The Green Bay Packers just picked up Lukas Van Ness’ fifth-year option, and a lot of fans are already asking the same question: WHY??

LVN has been called a bust. He hasn’t put up huge sack numbers. He hasn’t had the clean, obvious breakout season fans were hoping for from a former first-round pick.

But that’s exactly why this video needed to happen. When you look past the box score, Lukas Van Ness is not some failed draft pick the Packers are blindly hoping on. He is one of the most valuable, misunderstood players on this defense.

In this breakdown, we look at the hidden stats that explain why LVN matters so much, why his impact is bigger than the sack column, why his run defense and pressure profile make him incredibly valuable, and why Green Bay was robbed of seeing a full breakout year because of injuries.

This was not a risky decision, a loyalty move, or the Packers pretending a bust is secretly good. Picking up LVN’s 5th-year option may have been one of the easiest decisions Brian Gutekunst had to make.

Packers fans might not all see it yet, but LVN is worth his weight in gold.