The Green Bay Packers were able to avoid cutting Rashan Gary and procured a fourth-round pick for him from the Dallas Cowboys instead, but the question of who will replace him remains a pertinent one less than a month out from the NFL draft.
Micah Parsons is liable to miss up to the first month of the upcoming season as he recovers from surgery to repair the ACL he tore late last year, per Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. As such, the Packers defense will rely on Lukas Van Ness and a host of lesser-known reserves to create a pass-rush until one of the league’s best in Parsons can return.
That reality makes an addition at the position all the more necessary, and free agency is the more likely avenue after Green Bay sent its first-round selection in 2026 to the Cowboys in return for Parsons last August.
Schneidman on Thursday, March 26 mentioned for the second time in a little more than a week the option of former Chicago Bears first-round pick Leonard Floyd to fill the need.
“Names like Jadeveon Clowney and Leonard Floyd are still available, and both were productive given their age last season,” he wrote.
Schneidman also floated Floyd in a mailbag he authored on March 18 as “veteran depth in a young edge-rusher room” in Green Bay.
Leonard Floyd’s Production Took Step Back Last Season With Falcons
GettyPass-rusher Leonard Floyd, formerly of the Atlanta Falcons.
Floyd produced 11 quarterback hits, five tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks last season on a one-year deal worth $10 million as part of the Atlanta Falcons‘ defense.
Heading into his age-34 campaign, it is reasonable to wonder if Floyd’s best days are behind him. In the five years prior to the 2024 campaign, he recorded a total of 48 sacks. But the former No. 9 overall pick out of Georgia is now a 10-year veteran.
He produced 36 total pressures and 23 hurries in 15 games last season (287 pass-rush snaps), according to Pro Football Focus, and his overall player grade slotted him in as the 82nd-ranked edge defender out of 115 players who saw enough snaps to qualify at the position.
Spotrac projects Floyd’s market value at $8.9 million on a new one-year contract, though it is reasonable for Green Bay to question whether it should spend that much on a player whose arrow is pointing downward and who could regress more from 2025 to 2026.
Jadeveon Clowney May Offer Packers Better Value Than Leonard Floyd
GettyDefensive end Jadeveon Clowney, formerly of the Dallas Cowboys.
Clowney might be a better option for the Packers given his relative production in 2025 and cost projection in 2026 when compared with Floyd.
Clowney played in 13 games for the Cowboys last year and produced 12 tackles for loss, 10 QB hits, 8.5 sacks, four pass breakups, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. He did so at a fraction of Floyd’s cost in Atlanta, playing in Dallas on a one-year deal worth just $3.45 million.
Beyond that, Clowney is one year younger than Floyd, and Spotrac projects Clowney’s market value at $5.7 million in 2026.
Packers Pitched Former Bears 1st-Round Pick as Micah Parsons’ Pairing