Micah Parsons' return date remains a concern for the Green Bay Packers. His ACL tear means missing early 2026 games, amplifying roster gaps.
There should not be an expectation for the Green Bay Packers to get Micah Parsons back for the start of the 2026 season.
Parsons tore the ACL in his left knee on December 14 of 2025, against the Denver Broncos. He had surgery a few weeks later, on December 29.
The typical recovery for a pro athlete coming back from a torn ACL is about nine to 12 months.
The best-case scenario would obviously be nine, which would have Parsons coming back on September 29, 2026. At that point, the Pack could have already played four games.
That's why when reporter Matt Schneidman of The Athletic said recently that Parsons isn't expected to come back until after the first three or four games, he had to remind people that he wasn't reporting anything new.
In fact, back in January, Parsons basically said the same thing.
"In September I want to be at a really good spot," Parsons said. "So far, they say I'm fine. So whatever that means. There's a timing standpoint they want. I don't think I'll be on IR to start the season. I think, lofty, I'd be saying Week 1. But realistically, probably like Week 3, Week 4, just to make sure and just getting back into football."
This was always going to be the case, so those breaking news alerts on X or your favorite social media platform are simply just trying to catch a bit of attention during a slow period in the offseason.
Heck, perhaps we are too.
The thing is, while this isn't new news, it's not an overwhelmingly positive reminder of what the Packers could look like to start the 2026 season.
Right now, their starting edges are Lukas Van Ness (1.5 sacks last season) and either Brenton Cox Jr. (1.0 sack in 2025), Barryn Sorrell (1.5 sacks) or Collin Oliver (one tackle, no sacks).
That's four combined sacks in a unit that will be missing 12.5 sacks (and perhaps counting if he didn't get injured) from Parsons for three or four weeks. That's not to mention Rashan Gary (underwhelming as he was) being gone and Kingsley Enagbare going to the New York Jets in free agency.
Parsons will be back, and hopefully he's back and better than ever.
Counting on Van Ness and some young guys with upside is not a winning strategy when it comes to replacing Parsons' production in the first month of the season, though.
Whether it's via the 2026 NFL Draft or the "second wave" of free agency, the Packers still have work to do on the edges.
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