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Green Bay Packers offensive tackle, Zach Tom, going into pass protection against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on December 15, 2024.

The Green Bay Packers are back at OTAs, but a couple of big-name veterans who got injured in the back half of the 2026 season were not available quite yet. Matt LeFleur gave updates on Micah Parsons, Tucker Kraft, and Zach Tom during his media session after OTAs. He was optimistic on Kraft, neutral on Tom, and was most cautious when discussing Parsons.

Parsons will open training camp on the PUP. That should not be a major surprise considering he tore his ACL in Week 15. A few years ago, that meant that at least half of the season would be over for Parsons. However, while the team will not rush him back, it is fair to say that the Packers are expecting him to contribute at some point. If recovery lingers into the regular season, Parsons could miss significant time early into the season.

Kraft saw the most optimistic timeline of the three. He tore his ACL in Week 9, so he has well over a month of recovery on Parsons. With that in mind, he should be ready to practice in training camp. LeFleur said that Kraft looked good enough to return now, but the team did not want to risk it.

Meanwhile, they were more neutral on Tom. Tom suffered a slightly torn patellar tendon in Week 15. He had a chance to return during the season without surgery, but could not return and opted for offseason surgery. The team expects him back during training camp, but that would be the earliest that he will play.

The Green Bay Packers are Reliant on Their Healthy Stars

The Packers started the season 5-1-1 before losing Kraft. They went 4-3 without Kraft and were 9-4-1 when they lost both Parsons and Tom. With Parsons and Tom out, the team went 0-4 to close the regular season and lost their first playoff game. It is easy to see why there is optimism around the team if these players can come back healthy. However, all three are valuable, and the team cannot compete in the same manner without them.

Green Bay Packers Need Depth to Step Up in the Short Term

Without Tom in the lineup, it looks like Darian Kinnard is getting the first chances at right tackle. Kinnard has been in the NFL since 2022 and has just five career starts, so this is going to be a development to follow. More than that, the Packers are sliding Sean Rhyan into center full-time and are starting Jordan Morgan at left tackle for the first time. There could be a lot of shuffling on the offensive line.

Barryn Sorrell, Brenton Cox, and Dani Dennis-Sutton would all get chances to replace Micah Parsons. It would take all three, and they still could not have his impact, though.

At tight end, Luke Musgrave is the next man up, but he did not perform nearly as well as Kraft, mostly because he is not as strong a blocker. They need these depth pieces to hold things down until the starters get back.