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By Evan Massey
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Green Bay Packers are coming off of one of the most depressing games in recent franchise history, losing to the Denver Broncos by a final score of 34-26 and also losing superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons for the season with a torn ACL.
Immediately after Parsons went down, the Packers' fan base felt like the season had come to an end. At the very least, their Super Bowl hopes had faded.
Despite the massive loss of Parsons, Green Bay still has games to play. Right now, the team is still in the playoff picture. This weekend, the Packers will be facing off on the road against the arch-rival Chicago Bears.
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There is no time for Green Bay to feel sorry about its bad luck. Parsons isn't coming back, but the season must move forward.
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With that being said, the Packers have been hit with an alarming reality ahead of their matchup against the Bears.
Former NFL quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky was the one to share that reality with Green Bay. He revealed just how big of an impact the loss of Parsons will have on the Packers' defense.
"The question is going to loom of what are they going to do?" Orlovsky said. "This defense is predicated on pressure. This is who they are. When they get pressure, again, Micah leads the NFL, they are a top-three defense. When they don't get pressure, they're a bottom-five unit. Bottom-10 unit."
Most of the season, Green Bay has had an elite defensive unit. With Parsons wreaking havoc, the Packers' pass rush has been able to cover up the clear issues in the secondary.
Green Bay has a very poor cornerback room. There were many who felt the Packers would upgrade the position ahead of the trade deadline, but that hasn't happened. The team also refused to dip into the free agency market after it was clear that Nate Hobbs was a negative signing during the offseason.
Read more: Packers Star Micah Parsons’ Injury Recovery Timeline Revealed
Unfortunately, without a consistent pass rush, that issue will likely become a much bigger factor for Green Bay down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs if the team gets there.
Hopefully, defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley has some tricks up his sleeve. If he doesn't, the Packers could be in major trouble.
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