Matt LaFleur admits the bittersweet truth behind the Packers’ hard-fought win over the Lions and fans can’t ignore it.QQ
The Green Bay Packers got a great 31-24 win over the Detroit Lions, with one of the top performances of the team all season, well, at least since the other victory over the Lions in Week 1. However, not everything is great.
Defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, a major part of the Packers’ defensive front, left the game late in the fourth quarter with a serious ankle injury.
It’s a serious, long-term ankle injury for Devonte Wyatt
Wyatt did, in fact, suffer a serious ankle injury and will likely miss the rest of the season.
“It doesn’t look good,” head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed. “I’m sick for him, I’m sick for us. That’s a critical loss for our football team, for our defense, obviously.”
Beyond what Wyatt had been able to put on the field, he also developed as a person, according to LaFleur, which makes the loss even more painful.
“I can’t say enough great things about him in terms of just watching him mature, not only as a football player, as a person,” LaFleur added. “I’ve got a lot of love for Devontae Wyatt. I think the whole locker room does, too. So, it’s a little bittersweet, I would say, in regards to, yeah, we’re happy about the win, but at the same time, we’re sick about what happened to him.”
Without Wyatt, the Packers’ defensive line has Karl Brooks (who didn’t play against the Lions), Colby Wooden, plus rookies Warren Brinson and Nazir Stackhouse.
At least, Wyatt is already under contract for next season. Back in the offseason, Green Bay exercised its fifth-year option, so the former first-round pick will make $12.938 million with the Packers in 2026.
The 28th overall pick in 2022, Wyatt finishes the season with four sacks. And the defense will have to find a way to create interior disruption without him — a tough challenge after the Packers lost TJ Slaton in free agency and Kenny Clark in the Micah Parsons trade.
