In case you've been in a cave the last 24 hours, the Packers have traded with the Dallas Cowboys for premier pass rusher Micah Parsons. While the trade secured possibly the best defensive player in the NFL and Super Bowl expectations, the deal was bittersweet.
The Packers gave up standout Defensive Tackle Kenny Clark in the deal.
Clark was the last 1st Round Pick former General Manager Ted Thompson ever made at 27th Overall; and he was a cornerstone in the franchise until just the other day. With his departure, that leaves a hole on the defensive line. Still, you could argue that perhaps General Manager Brian Gutekunst had orchestrated that Clark would be leaving Lambeau sooner than later, with six other interior defensive linemen on the team between the active roster and the practice squad. In Gutekunst's defense, Clark did have a down year in 2024, suffering from a broken foot and now entering his age-30 season. The Packers were always known to try and let a player go early before keeping them too long, and perhaps the Packers just wanted to cover themselves in case 2025 wasn't much better. Alas, we'll never know, at least not firsthand, with Clark now shipped off to Dallas (We'll miss you, friend).
Devonte Wyatt will arguably be DT1 for the Packers' defense, but who'll be alongside him? Head Coach Matt LaFleur even struggled to answer that question when on the podium, but the current crop of defensive tackles includes Karl Brooks, Colby Wooden, Warren Brinson, and Nazir Stackhouse.
If I had to say right now, Brooks has the inside track to the job, but Wooden played his heart out in preseason. Was it because he felt the pressure from Brinson and Stackhouse, or was he genuinely trying to demand more reps on D? I doubt any of them ever saw the possibility of Clark getting traded, so it's anyone's guess.
Brooks and Wyatt, in my opinion, are roughly in the same mold as players. Still, Brooks seems to have more versatility as he occasionally flashed in former DC Joe Barry's 3-4 and continued to do so under current DC Jeff Hafley. Wyatt, on the other hand, looked like a switch to the 4-3 was the only way to justify his selection as a former 1st Round Pick. Both are in their elements when pushing the pocket, but stopping the run at a high level...the jury might still be out on that. Can Hafley thrive with these two in base D? Maybe, if Wyatt and Brooks can demand double teams consistently it will allow the 2nd level to clean up, but I'm not entirely sure if they'll blow up ther run consistently on their own. This combo could be better suited to pass-first situations.
Would Colby Wooden be an ideal DT2? Despite his good preseason, Wooden seemed to be a bit of a liability against the run last year, which might be due to his leaner frame. I love his hands and tools, but I need to see him winning consistently against the 1s before I can trust him.
That leaves us with the rookies Warren Brinson and Nazir Stackhouse, the two former Georgia Bulldogs. All we have is the preseason, but looking at tape, I give Brinson the slight edge, as he was the one drafted, and Stackhouse was an UDFA. I like the raw strength, strong hands, and at times instincts I observed from Brinson. At 6'5, 315, Brinson may, by default, find himself the de facto DT2 on earlier downs and short yardage situations. I won't say he has a nose for the run, but he did show the ability to shed blocks and clog the rushing lanes. As for Stackhouse, at 6'4, 327 he's a mountain of a man, but he'll need to develop some kind of pass rush plan with better hands. As a run stuffer, he can definitely demand the double team and clog up the lanes, but his imposing size won't be enough like it was in the SEC. Better NFL offensive linemen will require more to get through their sets.
One last wildcard, Lukas Van Ness. At Iowa, he was known to rush from the inside, but that's not necessarily his niche in the NFL. But if the initial rotation doesn't work, perhaps they plug him in to see how he does. But I don't think that's in Van Ness' best interest. He's already had to navigate two position switches, two position coaches, and a scheme change. While it won't be entirely unnatural, I don't think it's best for his long-term development.
So where does that leave us? That's a question anybody can take a stab at right now. But if I had to guess it'd be something like this:
Early downs: Wyatt & Brinson (Brooks alternate)
1st/2nd and long, 3rd down: Wyatt and Brooks (Wooden alternate)
Short yardage: Wyatt and Stackhouse (Brinson alternate)
Emergency/Injury replacement: Van Ness (If necessary)
Do the Packers have a DT2? Probably not at the moment, but Micah Parsons changes A LOT for this defense. It'll be interesting to see how LaFleur & Hafley navigate that conundrum. I guess I've already got my first 2026 Draft assignment.
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.
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