The Green Bay Packers were certainly thrilled when star pass rusher Rashan Gary was cleared for practice during training camp, clearing the path for him to play once the regular season rolled around. Last season, Rashan Gary was the heart and soul of the team’s pass rush.
Despite having his season ended prematurely in Week 9 because of an injury, the former first-round pick finished second on the team in sacks with 6.0. Without him in the lineup, the team’s production getting after the passer cratered.
While that was a major weakness last season, that has not been the case thus far in 2023. The pass rush is now a strength for the Packers, who are tied for first in the NFL with 61 total pressures through the first two weeks of the season.
The team as a whole has been very impressive, but it is once again Rashan Gary leading the charge. Despite not playing a full allotment of snaps yet, he remains as productive as ever when it comes to rushing the passer.
According to PFF, Rashan Gary has a 33.3 percent pass rush win rate through two weeks. Amongst pass rushers with at least 20 pass-rushing snaps played, that is the highest percentage in the NFL.
Rashan Gary has 25 total pass-rushing snaps and has recorded eight total pressures; one sack with seven hurries. The hurries are tied for first on the Packers with defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt, who has played 49 pass-rushing snaps in two games.
The Michigan product has picked up right where he left off last season when the knee injury occurred. He is producing at a very high clip, putting up impressive numbers despite playing only 34 out of a possible 156 snaps.
That should provide a lot of optimism for the Packers, as their pass rush may get even better in the coming weeks once Rashan Gary’s playing time increases. The only negative for the team is that his price tag on a contract extension is going to continue going up if he keeps up this level of performance.
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