Green Bay Packers linebacker Micah Parsons is going to have a long road back after he tore his left ACL. Despite the extremity of this injury, he has not yet had surgery to repair it. This casts a shadow on his comeback for the 2023 NFL season. The surgery’s timing is very important. It will surely calibrate how early he’ll be able to get back on the field, and most prognostications say he’ll be out for the beginning of the regular season.
In Parsons’ case, as one of 16 players currently listed on the Packers’ injury report, that absence could be a long one. Offensive line Coach Matt LaFleur hasn’t made the details of Parsons’ injury public yet. He did concede that the player’s circumstances away from the pitch shaped their mentality throughout this period.
“I don’t want to get into the specifics,”
- Matt LaFleur
The Packers’ extensive recent experience with players recovering from ACL injuries provides some key clues as to what Parsons has in store. Christian Watson, an emerging star for the Packers, tore his ACL in the last week of last season. To his credit, he made a stunning return 294 days later. If Parsons follows a comparable return schedule, he should be back on the field by October 4. Wouldn’t that timing make for a great opening to Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season!
Elgton Jenkins made a similarly impressive return, playing only 302 days after his ACL tear. In the same way, Rashan Gary returned 308 days after tearing his ACL. The 2026 NFL season opens on September 10 with an anticipated Thursday night opener. Regardless of when Parsons has surgery, he is at risk of missing the first four to six games of the upcoming season.
Stephen A. Smith has little faith in the Packers’ Super Bowl ambitions this year. He thinks their Super Bowl hopes are suddenly slimmer without Parsons in the lineup. Their ultimate success as a team will be largely determined by how well they adjust and adapt to life without him. His value on defense and special teams certainly can’t be overstated.
That said, Parsons is certainly in stormy waters at the moment. LaFleur admitted that big changes are coming personally, as he gets set to welcome a second child to his home in the near future.
“He’s about to have another child here pretty quick,”
- Matt LaFleur
The timing surrounding Parsons’ surgery remains unconfirmed, making it difficult for fans and analysts alike to predict his recovery trajectory accurately. The Packers are going to have to overly monitor his day-to-day work. They are engaged and excited for what should be an extremely competitive season.
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