When the Minnesota Vikings host the Green Bay Packers in their 2026 regular season opener at U.S. Bank Stadium, the offense is likely going to find things significantly easier than they ordinarily would have.
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network is reporting that Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons has made it clear that he will begin the season on the Packers’ Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) List. By rule, that means he would miss the first four games of the regular season at a minimum, which means that he will be unavailable for the regular season opener in Minneapolis.
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Unless he’s bluffing. I mean, it wouldn’t be the first time someone hasn’t been entirely honest about their injury status, right?
Parsons suffered an ACL tear and other injuries to his knee in a game against the Denver Broncos late in the 2025 regular season, causing him to miss the Packers’ last few regular season games as well as their playoff loss to the Bears. The Green Bay defense was significantly different without him on the field, as you would well imagine, and now it looks like the Packers will have to make do without him for at least part of the early portion of the 2026 regular season.
The Packers acquired Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys ahead of the start of the 2025 regular season for a package that included a pair of first-round draft choices, in addition to a monster contract extension for Parsons. He was having an outstanding season for the Packers prior to his injury and made things miserable for the Vikings when they made their trip to Lambeau Field in November as well.
As much as you’d like to beat opposing teams when they’re at their best, I don’t think any Vikings fan is going to be too sad to not see Micah Parsons lining up across from the Vikings’ offensive line when the regular season opens in September.
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