10 pass rush snaps.

But if you look at the volume numbers, they are simply not there — Gary hasn't had a 10-sack season yet in the NFL.

Last season, his worst game by PFF grade was against the Minnesota Vikings in week 8 (50.4), and that's exactly his season-high with 46 defensive snaps. His best game was against the Detroit Lions in week 12 (91.9), where he played only 51% of the snaps — even though it was 43 total snaps, that was a long game for the defense.

Fully recovered from the ACL injury, Rashan Gary has time to learn the new scheme and practice at full throughout the entire training camp. Now, it's his year to be on the field a lot and keep the efficiency numbers to transform them into volume for the first time.

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