The Green Bay Packers have been exposed on defense in recent weeks after losing superstar edge-rusher Micah Parsons to a season-ending injury. Opponents are rolling through them, especially on the ground.
Unless something shifts quickly, the Packers will have to make some changes to their defense over the offseason. With an offense this young and efficient, they can't afford to let the defense drag them down.
That brings up a painful, yet obvious, decision. Green Bay could choose to release edge-rusher Rashan Gary and center Elgton Jenkins to free up some massive salary cap room.
Packers could save $32 million by releasing Rashan Gary and Elgton Jenkins in 2026
Coming into the season, Gary was expected to finally take the next step in his career. With Parsons drawing attention on the other side, he had the chance to dominate in one-on-one matchups. He followed through early in the year, racking up four sacks in the Packers' first three games.
Since then, he's struggled to make any sort of impact. He's been missing tackles, getting washed out in the run game, and failing to reach the quarterback consistently. In the last 13 games, he has just three sacks. For a while, it was easy for Gary to hide his lack of production behind Parsons' dominance.
The defense as a whole was still relatively effective, so his inadequacies were overlooked. But since Parsons went down, the issue has become obvious. Gary is not the star the Packers are paying him to be.
On the other side of the ball, Jenkins has been a problem since moving over to center. Even before the leg injury that cut his season short, he wasn't playing at the level Packers fans are used to seeing from him. He's already 30 years old, and the outlook following a major lower-body injury isn't encouraging.
That brings us to the decision facing the Packers. They can save just under $32 million in cap space if they release both players this offseason. Gary still has two years left on his contract, while Jenkins just has one.
This certainly isn't a decision to take lightly. Both of these players have been key pieces for the Packers in recent years. But at the end of the day, they aren't playing nearly well enough to warrant the cap hits they each carry moving forward. The Packers are better off using that money on acquiring new talent and paying the rising stars they already have.