The Green Bay Packers will go back to the Midwest thankful that they escaped with a win, having secured the victory with a late Josh Jacobs touchdown that was ultimately never answered by the Arizona Cardinals.
Whilst it was some big offensive plays that caught the headlines after the game, most notably the decision to keep the offense on the field for it a 4th and 2 with the game on the line, which quarterback Jordan Love dutifully managed to convert into a 15-yard catch-and-run for tight end, Tucker Kraft, it was the defensive pressure that helped seal the win.
The fourth quarter saw the Packers defense really turn on the heat, in a game that saw the unit manage a total of 6 sacks on Cardinals QB, Jacoby Brissett.
Micah Parsons Did Something He Had Never Previously Managed
For the star player on the defense, Micah Parsons, this game meant a particular amount, as he managed to do something he had never previously done in his career to-date – sack the opposing quarterback three times – per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky.
“Believe it not, this was Micah Parsons’ first 3-sack game.” Demovsky wrote after the game. “He had 2.5 three different times, but never 3 in a game before today.”
And, also per Demovsky, the former Dallas Cowboy equalled his former record for the 2025 season in QB pressures, with 6.
Four of those quarterback pressures, according to Demovsky, came into the fourth quarter. Proving that when it counts, Parsons and the rest of the Packers defense step up to the plate.
Packers Defense Has Been A Mixed Bag In 2025
The Packers defense is by no means a “bad” defense. In fact, one would be hard pressed to say at this point that it is anything but a “good” one, relative to the rest of the NFL.
It ranks 6th in total defense, and actually 1st in run defense. However, the troubles start to come in the pass defense, where Green Bay come in at just 15th – middle of the pack.
For a pass rush that boasts not one but four former first round picks – three of whom were selected in the top-15 and play as an edge rusher – 15th in the league against the pass is certainly not ideal.
Although sacks themselves are not necessarily the issue, as the team came into week 7 6th in the league in that department, they are allowing quarterbacks to make plays downfield.
It is also worth noting that whilst the team are a top-10 unit in sacks, that does not fully track with the totality of their pass-rushing endeavours.
ESPN ranks the Packers 12th in pass-rush-win-rate, which calculates the percentage of times a rusher manages to beat his block within 2.5 seconds of the ball being snapped.
Parsons is now at 5.5 sacks on the season, and as he continues to acclimatize to the defense, fans will hope that he continues to get better and better.
