Whatever Happens in Draft, Lukas Van Ness Says He’s ‘Ready to Go’

In a way, how the Green Bay Packers conduct the first couple rounds of the upcoming NFL Draft will serve as a referendum on Lukas Van Ness.

So far, there have been mixed signals.

On the one hand, general manager Brian Gutekunst has brought in Shemar Stewart, Mykel Williams and James Pearce – three first-round possibilities at defensive end – for NFL Draft visits. That would signal a desire to bolster a position group that includes Van Ness, the team’s first-round pick in 2023.

On the other hand, Gutekunst spoke highly of the defensive line, a unit he didn’t address in free agency, at the recent NFL owners meetings.

“I think we can do everything we need to do with the players we have on our roster right now,” he told reporters in Palm Beach, Fla. “We’ve invested in that quite a bit already and I’m excited to see the growth that those guys will have. If the draft happens to bring us some more ammunition in that caliber, great, but I don’t think it’s something that’s necessarily that we’ll have to go chase.”

Outside frigid Lambeau Field on Tuesday for the start of the 19th Tailgate Tour, Van Ness was asked if Year 3 would be the most important of his career.

“I think sitting here on April 8 and looking into the season, this is obviously the most important one as it’s the next one ahead,” Van Ness said. “This is my job. I love what I do, I love playing football. My goal every single day is to come to work and put that effort in, and then, ultimately, put the best product on the field on Sundays.”

Van Ness hasn’t had a lot of great Sundays. He went from four sacks, 10 quarterback hits and eight tackles for losses as a rookie to three sacks, six quarterback hits and six tackles for losses in Year 2.

To be sure, there have been some challenging circumstances. He went from a hand-on-the-ground defensive lineman at Iowa to a stand-up outside linebacker in 2023 back to a hand-on-the-ground defensive end in 2024. He went from Joe Barry to Jeff Hafley as defensive coordinator, and now he’ll be going from Jason Rebrovich to DeMarcus Covington as his position coach.

Van Ness didn’t make any excuses, though.

“Ultimately, it’s part of the game. It’s just a circumstance,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’ve got to continue to take those leaps and grow as a player. Those are just things I’ve had to work through.”

After training in California, Van Ness arrived in Green Bay and met Covington for the first time on Monday. The “productive conversation” left him “really excited” about the upcoming season, which will begin with the start of the offseason program on April 21.

“It’s been a good past couple months, just refocusing, getting my body healthy and ready to go for this upcoming season,” he said. “I’ve been out in California, so a little bit of a change here from the Midwest. It was great. I feel in the best shape of my life and really healthy, and I’m ready to go.”

Asked about the next step in his career, Van Ness turned the focus to the team. It will be about playing hard, playing together and playing with consistency.

For Van Ness, playing hard has never been an issue. Playing with consistency, on the other hand, has been a bigger challenge.

Even if Van Ness had been a stud with 20 sacks through two seasons rather than seven sacks, there would be a need to add a defensive end in the draft. But with Van Ness failing to take that Year 2 jump that so many within the organization expected, the Packers might feel compelled to take a big swing in the draft.

“I think we have a great group,” Van Ness said. “Whether we take two guys (or) we take nobody, I think we’re all going to come to work every day, we’re going to compete against each other for our spots, and we’re going to work hard. I love the guys we have in our room. I think we’re all hard-working, we love the game of football, and I’m excited to see what we can do together.”