Without Micah Parsons and Josh Jacobs to start the 2026 season, the Green Bay Packers look like a perfectly middling team entering Week 1 -- at least from a national point of view.
In USA Today's NFL Week 1 power rankings from Nate Davis, the Packers ranked 16th, or directly in the middle of a 32-team league.
From Davis: "Their two best players in 2025? Almost inarguably OLB Micah Parsons and RB Josh Jacobs. When will either of them be on the field in 2026? Anyone's guess − but October could be lethal to the Pack if the duo remains absent."
Both the Chicago Bears (No. 5) and Detroit Lions (No. 11) rank above the Packers, who open the season against the Minnesota Vikings, another expectedly middling team at No. 18, on Sunday in Minneapolis.
All division
games are important during a 17-game regular season, but the Packers could really use a win over the Vikings -- especially without Parsons and Jacobs -- to prove they are more than the good but rarely great team they've been in recent years. And it's worth noting that the Packers haven't won a real game since early December of last year.
Against a soft opening schedule, the Packers need to pile up the wins to help their standing in a loaded NFC North division. And winning without Parsons could prove this is a team capable of competing for a Super Bowl come January and February.
Here's where the Packers rank in other national power rankings:
NFL.com: No. 12
From Nick Shook: "Running back Josh Jacobs' placement on the commissioner's exempt list removes a major contributor from Green Bay's offense, but I believe Matt LaFleur can game plan around this absence, especially if Tucker Kraft can suit up at tight end. I also expect Minnesota DC Brian Flores to cause problems for Green Bay in Week 1, making this one of the more precarious placements in this edition of the Power Rankings."
The Athletic: No. 17
From Chad Graff and Josh Kendall: "Jordan Love is good enough to carry the offense in some early-season shootouts, but the Packers’ pass rush isn’t going to scare anyone until Micah Parsons returns from a torn ACL. Fortunately for them, two of their first three games are against the Falcons and Jets."
The Ringer: No. 12
From Diante Lee: "Hope springs eternal at the start of every NFL season, and that usually means every football hipster is buying into the Packers being the NFC team to take a major leap forward. The Packers are usually one of the league’s youngest teams with several above-average offensive linemen and a just-good-enough defense. This team’s roster-building strategy keeps things stable and leads us national analysts to believe the next big step is around the corner. But I’m taking a different tack this season and stepping off the bandwagon. I think it’s more likely that the Packers will be just a garden-variety good team instead of a fringe contender. Green Bay’s depth on both sides of the ball is less impressive than it was just last year, especially in the trenches. And the defense will have to go for at least a month without edge rusher Micah Parsons, so I’m concerned that we’ll see some significant holes in Green Bay’s back seven. Even if this team starts out hot against a weak schedule for the first month of the season, I’d still advise holding out on buying any stock in the Packers."
CBS Sports: No. 7
From Pete Prisco: "They have to navigate the early part of the season without Micah Parsons, which means manufacturing a pass rush. But I think the offense can score a lot to overcome that if they set Jordan Love loose."
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers are perfectly middling in USA Today's Week 1 NFL power rankings
