Green Bay Packers rookie edge rusher Rashan Gary flashed some of his most intruguing traits but had a quiet night overall during his preseason debut against the Houston Texans on Thursday night at Lambeau Field. 

The 12th overall pick showed off his explosive first step and strength, but the Texans kept him mostly under wraps during the first half. 

An early third down summed up his night. 

On 3rd-and-14 in the first quarter, Gary lined up at right outside linebacker against left tackle Matt Kalil.  The Texans paid him extra attention, using a tight end to chip Gary at the snap.  Once he got past the tight end, Gary slipped around Kalil’s block attempt and was closing in on quarterback Joe Webb before he got rid of the ball downfield. 

After two days of joint practices, the Texans felt it necessary to chip Gary at the line of scrimmage on a third-down play, even with a veteran like Kalil manning the left side.  That’s noteworthy on its own.  The Texans respected Gary’s ability to collapse the pocket in an obvious passing situation. 

And while it was an impressive rush, it counted for nothing.  By the time Gary beat both blocks, the ball was out. 

The same thing happened later in the first half. 

On another third down, Gary used his hands and a subtle inside-out move to disengage from the left tackle and turn the corner towards the quarterback.  But Webb got the ball out of his hands on a three-step drop, so even though Gary won the rep cleanly and was about to hit the quarterback, his rush didn’t affect the outcome of the play. 

The two plays harken back to Gary’s time at Michigan.  He was a disruptive college player who was often the focal point of the offense, but the production numbers rarely lined up with what he was actually contributing on the field.  There’s not much more Gary could have done on either play, but he didn’t get to finish at the quarterback and the Texans extended both drives.  That’s just life as an edge rusher. 

Gary also delivered one successful stunt inside on a third down that forced Webb out of the pocket. 

It wasn’t all great for the rookie.  Gary attempted several bullrushes on Seantrel Henderson that went nowhere and he got washed out of a couple of run plays.  He also slipped down on at least one stunt inside, negating the rush. 

Overall, Gary flashed the foundational tools of a great edge rusher but also showed why he has a long ways to go before he’s a consistently dominant player. 

Jack Wepfer of Packers Wire said it best in his takeaways from Thursday night: Gary is a gem in need of polish. 

“He gets great push and he closes space well, but he needs to develop reliable counters to unglue himself from tackles who get their hands on him,” Wepfer wrote. “ It’s still way early to make any sort of judgment on the player, but he has the tools.  It’s just a matter of whether he can learn to use that vast tool chest like a fine woodworker rather than a high school kid in an introductory shop class.” 

Gary is a work in progress, just like every other rookie entering the NFL and playing in their first preseason game.  Fans should be encouraged by the flashes, while also understanding he needs time, reps and experience before it all has an opportunity to come together. 

Gallery Best photos from the Packers' preseason win over Texans View 42 photos

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