One Packers Rookie With Best Chance to Surprise Everyone (And Sack History)

The Green Bay Packers were “definitely” surprised to see Dani Dennis-Sutton on the board with the 120th pick of this year’s NFL Draft.

“For as productive as he was as a player in college, and his ability and he still has upside to go with it, yes, we were absolutely surprised,” Packers director of personnel John Wojciechowski said after the fourth-round selection was made.

There are four reasons to believe Dennis-Sutton could have a big impact as a rookie.

First, Dennis-Sutton was an impact player at Penn State. During his final three seasons, in which most of his games came against high-level competition, he had 20.5 sacks, 31 tackles for losses and seven forced fumbles.

Second, he surprised NFL scouts and decision-makers with elite testing numbers. In four decades of testing numbers that include 2,257 defensive end prospects, Dennis-Sutton ranked ninth in Relative Athletic Score.

Dani Dennis-Sutton was drafted in round 4 with pick 120 in the 2026 draft class. He scored a 9.96 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 9 out of 2257 DE from 1987 to 2026.https://t.co/P8hlpVu0IO pic.twitter.com/GETVs1EQUW
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 25, 2026

Combined, those are good starting points.

“Dani, first of all, his production is really, really good,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said after the draft. “His size, his speed, and I just think he’s got so much in front of him as far as his best football goes. He’s an elite athlete for a guy that’s almost 6-6 and played at around 265.

“His ability to come off the edge and rush the passer, affect the passer, he can bull rush, he can win with speed, his length affects the passer, he can set edges. So, I think he’s got a lot to offer and a lot of really good football in front of him.”

There are two other reasons. Third, before any rookie can become an impact player, he needs an opportunity to become an impact player. There will be ample opportunities as the Packers look to replace the combined impact made by Micah Parsons, Rashan Gary and Kingsley Enagbare.

Day 3 Edge History

Based on all of that, why would anything Dennis-Sutton does as a rookie be a surprise?

History has that answer.

Over the last decade of drafts, only three edge rushers taken in Day 3 of the draft had more than five sacks as a rookie: Maxx Crosby had 10 with the Raiders in 2019, Carl Lawson had 8.5 for the Bengals in 2017 and James Houston had eight for the Lions in 2022.

There’s more to life than rushing the passer. Crosby had 16 tackles for losses as a rookie. He was the only Day 3 pick with more than eight. He also was the only Day 3 edge rusher with more than two forced fumbles.

Dennis-Sutton wasn’t just a fourth-round pick, though. He was the 20th pick of the fourth round and the 120th pick overall. So, looking at rookie edge players selected 120th or later, only five players had at least four sacks: Houston had eight, New England’s Deatrich Wise had five, Cleveland’s Genard Avery had 4.5, and Baltimore’s Matt Judon and Seattle’s Alton Robinson had four apiece.

For TFLs, Houston (seven) and Wise (six) were the only edges with at least six.

The challenge confronting a Day 3 edge rusher was particularly acute last year. Who had the most sacks from the 2025 rookies? That would be Green Bay’s Barryn Sorrell with 1.5.

Can Dennis-Sutton overcome that dubious history and give the Packers the pass-rushing impact they so badly need?

Maybe. NFL Draft On SI’s Justin Melo called Dennis-Sutton one of 10 “overlooked” NFL rookies.

underrated rookies at training camp 👀https://t.co/SiqUL42HQ3
— Justin M (@JustinM_NFL) July 22, 2026

Dennis-Sutton is a “pro-ready run stopper” who “should quickly earn reps” during Parsons absence, Melo wrote. “He’s a better pass rusher and more athletic than he gets credit for, having tested well at the NFL Combine after having 8.5 sacks in consecutive seasons.”

The fate of the season will fall on Green Bay’s core of edge players and their ability to – somehow – replace the enormous impact made by Parsons. Parsons had 12.5 sacks last season, becoming the only player in NFL history with five consecutive 12-sack seasons to start his career. He provided relentless pressure and a series of key sacks.

It’s not just Parsons set to miss most of the first half of the season. Say what you want about Gary’s disappearance last season, but he still had 7.5 sacks. Combined, Parsons, Gary and Enagbare contributed 22 sacks, 56 quarterback hits and 25 tackles for losses while logging 1,828 snaps.

That’s a lot of production – and a lot of playing time – that must be made up. Lukas Van Ness is as close to a proven playmaker as the Packers have, and he’s got only 8.5 sacks in three seasons. Until Parsons returns, Green Bay’s returning edge players combined for four sacks last year: Van Ness (1.5), Sorrell (1.5) and Brenton Cox (1.0).

Added together, Dennis-Sutton will be given every opportunity to earn a role as a rookie.

He Needs Football

Parsons likes what he sees from his fellow Penn State standout.

“I think we’ve got a really, really good football player,” he said. “I knew he was good at Penn State. But I think specifically in this 3-4 system, he’s going to have a lot of success. With his length, his speed, his violence that he plays with, he’s going to be a really good football player for us.”

We said there were four reasons why Dennis-Sutton could be that impact player the Packers need. He has talent and production. He’ll get an opportunity. Finally, there are the intangibles.

“I love and I need football,” he said after being drafted. “Football to me has always been an outlet. It’s been something for me to express who I am. Anybody who knows me, I'm a very emotional and exciting guy, so football’s a way for me to express that and have fun.

“My favorite time of the day is when I’m going out to football practice and playing on Saturdays, which will now be Sundays, and going out there and making plays. Yeah, I live and breathe football. It’s something I’ve done since I was a little boy. I’m just excited now to do it for the Green Bay Packers.”

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