5 Questions with LeRoy Butler: How Packers use will use Micah Parsons
LeRoy Butler addresses whether Micah Parsons is the final piece to a Super Bowl puzzle and predicts how the Packers will use him in Week 1.
GREEN BAY − The Green Bay Packers get their shot at the defending NFC North champion Detroit Lions on Sept. 7 in what could be the biggest NFL game of the weekend.
Both teams enter the 2025 season with Super Bowl aspirations, but first order of business is to take care of the divisional games.
Dave Birkett, Lions beat writer for the Detroit Free Press, answers questions about the Packers’ opponent:
The Lions had to replace both of their coordinators heading into 2025. From what you’ve been able to see in camp and what players have said, how has the transition been early on?
Birkett: The Lions have new offensive and defensive coordinators, plus eight other new coaches, but there hasn’t been that much change. New defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard was part of Dan Campbell’s initial staff and was long considered a coordinator in waiting, and he’s kept much of Aaron Glenn’s scheme. And new offensive coordinator John Morton was with the Lions in 2022 and helped Ben Johnson put the playbook together. There are subtle changes and how both Sheppard and Morton call the game will be different, but for the players it’s mostly been business as usual.
How is the overall health of the Lions heading into Week 1?
Birkett: They’re in good shape coming out of the training camp. Running back Sione Vaki, one of the Lions’ best special-teams players, isn’t expected to play because of a nagging hamstring injury but there are no other real injury concerns. Graham Glasgow, Sam LaPorta and Kerby Joseph, who missed time late in camp with injuries, are all good to go.
Everyone knows about the experience and talent of the Lions, but are there any newcomers to keep an eye on?
Birkett: The Lions have two new starters on their offensive line in guards Tate Ratledge and Christian Mahogany. Ratledge is a rookie who opened camp at center before moving to the right guard position he played all through college, while Mahogany made a couple fill-in starts as a sixth-round pick last year. The Lions have had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL the past few seasons, so there’s a lot of pressure on their young linemen’s shoulders. The Lions have two new starters on defense, too, in first-round pick Tyleik Williams and cornerback D.J. Reed. Williams is a better run defender than pass rusher at this point of his career, while Reed had a strong camp and solidifies the secondary.
What’s Lions coach Dan Campbell saying about opening the season with the Packers and the addition of Micah Parsons?
Birkett: Campbell is a big fan of Lambeau Field, if you haven’t heard, and I don’t think it’s just because the Lions have won three straight in Green Bay. He likes playing outdoors and in the elements, and he has a big appreciation for the history of the game. As for Parsons, everyone in the organization knows how disruptive a player he is and what he’ll mean to Green Bay’s pass rush. The Lions had immense respect for Kenny Clark, though, too, and as Campbell joked this week, “Whatever we had planned for Kenny Clark, we’ll just have planned for Micah.” These are the two best teams in the NFC North and it might be the best opener on the entire Week 1 schedule.
