Packers' Matt LaFleur diagnoses Lukas Van Ness's 'desire for perfection' for slow career start

The Green Bay Packers will be a team to watch this season. They’ve been doing everything possible to ensure their offense is tough to handle this year, and they’re aiming to do the same on defense. On Monday, the Packers signed Corey Ballentine to bolster their secondary.

“Ballentine was on the Packers' practice squad and active roster from 2022-24. Over three seasons with Green Bay, he appeared in 37 regular-season games with seven starts and three postseason contests,” Packers.com wrote.

One name that has drawn attention throughout the summer for the Packers’ defense is former first-round pick Lukas Van Ness. Van Ness entered the league with a lot of hype, but last season, despite injuries to others, he didn’t see an increased role.

“Whatever snaps were freed up by Smith’s departure weren’t handed to Van Ness. Instead, Brenton Cox and Arron Mosby got more opportunities and largely delivered. Both Cox and Mosby put interesting reps on tape last year as pass rushers, though their size made them liabilities in the run game,” Joe Meerdink wrote.

Van Ness’s lack of production has made him a frequent topic of trade speculation this summer. However, on Tuesday, head coach Matt LaFleur suggested that Van Ness’s desire for perfection has held him back.

“Matt LaFleur suggests Lukas Van Ness has been held back a bit by a desire for perfection. ‘This is an imperfect game and sometimes you just gotta go.’ Said he's doing a better job of that this year,” Locked on Packers’ Peter Bukowski wrote.

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This could be a promising sign for Van Ness, who will likely need to prove himself this season. It’s a make-or-break year for the former first-rounder, and with a new mindset, a breakout season could be on the horizon. Now that Van Ness understands that hiccups are part of the process, he may be less hard on himself and more willing to take risks.