The Minnesota Vikings’ 2026 schedule was revealed on Thursday and they’ll kick off the new season by hosting the Green Bay Packers in Week 1. The showdown between NFC North rivals is an exciting way to begin the year, and it may be more exciting for the Vikings since the Packers may not have star edge rusher Micah Parsons.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Thursday that Parsons is a “candidate to be placed on the Physically Unable to Perform List” to start the season as he recovers from a torn ACL suffered last December.
"The feeling within the organization has been that Parsons would miss the early part of the season... and he'll be a candidate to be placed on the Physically Unable to Perform List.
You've heard three to four games potentially missed, but again, we are still four, five months away from the time the season starts.
There's time for him to recover [and] time for him to get back. But it certainly feels like the tone has been set and the expectation has been Parsons will miss some time to start the season."
If Parsons misses Week 1, it leaves Green Bay without one of their most impactful defensive players and gives the Vikings a big advantage as they host the Packers.
Micah Parsons’s injury update is great news for the Minnesota Vikings entering Week 1
Parsons’s health will be a big storyline worth monitoring on the road to Week 1. Joining the Packers after a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Cowboys, the 26-year-old was a beast, racking up 12.5 sacks and 79 pressures on 436 pass-rushing snaps, according to PFF.
His Week 12 performance against the Vikings was also notable as he had four pressures and two sacks on 23 pass-rushing snaps, but his season was cut short when he tore his ACL during a Dec. 14 loss to the Denver Broncos.
The Packers lost each of their final five games after Parsons’s injury, including a Week 18 loss to the Vikings when they were resting their starters and a Wild Card playoff loss to the Chicago Bears.
Green Bay also lost some of its pass-rushing depth that would have covered for Parsons over the offseason, trading Rashan Gary to the Dallas Cowboys and losing Kingsley Engabare to the New York Jets in free agency.
This would be great news for the Vikings, who should be well-equipped to handle Green Bay’s pass rush minus Parsons.
Christian Darrisaw is another year removed from a multiligament knee injury and facing an important season. Brian O’Neill was also playing through a knee injury of his own for most of last year.
The interior of the offensive line has some questions with Blake Brandel at center, but Will Fries and Donovan Jackson were serviceable a year ago and should give Minnesota some advantage in the trenches.
With star tight end Tucker Kraft’s Week 1 status also up in the air while rehabbing from a torn ACL, there’s a chance the Vikings could face the Packers when they’re down two important players.
In a rivalry where Green Bay got into the playoffs over Minnesota by one game, that type of timing matters, and it could give the Vikings an edge when the two teams meet to open the year.
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