The Green Bay Packers need someone to step up in the first month of the regular season. Micah Parsons is still working his way back from a major injury, and while he's fully confident in his ability to dominate once he returns, it might be a while before he's back on the field.
Of course, there's no such thing as replacing Micah Parsons, and it'll take a team effort to make up for the lost production. However, it looks like Barryn Sorrell is slowly but surely emerging as a leader in the locker room.
Even Parsons went out of his way to praise the Packers' former fourth-round pick. He's emerged as a somewhat unexpected unsung hero in his absence, and he's making a push not only for the roster but for actual playing time.
Micah Parsons gushes about Packers' Barryn Sorrell
"Even when I was in the rehab phase, and he was out there with Collin (Oliver) and Stack (Nazir Stackhouse) and all those guys at the house, he was still leading," Parsons told the press. "I told DC (DeMarcus Covington), I said you should count on Barryn being a leader, because he was holding guys to the standard that I would or I would expect him to do."
The Packers took Sorrell out of Texas with the No. 124 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. He made 14 appearances as a rookie, but he was a situational guy. All in all, he played a grand total of 206 snaps, most of which came in the regular-season finale.
Sorrell finished his rookie season with 15 tackles, one tackle for loss, and 1.5 sacks. Of course, playing time was always supposed to be scarce, with Parsons, Lukas Van Ness, and the recently departed Rashan Gary on the mix. Now, with Gary out of the picture and Parsons hurt, playing time might be up for grabs.
Of course, the Packers will also likely give rookie Dani Dennis-Sutton as many opportunities as he can handle to earn the job. But since this organization usually takes things slowly with their rookies, Sorrell might already be ahead of him in the pecking order.
Parsons will pick up things where he left off once he's back to full strength, with Van Ness as the strongest candidate to start. As such, Sorrell will also have to fight with Collin Olliver, Brenton Cox, Arron Mosby, and Nyjalik Kelly for a spot on the 53-man roster and a bigger role.
Even so, Parsons' endorsement cannot be overlooked. He deserves praise for uplifting his teammates, even those trying to get some of his snaps, and it's pretty clear that Sorrell is turning some heads in the building with his strong play and vocal leadership.
Sorrell worked out with Parsons ahead of training camp, and he's looking leaner, more explosive, and much more aggressive. Whether that will translate to more snaps remains to be seen, but he's certainly trending in the right direction.
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