Green Bay Packers 2023 first-round pick Lukas Van Ness received high praise from his newest teammate, Micah Parsons, after the Packers’ decisive 27-13 win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
“I think Van Ness is going to have his best year yet this year,” Parsons said, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.
The 6-5, 272-pound defensive end started off the season with a commanding presence. He tallied four tackles (one solo, three assisted) and shared a third-down sack with Rashan Gary. According to Pro Football Focus, Van Ness finished with four total pressures, two run stops and a stop after dropping into coverage.
Van Ness is building off a 2024 sophomore campaign where he was tied for second on the team with 27 quarterback pressures, per Next Gen Stats, despite playing with a broken thumb that limited his ability for the first 11 games of the year.
Over his first two NFL seasons and 793 defensive snaps, Van Ness tallied 7.0 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, and joined linebacker Clay Matthews as the only Packers since 2000 to post six or more tackles for a loss in both of his first two seasons.
Per Pro Football Reference, during his rookie year, Van Ness played 39% of all defensive snaps, and 39% in 2024, but he played 54% in the Packers’ Week 1 win in 2025.
Van Ness’ progress is even more impressive considering he played fewer than 1,000 total snaps in college at Iowa. After redshirting in 2021, over the next two seasons, he racked up 13.5 sacks, 19.5 tackles for loss and 71 tackles.
In the 2022 offseason, Van Ness spent a majority of his spring practice transitioning from defensive tackle to the edge, a decision that paid off in the long run now that he is slotted on the edge with Green Bay.
He is quickly becoming a key part of the Packers’ defense, and now with Gary, Parsons, and Van Ness sharing the defensive line, opponents will have to choose their battles among Green Bay’s top pass rushers.
“He’s selfless,” Parsons said. “Plays the run. Does everything. He’s the kind of guy you want to be around. I’m going to make sure he gets as many plays as possible.”
This could set the stage for a breakout season for No. 90 in green and gold.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Micah Parsons thinks Lukas Van Ness is primed for a breakout year
Reporting by Miles Jordan, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
