GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Lukas Van Ness acknowledges his career hasn’t gone the way he expected when the Green Bay Packers selected him with the 13th overall pick in the 2023 draft.
Van Ness wants to change that trajectory. He certainly has the opportunity.
The Packers need someone to chase opposing quarterbacks while All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons misses the start of the season to recover from a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Van Ness’ status as a recent first-round pick makes him an obvious contender, but he has totaled only 8 ½ sacks over his first three seasons.
“It’s probably not been my ideal career if you would have talked to me in 2023 when I was a fresh rookie coming in here, but everyone’s got their own process and their own path,” Van Ness said this week during the Packers’ mandatory minicamp. “I’ve trusted the path. I feel really good about where I’m at.”
Van Ness had four sacks in a promising rookie season but had just three in 2024 and 1 ½ in an injury-shortened 2025. He played just nine games last season after getting carted off the field with a foot injury in an Oct. 12 victory over Cincinnati, though he had a sack in Green Bay’s playoff loss at Chicago.
Now he’s healthy again and hoping to fill a void for Green Bay, which went winless after Parsons’ Dec. 14 injury last season. The Packers traded Rashan Gary to Dallas and lost Kingsley Enagbare to the New York Jets in free agency, leaving them without many proven edge rushers as they await Parsons’ return.
They need Van Ness to live up to his draft position.
“I think pressure is a privilege to have,” Van Ness said. “We’re obviously in a blessed position where there’s people watching our spot and people are obviously going to have their own opinions, but at the end of the day I think you’ve just got to believe in yourself and believe in what you’re hearing in the building from your coaches and from your circle and other players in the defensive room.”
Those people have offered praise.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur says Van Ness has “shown a ton of growth” and points out that it’s typical for pass rushers to need some time to get going. Quarterback Jordan Love believes Van Ness is “in a great spot.”
“He puts the work in and he’s a guy that he’s always making practice hard on us,” Love said. “I think for him his get-off is what I’m noticing right now, his speed around the edge, so I’m excited about it.”
Parsons is perhaps Van Ness’ biggest booster. Parsons was discussing Green Bay’s pass rushers with reporters last week when he noted that “I definitely think I’m going to have my hands full with Luke on who’s going to be best,” assuming Van Ness stays healthy.
“I think Luke is someone that people sleep on the most, and I don’t know why,” Parsons said.
Van Ness said he appreciates having Parsons in his corner and notes that it speaks to the All-Pro’s character. Van Ness also cited support he received from Gary over the past few years.
“I think also being a first-round pick, coming in, (Gary) kind of had a similar career path that I did, had his ACL, dealt with injuries,” Van Ness said. “He was really just a guy who was able to get to a second contract, stayed on me with the motivation and my mental and to just keep everything positive.”
The Packers have exercised their fifth-year option on Van Ness, whose contract now runs through 2027. His chances of getting his own long-term deal depend on whether he can take a step forward.
He’s ready for the challenge.
“At the end of the day, I feel like talk is cheap,” Van Ness said. “You’ve just got to put it out there when it matters.”
NOTES: Former LSU and Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly attended Thursday’s practice. LaFleur worked for Kelly as a graduate assistant with Central Michigan in 2004-05 and as a Notre Dame quarterbacks coach in 2014. … Green Bay has its final round of organized team activities next week, but LaFleur said that would only be for rookies.
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