The Green Bay Packers didn’t just lose in Week 1. They let a game slip completely through their hands.
After building a 22-10 lead, Green Bay got rolled from there, giving up 29 straight points in a 39-22 loss that looked wrapped up before it unraveled. It was a brutal reminder that a new season hasn’t fixed the old problem: the Packers still can’t always finish.
That’s where Micah Parsons comes in, or rather, where his absence keeps showing up.
Since Parsons went down late last season with a torn ACL, Green Bay has gone 0-5. And while his overall impact is obvious, the Packers are missing him most when the game gets tight and the fourth quarter starts to bite.
That matters because Parsons was brought in to be exactly that kind of player. Green Bay paid two first-round picks to the Dallas Cowboys and then handed him a four-year, $186 million contract because he’s one of the game’s premier young pass rushers. If the Packers needed someone to get after the quarterback and change a game, Parsons was the answer.
He already proved it in Green Bay.
In Week 7, Parsons piled up three sacks against the Arizona Cardinals, including a late fourth-quarter sack that helped shut the door on a comeback and seal a 27-13 win. In Week 11, he came up with a strip sack on Jameis Winston to help the Packers hold off the New York Giants, 27-20. And in Week 13 against the Detroit Lions, Parsons had 2.5 sacks, with two coming on Detroit’s final drive and forcing the Lions to settle for a field goal in a 31-24 Packers victory.
That’s the part Green Bay is missing now: the closer.
Parsons was so tied to those late-game moments that the Packers even played “Enter Sandman” by Metallica when he came onto the field in the fourth quarter. The message was simple.
The job was simple. When Parsons was out there, the Packers felt like they had the finisher they needed.
Things changed once he suffered the torn ACL in Week 15 against the Denver Broncos. With his return timetable pushed to around October, Green Bay has been left trying to survive without its biggest defensive difference-maker.
The numbers from the four games after his injury, not including the Week 18 loss to the Vikings when the starters were rested, tell the story clearly. The Packers outscored their opponents 80-53 through the first three quarters, but they were outscored 74-9 in the fourth.
That’s not a small drop-off. That’s a collapse pattern.
Of course, Parsons isn’t the only reason games have slipped away. The players on the roster have to do more, and Matt LaFleur has to find better ways to close things out. But losing a player like Parsons removes the one guy who could change the mood of a final drive in an instant.
When he’s back, whether that’s Week 6 against the Dallas Cowboys or later, the Packers should feel a lot better about both winning games and actually finishing them.
In Other News...
Packers O-Line Issues Just Turned Into A Bigger Coaching Debate
The Packers opening-week loss quickly pushed the offensive line into the center of the conversation, and offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich tried to frame the problems as more about communication than anything structural. He said the choice to start Donovan Jennings at left guard came down to what the staff saw in practice, and he also left open the possibility of moving Anthony Belton back to guard as Green Bay continues to search for the right mix up front.
What makes the issue linger is that the discussion has started to bleed beyond the line itself. Stenavich and Matt LaFleur offered different explanations about how Tucker Kraft was used on one particular play, a small detail that points to a larger question about how cleanly the offense is being coached and executed. For a unit already under pressure after Week 1, those kinds of differences matter because they can reveal whether the problem is simply timing, or something deeper. [Read more 🡒]
Josh Jacobs Update Leaves Packers Facing A Serious Off-Field Question
Josh Jacobs has already played a central role in Green Bays offense, but his latest legal resolution puts the Packers in an uncomfortable spot off the field. The running back entered a no contest plea to two misdemeanor charges tied to a domestic disturbance case, resulting in a battery conviction and a $1,000 fine, while the property damage charge was handled through a deferred judgment arrangement.
The remaining issue now centers on what happens with the evidence from the incident itself. The victims legal team has asked to seal surveillance footage related to the case, and the Packers are left monitoring a situation that has moved beyond the courtroom but not fully out of the spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Aaron Rodgers Sent A Message Steelers Fans Will Love After Week 1
After Week 1 in Pittsburgh, Aaron Rodgers took a moment to reach across the aisle and salute a familiar face. The former Packers quarterback sent ZaDarius Smith a handwritten note after the Steelers game against the Falcons, praising the veteran pass rushers energy and the way he worked his way back into the action.
Rodgers and Smith spent three seasons together in Green Bay, so the message carried the kind of respect that usually comes from shared locker rooms and a few battles together. Smith had only recently signed with Atlanta after a brief retirement, and he played through a shoulder issue in the opener, a detail Steelers fans will appreciate even if the note itself was aimed at an old teammate. [Read more 🡒]