Official: Packers Lose Superstar for Week 1 vs Vikings

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Micah Parsons tackling JJ McCarthy for a sack - 2025 NFL regular season - Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 2026 Minnesota Vikings schedule was released three weeks ago, and the first thing that stood out to anyone who cares to pay attention to NFL schedule release day was their Week 1 matchup against hated rival, the Green Bay Packers.

In all likelihood, McCarthy will not be on the field to start Week 1, at home, against the Green Bay Packers. That’s because there’s a rather unanimous belief by those plugged in at TCO Performance Center that newly signed Kyler Murray has already won the Vikings’ starting QB job.

Of course, anything can happen — as we have found out the hard way too many times — especially with four months between now and the start of the 2026 regular season.

Green Bay Packers will play without Micah Parsons Week 1

Micah Parsons trying to wrap up JJ McCarthy for a sack - 2025 NFL regular season - Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

But whoever is under center for the purple on September 13 against Green Bay, that quarterback’s life officially got a whole heckuva lot easier Monday when news broke that Packers superstar linebacker Micah Parsons will start 2026 on the “Physically Unable to Perform” (PUP) list.

Parsons is just over halfway through the original nine-month recovery timeline for his torn ACL — and told reporters Wednesday that he is aiming for a mid-October return. That timeline aligns perfectly with Micah’s PUP list designation, as it will allow him to return as early as Week 5 (October 11) vs the Chicago Bears.

Since entering the league back in 2021 with the Dallas Cowboys, Micah Parsons has yet to play an NFL season where he hasn’t racked up at least 12 sacks and 23 QB hits. Over his five-year career, Parsons has piled up 65 total sacks, 297 tackles and 139 QB hits.

Loss of Parsons could mean difference in Vikings vs Packers

And even when he isn’t the defender making a play on the football, there’s isn’t a player in the league on that side of the football who takes up more of the offensive game plan week-to-week than the 27-year-old former No. 12 overall draft pick out of Penn State.

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“Disruptor” doesn’t begin to describe the type of game-wrecker Micah Parsons is, when on the field. As much as you don’t want to see anyone get hurt, there’s no doubt the Minnesota Vikings schedule lineup in their favor, when it comes to games against their top division rival.

It’s worth mentioning that, not only do the Vikings open their upcoming regular season against the Packers, but they will be done playing their top division rival by the end of Week 10, when they play in Green Bay.

Parsons’ health could factor into second matchup vs Packers

While it’s certainly plausible Parsons has returned by then (November 15), it’s TBD on how comfortable he will be playing on a recently repaired ACL that, by then, will have only had a maximum five games played on it — if he returns right away when eligible Week 5.

Related: JJ McCarthy Ready to Demand Trade Out of Minnesota?

These opening season divisional matchups are a rather new phenomenon in the NFL. It’s something the league started doing to add even more intrigue to Week 1 of the regular season (as if it didn’t have enough already).

You might remember last year’s MN Vikings regular season opener in Chicago, when JJ McCarthy led a historic fourth quarter comeback against the Bears that sidetracked fans and the league alike.

So much so that, despite his underwhelming statistics from that game (143 pass yds, 2 TD and 1 INT), McCarthy somehow took home NFC offensive player of the week in Week 1.

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