Rashan Gary is locked in and dangerous for the Packers
Jordan Love will get the credit for the Green Bay Packers fourth-quarter comeback win against the New Orleans Saints because he's the quarterback. Head coach Matt LaFleur will also get some praise for keeping his team together despite it being the NFL's youngest squad, down 17-0 in the fourth quarter.
Don't let those bullet points (while valid) distract you from the role Green Bay's defense played in the win, though. With seven of those Saints' points coming from a punt return touchdown, the Packers gave up only 10 points to a solid New Orleans offense.
They also knocked out starting quarterback Derek Carr with 10:51 to go in the third quarter, which completely changed the game.
The "they" in that sentence was specifically outside linebacker Rashan Gary, who finished the day with three sacks and four quarterback hits — one of those sacks being the hit that took Carr out and completely flipped the game for the Packers.
Making Gary's three-sack game even sweeter for Green Bay — and all that more impressive — was the fact that it happened just 10 months after the former Michigan defensive end was lost for the 2022 season with a torn ACL
"The main this is I'm just happy to go out there and go to war with you guys," Gary told his teammates after the game, per the team website. "That's something that I truly missed over the nine and a half months or so that I was out. That's something I truly missed. Me being able to be back, plus be an impact (player), that's all I want and I'm just happy I was able to take the steppingstone in the right direction that I want to go."
Where Gary wants to go is to the very top of the NFL's pass-rusher rankings, and it's worth noting that he's well on his way. He notched 9.5 sacks in 2021 and had six in nine games before the injury took him out of the 2022 campaign.
So far through 2023, he has 3.5 sacks and it's worth noting that he has been on a "pitch count" due to the fact that he's still coming back from the injury. He's also one of the emotional leaders on this young team due to his high motor, intense work ethic, and locked-in attitude.
"I don't think there's anybody in here that wouldn't go to war with this dude," head coach Matt LaFleur said of Gary after the win.
For a young team still trying to find its post-Aaron Rodgers identity Gary deserves all the praise for the player he's become for Green Bay.
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