Can Someone Please Locate Rashan Gary?
At least statistically, the EDGE rusher isn’t earning his paychecks.
By Kevin Gibson
Has anyone seen Rashan Gary lately? He started the season looking as though everyone’s projections – that the presence of Micah Parsons would propel Gary into the monstrous pass-rusher the Packers envisioned when they signed him to a four-year, $107 million contract two years ago.
The money he’s making this season, including a $25,771,138 cap hit ($17,250,000 actual cash) this season, ranks him as the 13th-highest EDGE rusher in the NFL. Gary is only in the top 15 rushers in one major pass-rush category as we head into Week 14.
So what gives? There’s evidence that Gary is not getting quick pressure, meaning that when he does collect a sack or a pressure, he often is cleaning up someone else’s pressure. As an example, Micah Parsons chasing a quarterback right into Gary’s waiting arms after Parsons collects a quick pressure.
If we imagined a meet-at-the-quarterback scenario before the season began, we might actually be hoping for the return of Lukas Van Ness, who has a better quick-rush percentage (3.8%) when he has played this season than Gary (1.9%). For comparison, Parsons’ quick-pressure rate is 6.8% (these numbers are from NFL Pro).
Van Ness’s salary this season? $4.7 million in cap hit, $2.3 million in actual salary paid.
Getting back to Gary’s pass-rush rankings, he ranks 25th among EDGE rushers in assists, 19th in sacks with 7.5, 34th in hurries and 27th in total pressures, per Pro Football Focus.
Another ranking number also bears acknowledgement: Gary ranks 20th in total pass rush snaps. Paid in the top 15 but ranking only 20th, especially with both Brenton Cox Jr. and Lukas Van Ness on the shelf, isn’t great. Head Coach Matt LaFleur was asked about this just last week.
"I would say it's a byproduct of the game," was LaFleur’s response. "He's never been a huge snap count guy, if you look at the course of his career. But every game could unfold a little bit differently, and I think (Enagbare) has been doing a heck of a job. I'd say it's more a credit to how (Enagbare) has gone in there and done his job."
Gary hasn’t been a prominent name on the weekly injury report. It would seem that with two key contributors in the EDGE room out, Gary’s snaps would ramp up.
All this said, Gary remains effective at setting the edge against the run. Gary ranks just 35th among EDGE rushers with 176 total run snaps, but he ranks a respectable 15th in defensive stops – a play in which the offense is denied a first down or limiting yards gained on a given play. That ratio certainly shows efficacy, but that being the case, why not get him more run defense snaps since that seems to be a strength?
It’s confusing. By week 7, Gary was sitting at 7.5 sacks – he was on pace for a career year, the first ever for him to amass double-digit sacks. Going into Week 14, he still has tallied 7.5 sacks – not even a half sack on a cleanup to show for his efforts over six full games.
It will be fascinating to see how Defensive Coordinator Jeff Haffley divides the snaps at EDGE once Cox and Van Ness return – and don’t forget that rookie Barryn Sorrell is still in the mix, and fellow rookie Collin Oliver is set to return soon.
I count myself a Rashan Gary fan. But based on the personnel available going forward, we might be watching his last few games as a Packer. Green Bay could save close to $40 over the next two seasons by releasing him.
Here’s hoping he finds his way back into view before it comes to that.
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Kevin Gibson is a professional writer and author based in Louisville, Ky. He's also a former sports writer who covered high school, college and professional sports, a Packers shareholder and a fan since 1975. Even John Hadl couldn't break him. Follow him on Twitter: @kgramone
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Comments (40)
Ya_tittle
December 05, 2025 at 02:21 pm
Truth.
TKWorldWide
December 05, 2025 at 04:32 pm
R
KenEllis
December 06, 2025 at 06:29 pm
Now do LVN.
Gary deserves the flack he is getting.
But LVN is a borderline BUST.
HawkPacker
December 05, 2025 at 02:34 pm
I mentioned this a few weeks back. His play does not match his pay.
We are strong in the DE position and are paying too much for that position if you add all the dollars up for the position.
If we would trade or let Gary go, we could save some other positions because of the CAP savings.
After this year, something will need to be done to address the CAP as we will not be able to sign everyone.
Makes a lot of sense to me.
LeotisHarris
December 05, 2025 at 02:42 pm
Woah, it's Poster Engagement Day at CHTV. Start with a Gute is Great appetizer to rile up the masses, then follow with Gary Doesn't Earn His Money to keep the gastric juices flowing. Keyboards be flamin'!
You know, if you slide into the Steelers fan sites, there's quite a bit of venting about TJ Watt not earning his salary, *and* he's hurt too often. FWIW.
I'd like our elite DC to tell Rashan to set the effing edge
Starrbrite
December 06, 2025 at 06:04 pm
Yes—set the edge.
splitpea1
December 05, 2025 at 03:04 pm
Want to save lots of money and be able to re-sign a couple of your younger players? Release and/or trade Gary and Jenkins. Gary is taking up over 9% of the cap space next season, second to only Love. Unless Gary finishes in Green Bay with a big flourish, the Packers need to get better value here. The biggest question is who replaces him? Either your banking on internal options like LVN, Sorrell, and a re-signed Enagbare...or hoping to find a winner in the draft sweepstakes--possibly with an enhanced pick acquired from an aforementioned trade.
Ihappydirt
December 05, 2025 at 04:26 pm
Brenton Cox was looking good when they finally gave him a chance later last season, then he got hurt this year. Finally healthy this week.
SicSemperTyrannis
December 07, 2025 at 04:11 am
Just because Cox was taken off IR doesn't mean he's healthy. Give him 3 weeks to return to game condition and he has 2 games to play before the playoffs start, these are now or never moves for the season.
Leatherhead
December 06, 2025 at 11:46 am
I agree on Jenkins, absolutely. I think Gary is a core piece of a pretty good defense, just about all of which is signed for next year, and we should hang on for another year, because edge pressure is a premium quality that Gutekunst favors, and he's drafted and spent money accordingly. And it's working.
TruePackerBacker
December 05, 2025 at 03:19 pm
You know that saying "A Chrysler 300 looks like a Phantom until a Phantom shows up".... Welp, Parsons (Phantom) showed up.
NitschkeFromTheGrave
December 05, 2025 at 04:26 pm
That a good saying but the phantom (because of double coverings) should be opening opportunities for Gary as well as others.
Bearmeat
December 05, 2025 at 03:37 pm
He will be traded for a day three pick in April. Hes been meh since his acl and we’ve been asking for him to step up for over a year. It sucks but it is what it is.
dobber
December 05, 2025 at 03:49 pm
If they could count on a relatively cost-controlled LVN as being available and healthy, that's a real possibility...but I'd like to think they'd do better than a day 3 pick.
Bearmeat
December 06, 2025 at 01:40 am
With that contract? It‘s not terrible for a mid level pass rusher, but it‘s not good. That leaches his value. We‘ll be lucky to get a 4th. I‘d guess a 5. And I‘d still take it.
Resign Enagbare now for cheap if you can. Oliver, Enagbare and LVN is enough for DE #2.
dobber
December 06, 2025 at 06:25 am
They seem to like Sorrell at this point and he's been getting snaps as a rook. He could be a replacement for Enagbare. If I'm Enagbare's agent, I want to get him to FA.
True, the Gary contract and cap hits aren't ideal and the Packers need to clear some room under the cap, but Gary's contract has virtually no guarantees left and could be easily reneg'd to push the cash values around and make it pretty cap friendly for an acquiring team. It would help if Gary heated up some down the stretch.
Leatherhead
December 06, 2025 at 11:42 am
I think your description of him as a mid-level pass rusher isn't quite accurate. He's 15th in the league in sacks. He's not Parsons or Garrett, but he's a sack or 0.5 of a sack different from Hutchinson or Crosby, he's ahead of guys like McDonald and TJ Watt.
His contract/value...according to Spotrac
He's almost $26M against the cap this year. Next year, that will increase to $28M. An acquiring team would only be on the hook for about $18M of that, so yeah, he could be traded, and then we'd have to replace him.
On paper, Parsons/LVN/Enagbare/Oliver doesn't really look that bad, assuming they're all healthy. The Packers can run that 65/35 rotation. They could survive without Gary. What would he bring in trade? I have no idea. He'd be the best pass rusher on about half the teams in the league, and he's a solid run defender.
I'd prefer to keep him for one more year. It would cost us about $19M to keep him. He'd still be tradeable the next year. We are in the "Love Window", right now, and I don't think we should be trading away assets for somebody that MIGHT help us in the future.
Agree on resigning Enagbare. I've always thought he was a good player for us. He stays available, he plays special teams, he tackles, he runs well.
Coldworld
December 06, 2025 at 01:15 pm
Oliver is a designated rusher physically. He’s too light to be an every down player. He’s the 5th DE at best, capable of dropping into coverage and hopefully a STs stalwart. Enagbare is good against the run but he’s no threat to the passer. If we resign him it’s cheap.
LVN is a “lite” version of Gary. Good against the run but still no significant pass threat despite all the wishing. I do not think he’s getting a second contract based upon what he’s done. He either transforms or is going to start slipping down the order. Sorrell looks to have done promise in the LVN/Enagbare role and maybe some more upside as a rusher, but I don’t expect him to be a double digit sack guy. More a 6-8 and good run play if we are lucky.
Absent Parsons and Gary, the rest of the group has less sacks than Wyatt combined: 4 in 2/3 of a season. That’s not going to cut it. Sorell may help in future, Oliver is a situational source potentially, but the only guy who might scare a passer is Cox. That’s why he will play and he will be retained over others. If a player gets regular sacks no team releases them willingly (unless owned by Jerry Jones), even for a kings ransom).
If Cox performs like he did last year he will be a Packer next year and no rationalization will change that. You can find run players, but most teams can’t buy sacks. That’s why Gary has the 12 most (tied) this year in the NFL.
On 22 teams there no rusher above that level of sacks at all. Chicago is one: Sweat has 7.5. We have no other DE who has managed 2 sacks in 12 games. LVN has 1.5. Cox had 4 in 7 games last year. If he had only half that in 12 he’d be our 3rd biggest threat. Lose sight of that and you lose sight of football reality and risk nonsense.
We aren’t letting Gary go and paying Parsons the Sun and the stars only to roll out a line otherwise led by LVN and the rest. Cox might be the one player that could change that if he can live up to last year. If he is a true threat, then LVN could be carried as a less threatening Gary and ace run player, with Sorrell and Oliver behind.
dobber
December 05, 2025 at 03:42 pm
"Green Bay could save close to $40 over the next two seasons by releasing him. "
To paraphrase the great economist Bob McKenzie, "40 bucks is 40 bucks, eh?"
Take off, you hoser.
Coldworld
December 05, 2025 at 03:51 pm
Gary is our second best run defender on that front. Is that a defense? No, but it is at least a partial explanation since the period in question coincides with the absence of LVN. Wyatt, before his initial injury was the only interior run defender of note. The DEs other than Parsons primarily (including Enagbare) have been carrying a lot of the load. That inevitably affects their rush.
Starrbrite
December 06, 2025 at 06:07 pm
We don’t want/need a run defender on passing downs.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 03:55 pm
Omg. Quit dogging the guy..
He’s made big plays this season and season isn’t over. My prediction he will make big plays down the line.
He plays hard and will be a huge impact by the time I’m sitting in Santa Carla watching him get a sack.
Starrbrite
December 06, 2025 at 06:08 pm
Not dogging—simply asking for more.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 03:56 pm
He is not going any place next year….
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 03:57 pm
Who you going to get a new guy to draft and develop I don’t have time for that when the he’s in his prime.
JJ McCarthy is lucky he didn’t get sacked by him when he slipped out
TKWorldWide
December 05, 2025 at 04:38 pm
I’d love to hear Covington’s unfiltered description of Gary’s play over the last 6 (sackless) games.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 04:39 pm
Set the edge get the stop
It’s a long season boys and girls. He will have good numbers the rest of the way.
Wilment
December 05, 2025 at 05:09 pm
The knock on Gary when drafted was he took plays off......with Parsons often drawing 9 0f the eleven men on the field, Gary gets his share of one on ones....and doesn't get home.....the numbers dont lie, 46.5 sacks total by this midway through season seven. I thought for sure, with the addition of Parsons, he;d lead the team in sacks. Not so. Now, it's not fair to compare the two;Parsons is a freak of nature, as disruptive as Reggie White, Lawrence Taylor and Bruce Smith ever were. Teams passed on Gary, because in college, he didnt have that kind of motor.This should be the first year he has double digit sacks, but even with that, he might be trade bait at years end.. This is really an opportunity for him to shine, lets hope he dials it up a bit as we head down the stretch, GOPACKGO!
Leatherhead
December 05, 2025 at 05:42 pm
The guy is second on the team in sacks and QB hits, 8th in tackles. He's been available, which Van Ness has not. He plays the run and the pass. He's a starting DE on one of the league's best defenses.
It's amazing, with all these "not good enough players" (like Hobbs, and Walker, McDuffie, and now Gary), and guys like Wyatt and VanNess out injured, that we've achieved that. Is it really Micah Parsons and a supporting cast of 'not very good'??
I don't see it that way, of course. I think it's how the pieces fit together, and Gary fits pretty well, IMO, and contributes quite a bit to this good defense. Parsons is getting 80% of the DE snaps, Gary gets about 65%, and Enagbare is getting about 37.5%, and it'd be nice to actually rest Parsons some more. Hoping for VanNess.
As to "earning his salary"... please. Nobody put a gun to anybody's head when he signed the contract. He's stayed available, mostly, he hasn't done stuff that distracts from the team, he's been to practices and minicamps.......he's easily our second best DE, and the other DE is amazing. He's doing the job.
For 2026, he's expensive, which is going to deter anybody who might think about trading for him. After the 2026 season, we'd have less than $10M in dead money involved but we could save over $20M in salary and bonuses by releasing him.
He's the second best DE on one of the best defenses in the league, and he probably will be next year, too.
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Gutekunst values edge pressure and considers it a premium position. Upon becoming GM, he acquired the Smiths in FA and drafted Gary in the first round. Since then, he's added Enagbare, Van Ness, and Parsons. As a four man group, if healthy, this is the best DE group in the league.
Yes, we spend a lot on edge pressure, because Gutekunst thinks that's important. I think it'll continue to be important.
marpag1
December 06, 2025 at 12:27 am
Agreed. I'm not saying Gary is super awesome - he isn't - but people always undervalue having a 'two way' player at edge, and they almost always undervalue run defense in general. I suppose you could put a Collin Oliver type of dude out there and just ask him to try and burn around the edge every snap, but offenses are smart enough to see that, run at him and punish you for it. Gary doesn't really let you do that. Of course, I'd like more pressure, but there aren't many Reggies in the world.
I'd like to see what LVN could do rushing from the inside with Wyatt being out. Maybe that's something ...
Leatherhead
December 06, 2025 at 11:13 am
On sacks alone, he's 15th out of 64 starting DEs. And as you mentioned, he plays the run, too. He's a real good piece to our defense, and it's a shame that some "fans" can't see that.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 07:10 pm
Thanks Leather for backing me up.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 07:11 pm
The less snaps is better to keep fresh for the final push.
Snap the ball
December 05, 2025 at 07:14 pm
Most of these writers don’t go to the games live. It’s a lot different from tv
If they do go. They are in the warm seats drinking coco
PackfanNY
December 05, 2025 at 07:38 pm
Too often Gary is pushed wide up the field and he can’t seem to find his way back to the QB. Last year I thought he got doubled. This year? No excuses. Parsons is often triple teamed yet Gary seems invisible at times. The results are just not matching the expectation.
Leatherhead
December 06, 2025 at 11:08 am
Why does he need excuses? He's second on the team in sacks and tackles for loss.
He's 15th in the league in sacks. That's as many, or more, than Montez Sweat and TJ Watt and Will Anderson, among others.
I don't see the need for excuses. He's obviously producing quite a bit. There are 64 starting DEs in the NFL; Parsons is 3rd and Gary is 15th. What else are you expecting!!
LLCHESTY
December 06, 2025 at 11:48 pm
"He's 15th in the league in sacks."
You really felt the need to say it four times in one thread? About four of those sacks were clean up sacks that Parsons caused, once Parsons started getting home with more regularity Gary's sacks dried up. I think he'll still get to 10 sacks on the year and his trade value will never be higher. If he can bring in another day 2 pick and a conditional they should take it, the holes at OT and CB are too big not to add picks.
Dragon5
December 05, 2025 at 10:03 pm
I was at the Luke Combs concert in Green Bay when Gute drafted Gary. Even Gute's superb 1st round draft bust pedigree could not derail that phenomenal concert.
Tundraboy
December 06, 2025 at 12:05 am
Left some of his game at the Vince Lombardi
Park and Ride on the NJ Tpke , I suppose? What me worry? He will be back in form soon enough when it's all hands on deck.
LambeauPlain
December 06, 2025 at 07:33 am
Need run defense tomorrow...lots of it. Fortunately Gary is a solid run defender. I think he will have a big game.
Then Cory will be taking credit for the performance.