Packers defensive end Micah Parsons leaves game with a knee injury
Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons exited the third quarter of the Broncos game with a knee injury.
- The Green Bay Packers lost 34-26 to the Denver Broncos after leading at halftime.
- Star defender Micah Parsons left the game in the third quarter with a noncontact knee injury.
- Receiver Christian Watson also exited in the third quarter with a chest injury.
- The loss drops the Packers out of first place in the NFC North.
DENVER – Over the course of a four-month schedule, 17 games, countless plays that make a difference, it’s rare a season can be defined in one quarter.
The Green Bay Packers might have experienced such an unfortunate 15 minutes in the third quarter of their 34-26 loss at the Denver Broncos. After leading 16-14 at halftime, and 23-14 after a 40-yard touchdown run from Josh Jacobs early in the third quarter, the Packers watched as their 2025 season took a seismic shift.
Before losing two of their most-important players to potentially significant injuries, the Packers were in position to finish another statement win. A victory would have retained a half-game lead in the NFC North over the Chicago Bears, who now return to the top spot after beating the Cleveland Browns earlier. The Packers might have been considered the team to beat in the NFC.
Instead, they must figure out how to regroup down the stretch of their final three games, learning how to win without two players who mean the most to winning.
Micah Parsons leaves in third quarter with noncontact knee injury
The most devastating was Micah Parsons.
The two-time All-Pro, who was firmly on pace for a third first-team All-Pro selection this season, exited late in the third quarter after crumpling to the field and holding his knee with a noncontact injury. Parsons had been chasing Broncos quarterback Bo Nix for yet another pressure – he had several before the injury – when the injury occurred.
The Packers confirmed Parsons left the game with a knee injury. The fear, though unconfirmed, will be a potentially torn ACL. Other than quarterback Jordan Love, no player on the Packers roster is more directly tied to where their 2025 season is heading.
“It doesn’t look good,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “I’ll leave it at that.”
General manager Brian Gutekunst traded two first-round draft picks and veteran defensive tackle Kenny Clark to the Dallas Cowboys for Parsons one week before this season. Parsons transformed the Packers defense overnight, becoming the clear alpha of an overall top unit in the NFL. Two weeks ago, he became the only player in NFL history to record at least a dozen sacks in each of his first five NFL seasons. He did not have a sack last week against Chicago’s Caleb Williams nor against Nix, leaving his total this season suspended at 12.5.
Parsons opened the game ending the Broncos’ initial drive with a forced fumble while tackling Broncos running back RJ Harvey on third-and-1. Linebacker Edgerrin Cooper recovered the fumble.
Christian Watson’s chest injury take chunk out of Packers offense
Earlier in the third quarter, the Packers lost receiver Christian Watson to a chest injury. Watson, who emerged as the team’s best receiver after returning from a torn ACL in late October, ran a vertical route against Broncos two-time All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain II. Watson initially appeared open, but Surtain closed quickly and intercepted Love’s pass. Surtain fell on top of Watson, who landed hard on the ground.
Watson caught only three of his five targets for 29 yards against the Broncos, but his presence on the field seemed to open space for other receivers against Denver’s heavy man coverage. His absence visibly left a less explosive offense.
Love completed his first eight passes and torched the Broncos defense throughout the first half. He finished 24-of-40 for 276 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, the second targeting Dontayvion Wicks after Watson’s injury.
Love finished with a 68.3 passer rating.
Sloppy penalties must stop if Packers have any chance of overcoming injuries
If the Packers have any hope of overcoming the potential talent deficiencies without two key players, they’ll have to play clean.
It’s something the Packers had improved from early in the season, but the sloppy play returned in Denver. The Packers were called for xx penalties, xx accepted. It wasn’t so much the number, but how they happened.
Five were procedural penalties on the offense, putting the Packers behind schedule on the road against the NFL’s best pass rush. Three were on special teams, which simply can’t find a way to avoid mistakes.
Four were on left tackle Rasheed Walker: two false starts, an ineligible downfield, and a holding penalty that was declined. If that continues, the Packers might need to reconsider whether Jordan Morgan is a better option at left tackle.
Those are the type of errors that could ruin a season even for a healthy team. Leaving Denver, the Packers clearly are not.
