The Green Bay Packers are a strong fit for pass-rusher Joey Bosa, particularly given Micah Parsons‘ likely absence for the first month of the regular season, but the five-time Pro Bowler might not be playing anywhere in the NFL in 2026.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reported in June that Bosa is more likely to retire than play another snap of professional football. However, Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated offered a sliver of hope in his analysis on Thursday, July 2 that Bosa might return and that Green Bay might be his destination of choice.
“Bosa might be leaning toward retirement,” Huber wrote. “Then again, you never know what he’d say if he got a phone call at the end of training camp.”
Bosa struggled with injury issues and availability a few years back, but he’s been on the field and relatively productive over each of the past two campaigns, including a league-leading five forced fumbles in 2025.
“He had five sacks and 16 quarterback hits last season,” Huber continued. “Of 86 edge-rushers with at least 225 pass-rushing opportunities, he ranked 20th in pass-rush win rate and 32nd in pass-rushing productivity, a PFF metric that combines sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap.”
Bosa is also going to play at just 31 years old if he returns next season. And Spotrac projects his market value at $27.5 million over a new two-year contract.
Several NFL Analysts Have Suggested Joey Bosa Join Packers
GettyFormer Buffalo Bills pass-rusher Joey Bosa.
Huber joined the likes of ESPN’s Mina Kimes and Bill Barnwell as well as Jacob Infante of Pro Football Network among the ranks of analysts who have suggested a union between Bosa and the Packers this offseason.
“I don’t know if there’s a more load-bearing player in the NFL right now than Micah Parsons,” Kimes said during a podcast in May. “This is a thin group.”
“There are a lot of edge guys left,” Barnwell responded. “There is Joey Bosa.”
Infante also noted the Packers’ trade of Rashan Gary to the Dallas Cowboys earlier this offseason in his argument for Bosa to Green Bay.
“Gary is no longer on the Green Bay Packers. This absence propels 2023 first-round pick Lukas Van Ness into their starting lineup,” Infante wrote in May. “[Van Ness has] also only combined for 8.5 sacks in his three seasons with the Packers. They drafted Dani Dennis-Sutton in Round 4, but he’s a raw technician who should be strictly in backup territory as a rookie.”
“Bosa would give Green Bay the reliable rotational piece they lack off the edge, while serving as a much-needed insurance policy for Van Ness,” Infante continued.
San Francisco 49ers Could Be Competition for Joey Bosa
GettyPass-rusher Nick Bosa of the San Francisco 49ers.
Schefter noted the San Francisco 49ers as a potential landing spot for Bosa, as his brother, Nick Bosa, is an elite pass-rusher with that franchise.
However, the ESPN insider contended that if such a development was going to happen, it probably would have already.
“Now, again, could a situation like the 49ers come along that entices him enough to come out and play again? Yeah, absolutely,” Schefter said. “But the fact of the matter is, I think if the Niners wanted to pair [the Bosa brothers] together, it probably would have happened already. I think if Joey Bosa wanted to play football, it probably would have happened already.”
Insider Offers Hope Packers Replace Micah Parsons With 5-Time Pro Bowler