Gary Clears Concussion Protocol, Will Start vs. Bills

The Green Bay Packers’ most impactful defensive player, outside linebacker Rashan Gary, is good to go for tonight’s game at the Buffalo Bills.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Oct 30, 2022 2:40 PM EDT

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Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Rashan Gary has cleared the concussion protocol and will be in the starting lineup on Sunday night at the Buffalo Bills.

That was the expectation. Gary suffered a concussion during the second half last week at Washington. He returned to practice as limited participation on Thursday and was full participation on Friday. Speaking before the Friday practice, coach Matt LaFleur said Gary had “another box” to check before getting clearance.

After practice, he was listed as questionable. That Gary flew to Buffalo with his teammates was a sign that he had been given the green light.

Gary leads the Packers with six sacks and will have a matchup against Buffalo’s backup right tackle with starter Spencer Brown out with an ankle injury.

Of 75 edge defenders with at least 100 pass-rushing snaps, Gary ranks third in ProFootballFocus.com’s pass-rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing opportunity. He’s tied for eighth with 28 total pressures and is 14th in pass-rush win rate.

With Gary missing a total of 29 snaps between his regular breaks and the concussion, rookie fifth-round pick Kingsley Enagbare played a career-high 31 snaps at Washington. The team’s No. 3 outside linebacker, he has one sack in back-to-back games.

“He’s been doing a good job,” LaFleur said. “Young kid that’s hopefully got a pretty bright future here. He got a lot of reps last week just when Rashan got hurt and left the game. Just a young guy that’s improving every single day.”

Last week, the Packers elevated La’Darius Hamilton from the practice squad and played him as the No. 4 outside linebacker ahead of Jonathan Garvin, who was inactive. On Saturday, the Packers elevated Kobe Jones.

Speaking to Bills beat reporters this week, quarterback Josh Allen pointed to Gary and cornerback Jaire Alexander as key players.

“They have one of the better corners in the league,” Allen said. “He's probably going to follow Stef(on Diggs). We just have to find unique ways to spread the ball around and get other guys involved. They’ve generated a really good pass rush with Rashan Gary. Statistically, he’s one of the better rushers in the league. We’re going to have to have a plan for that, then in-game adjustments going off that.”