There’s no other way to put it: the Green Bay Packers are staring at a nightmare. Injuries mounted on both sides of the ball in Denver, capped by Micah Parsons’ season-ending knee injury during Green Bay’s 34–26 road loss to the Broncos.

Parsons leads the Packers this season in sacks, pressures, hurries and quarterback hits. He was the heart and soul of the defense, and the truth is, Green Bay won’t be able to replace him. He’s a generational player, and those don’t come around often. Now, the Packers must move forward on a short week, capped by a Week 16 Saturday matchup against the Chicago Bears in the Windy City.

Today’s Hottest Take: The Packers can still be a top defense without Micah Parsons

Losing Parsons hurts — a lot — but let’s not forget what this defense has already shown it can be. Last season, Green Bay finished as a top-10 unit in nearly every major advanced metric: fifth in EPA per play, fifth in total EPA, sixth against the pass and seventh against the run, and they did that while Parsons was still terrorizing quarterbacks for the Dallas Cowboys.

Now, Jeff Hafley may need to adjust some of the dynamics within his unit. Losing Parsons removes the defense’s most reliable source of disruption, and that changes everything up front. Last season, when Parsons wasn’t part of the picture, Green Bay’s pass rush struggled badly, finishing as a bottom-10 unit in pass rush win rate. Without a player who consistently wins one-on-one, Hafley will likely need to be more creative with how pressure is generated.

What You Need to Know: Expect Green Bay to blitz more moving forward

The Packers entered Week 15 with a 19.6% blitz rate, ranking 29th in the NFL, largely because they were able to create pressure without committing extra defenders. With Parsons likely done for the year, that approach may no longer be sustainable. Expect Green Bay to manufacture pressure more often, which likely means a noticeable increase in blitz frequency moving forward.

One of Hafley’s strongest traits as a defensive mind is his creativity, and that quality will be tested even more without Parsons. With Green Bay no longer able to rely as heavily on its base pressure packages, Hafley will need to dig deeper into his bag of tricks to keep the front seven disruptive and unpredictable.

That could mean leaning more on linebackers as part of the pass rush. Quay Walker and Edgerrin Cooper have both been more effective when used as blitzers, particularly in timely, well-disguised pressures. Without Parsons, Green Bay may need to feature those looks more often, using second-level pressure to compensate and prevent opposing quarterbacks from getting too comfortable in the pocket.

Before You Go: Rashan Gary needs to answer the moment

The upcoming stretch is a career-defining one for Rashan Gary. With Parsons done for the year, Gary now becomes the focal point of the Packers’ pass rush. A first-round pick in 2019, he has yet to record a double-digit sack season, and last year, he ranked 31st among edge rushers in total pressures. He signed a four-year, $96 million extension in 2023, and it’s time for his production to start matching Green Bay’s investment. With the opportunity in front of him, the timing couldn’t be better.

The opportunities will be there. If you’re Gary, this is your chance to show you can step into the void left by a generational pass rusher. It’s a chance to prove you belong in the conversation among the league’s top edge defenders — and that Green Bay’s investment in you was justified. If there was ever a moment to define your career, this is it.

Green Bay’s Super Bowl odds will undoubtedly take a hit with Parsons sidelined for the year, but this team should still be firmly in the playoff picture. From here on out, it’s going to take a true all-11 effort on defense. No one player can replace Parsons, but collective execution, communication and complementary pass rush will determine how much his absence is ultimately felt.