The Green Bay Packers‘ loss to the Denver Broncos couldn’t have been more devastating.
While wide receiver Christian Watson avoided a significant injury, losing All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons, who had played his way into the fringes of the MVP conversation and was one of Green Bay’s most dominant players, to a torn ACL could prove to be calamitous.
Losing Micah Parsons could be disastrous for the Packers’ season
With Parsons, the Packers had legitimate sights on making a deep run at winning the Super Bowl, but with him sidelined, even winning a playoff game could prove to be a struggle.
NFL Media’s Eric Edholm points out that Sunday’s loss to the Broncos was among the most damaging that any team has suffered across the league, and not just in the standings.
“Parsons is obviously the biggest blow,” Edholm writes of the Packers’ loss in Denver. “Losing his pass-rush juice just takes a lot of the teeth out of this defense. It’s still a capable unit without him, but it’s fair to ask if Green Bay is capable of making a Super Bowl run now. The loss knocked the Packers out of the NFC North lead, handing it back to the Bears and shifting Green Bay into the final playoff slot for now. It’s tough to understate how damaging this game was, even with the Pack having a chance to sweep the Bears this Saturday.”
Without Parsons, defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is going to need to dial up the blitz more consistently, especially given that Rashan Gary has a pass-rush win-rate below 10 entering Week 16.
The Packers have the opportunity to clinch a postseason berth this weekend, but without Parsons, it could prove difficult to make a deep run in the playoffs after entering Week 15 as the division leaders with sights set on potentially even winning the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
What a difference one disastrous loss can make.
