Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst has many important decisions to make over the coming offseason. One of them is whether to pick up the fifth-year option of defensive end Lukas Van Ness. The former Iowa star will be entering his fourth season with the Packers in 2026, and it will be the final year of his rookie contract.
The Packers selected Van Ness with the 13th overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. Through three seasons, Van Ness has yet to establish himself as a starter in the NFL. He made his first two NFL starts late this season after Micah Parsons was out of the lineup due to injuries.
Van Ness played nine games in 2025 and missed eight due to injury. He finished the season with 1.5 sacks, seven quarterback hits, and three tackles for loss. Van Ness made 19 total tackles while playing 45 percent of the team’s defensive snaps in the games he appeared in.
Pro Football Focus gave Van Ness high grades for his performance this season. His run defending grades were good, and his pass rush marks were just slightly lower. Of course, this was all in limited playing time.
It’s estimated that the fifth-year option for Van Ness would cost roughly $15 million. The fifth-year option includes no signing bonus, and all of the money is guaranteed for one season. That would keep Van Ness in green and gold through the 2027 season. The Packers could always opt to extend Van Ness if they want to reduce the cap hit for 2027.
The Packers knew Van Ness would need time to develop when they drafted him. His unique combination of size and speed helped earn him the nickname “Hercules” in college. But Van Ness never started a game during his time at Iowa. He always possessed outstanding athleticism but needed to improve his technique to succeed in the NFL.
Van Ness spent his first three seasons with the Packers as a backup. He played behind Rashan Gary and Preston Smith initially. In 2024, when the Packers traded Smith at the NFL trade deadline, Van Ness was bypassed for the starting job which was taken over by Kingsley Enagbare.
In 2025, Van Ness remained a backup for most of the season behind Gary and Parsons who was acquired in a trade just before the start of the season.
As of now, the Packers are expected to part ways with Gary this offseason. Meanwhile, Enagbare will be an unrestricted free agent in March unless the Packers offer him a new contract. This gives Van Ness the inside track to claim the starting job opposite Parsons. Obviously, Gutekunst would want to see Van Ness start one year before making a decision on the fifth-year option, but that’s not how the NFL rules work. The Packers have to make that decision by May.
Recently departed defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley was pleased with what he saw from Van Ness this past summer in training camp and the progress he was making at learning the techniques to take his game to the next level.
“I think he’s starting to understand the position, how to use his hands, how to set edges, some pass rush tools, some counter moves,” Hafley told reporters in late July. “It was a good offseason for him, truthfully. He did a good job at OTAs, and then I think he left here and he put in a lot of work. He came back in really good shape. He’s healthy. I just think he’s a year older and it’s another year in the scheme for him where he’s starting to feel comfortable.”
Unfortunately, injuries slowed Van Ness’ progress during the regular season as he missed eight games. The underlying advanced numbers look good, but they are based on a small sample size.
Van Ness will not turn 25 until July, so he is just entering his prime as an NFL player. He also adds versatility to the defensive line because he has experience lining up as a defensive tackle both in college and in the NFL. That could allow the Packers to get more of their best edge rushers on the field and still get pressure from the interior of the line with Van Ness and Devonte Wyatt.
I would expect Gutekunst to pick up Van Ness’ fifth-year option this offseason. Then it will be up to Van Ness to prove Gute right.
