The Packers are still waiting on Lukas Van Ness to look like the player Green Bay has been hoping for, and the patience meter feels like it’s getting low.
After opening the season with 2.5 sacks in his first two games, Van Ness has gone quiet over his last three outings. That dip has stood out even as the Packers have had trouble generating heat on the quarterback in recent weeks, including in a blowout win over the Chicago Bears. For a player whose career has already been defined by flashes of real upside mixed with uneven stretches, the latest slide fits a familiar pattern - and that’s part of the problem.
Van Ness has entered what amounts to a make-or-break stretch. He’s now in his fourth year, still on his rookie contract, and Green Bay has kept him around in part because of the belief that his promise could eventually be unlocked in the right defensive environment. But if the current level of production holds, this could end up being his last season with the Packers.
The situation is made more frustrating by the circumstances around him. Micah Parsons has been on the shelf, and no other premier edge-rushing threat has stepped forward in the way Green Bay needs.
Van Ness has had a chance to take advantage of that opening, and so far he hasn’t done it. At the same time, there’s an argument that when Parsons returns, the path to production could get easier for Van Ness.
Even with the sack numbers missing, Van Ness has still gotten some work done in the backfield. He’s logged 16 pressures, which ranks 21st among qualifiers. That at least gives Green Bay something to hang onto, because the underlying pressure numbers leave room for a late-season surge that could change the conversation entirely.
That’s the hope. The reality is that the Packers need a steadier answer opposite Parsons, and Van Ness has not yet shown he can be that player.
If he doesn’t turn things around over the next few weeks, Green Bay may start looking elsewhere. For now, his future in Green Bay is very much in question.
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The projections for the game lean into that idea, with Green Bays edge rush and ground game viewed as the clearest paths to control. A breakout night from one young pass rusher would go a long way toward changing the feel of the matchup, and the same can be said for a tight end who has already become a steady part of the offense. If the Packers are going to come out on top, they may need both of those elements to show up in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]