Reunited with Jonathan Gannon, Javon Hargrave looks to recapture his elite form and provide a crucial interior pass rush for the Green Bay Packers.
We're officially 27 days from the start of the 2026 NFL season for the Green Bay Packers. Whether you're ready or not, football season is here.
The Packers kick off their 2026 season against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Sept. 13, from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Talk about pressure. The Vikings are certainly in a transitional place as a franchise, but getting going against an NFC North foe ratchets up the intensity of this season from the get-go.
It's a big season for the Packers. There's a belief that they're in a Super Bowl window right now, which means every single game is important. That means the intensity will be there in Week 2 at MetLife Stadium against the New York Jets and it will certainly be there in Week 3 against the Atlanta Falcons, when the Packers will play at Lambeau Field for the first time in 2026.
There's going to be a lot of proverbial ink spilled on this 2026 season and we here at PackersRoundtable hope that you spend as much time as possible with us talking about the ins and outs and ups and downs of the Packers.
As we prepare for the 2026 season, though, we're going to kick things off with a rankings series looking at the Top 50 Packers heading into the 2025 season.
At No. 27, we have defensive lineman Javon Hargrave
Ranking the Top 50 Packers Heading Into 2026: No. 27, Javon Hargrave
Nov 2, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) is brought down by Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman Javon Hargrave (97) in the third quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images.Javon Hargrave was the Packers' big (literal) offseason addition. They gave him a two-year, $23 million contract as a free agent after he was cut by the division rival Minnesota Vikings as a cap casualty.
The Packers aren't putting all their eggs in the Hargrave basket because he is a 33-year old defensive tackle who has undoubtedly passed his prime.
They are hoping they can get one more push out of Hargrave, though, especailly since they're pairing him back up with defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon.
Hargrave spent three seasons earlier in his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and Gannon was his defensive coordinator in two of those seasons. In those two campaigns combined (2021 and 2022), Hargrave notched 123 tackles, 18.5 sacks, 19 tackles for loss and 34 quarterback hits. Gannon got the head coaching job with the Arizona Cardinals because of the strength of his defense in that 2022 season, and Hargrave was a big part of it. In fact, 11 of those 18.5 sacks came in 2022.
Hargrave isn't that player anymore, but the Packers are hoping that the familiarity with Gannon could help him even get half of that sack total in 2026 and that would be a huge boost.
2025 Synopsis:
Hargrave played in 16 games for the Vikings, starting 15. He totalled 52 tackles, 3.5 sacks, four tackles for loss, and six quarterback hits.
Notable Quotables:
"Team-first guy, loves football, smart, and he works his butt off and he's tough as nails. Anybody that kind of checks those boxes, you want to acquire them if you can. He checked all those boxes. I'm excited to get back with him." - Jonathan Gannon
Projected Role in 2026:
Hargrave is going to be one of the starting defensive tackles on this team alongside Devonte Wyatt. If he can have a season where he can turn back the clock a little bit and get five-to-seven sacks, he'll be a tremendous signing for the Packers.
Previous Rankings:
