The Green Bay Packers will need to work a little magic to afford their current team next season and continue to add talent, which probably means an extension for pass-rusher Lukas Van Ness.
It can seem counterintuitive to think about adding years and money to a player’s contract as a way to subtract from a short-term salary cap hit. But that is exactly what Green Bay will be doing if the team decides to tack on an extension for Van Ness beyond the fifth-year option it already exercised on the former first-round pick for 2027.
“A super early look at 2027 Packers salary cap outlook after the Tucker Kraft extension. About $30m in the hole right now effectively once you add in all steps to get ready to kick off 2027 week 1,” Ken Ingalls posted to X on Monday, September 14. Add on top Evan Williams & Edgerrin Cooper likely won’t play without early extensions — maybe Javon Bullard as well.
“Lukas Van Ness probably gets extended to lower his 5th year option cap hit too,” Ingalls continued. “They of course will say goodbye to some veterans and welcome in some new ones. Contract restructures and void years coming as well.”
Lukas Van Ness Currently Under Contract With Packers Through Next Season
Van Ness has been a reasonable player across his first three years in Green Bay, though he certainly hasn’t been the type of impact performer a team expects, or at least hopes for, when it spends the No. 13 overall pick and $17.4 million in rookie contract value on a guy.
The final year of that deal is happening now, but the Packers said yes this spring to a $13.75 million extension for Van Ness in 2027. They had the right to do so because the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement allows teams to keep first-rounders for an extra year beyond their initial rookie contracts if the team so desires.
An established list of factors — such as position, playing time and overall performance — develop the cost for that fifth-year option, thus it is not negotiated between the player and franchise.
So while Van Ness tallied just 8.5 sacks across his first three seasons and missed eight contests in 2025 due to injury, the Packers deemed him good/promising enough to hang onto at a value less than $14 million one year from now.
For context, Will Anderson Jr. of the Houston Texans just inked the most valuable salary for an edge-rusher in league history (when calculated by the basis of annual average salary) at $50 million per season.
Packers Will Have Need for Pass-Rushers Even After Micah Parsons Returns
One part of Green Bay’s considerations is likely how thin the team is at the edge-rusher position already.
With Micah Parsons out for at least four weeks, Van Ness was the unit’s star edge-rusher throughout most of the offseason. Green Bay has minimal depth on the outside, and Van Ness is still just 25 years old and represents a significant recent investment.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst values such investments in youthful players, and Ingalls predicts he will continue to do so in Van Ness’s case following this season — killing two birds with one stone by keeping a contributing player at a premier position of need on a value extension while also cutting into a salary cap deficit in 2027.
Van Ness also had a solid opener against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 1. He tallied four combined tackles, including a tackle for loss, and logged a sack. Van Ness also amassed three total pressures and two quarterback hurries.
Packers Expected to Make Polarizing Lukas Van Ness Decision