GREEN BAY – Rashan Gary has always been about production over platitudes and letting his work on the field speak for itself.
While the Packers' sixth-year defensive end has never focused on individual accolades, Gary's development from a heralded prospect to an all-around defensive playmaker has earned him the respect of his peers across the National Football League.
And now he has the Pro Bowl to prove it.
On Thursday, the NFL announced Gary as one of Green Bay's three selections in this year's Pro Bowl Games, joining safety Xavier McKinney and running back Josh Jacobs.
It's a "surreal" moment for Gary, who was informed at practice on Wednesday of his selection. It comes one year after Gary was voted a first alternate for the Pro Bowl but never got the call as an injury or Super Bowl replacement.
"To be honest, it hasn't hit me yet," Gary said. "We're focused on one thing, finishing this game and going to the playoffs. This is something that after the season I can sit back and check off my goal list and keep adding to it because it's just the first of many for me."
A first-round pick (12th overall) in 2019, Gary has been one of the league's most consistently disruptive pass rushers since he became a full-time starter in 2021.
That year, the 6-foot-5, 277-pound defensive end set career-highs with 28 quarterback hits and 9½ sacks and added another six sacks before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in November 2022.
Gary bounced back with nine sacks last season and currently leads Green Bay with 49 pressures, 14 QB hits, a career-high eight tackles for loss and 6½ sacks during his first season in Jeff Hafley's 4-3 defense. Earlier this year, he moved into eighth all-time in team annals for career sacks (38).
Beyond his pass-rushing prowess, Gary has set the edge all season in the Packers' sixth-ranked run defense.
"There was definitely a transition in there in terms of just the whole D-line, but I think as the season has progressed, we've gotten better and better," Head Coach Matt LaFleur said. "(Gary's) kind of like the guy that sets it up front, especially on the edge, him and Kenny Clark. Just got to continue to push and find ways to continue to get better and better and better."
Off the field, the 27-year-old Gary has assumed greater leadership responsibilities on defense after the midseason trade of close friend and mentor Preston Smith to Pittsburgh.
Gary's 89 regular-season games are nearly more than the rest of his position room combined, with third-year veteran Kingsley Enagbare the only other defensive end on the team with an NFL start on his resume.
Still, the Packers are tied for seventh in the NFL with 44 sacks with their defensive ends contributing 21 to that total.
"He's disruptive in the run game, he sets edges, and if you look at our total sack numbers for the year, we're pretty high up there. He has a lot to do with those," Hafley said. "I love the guy. He works really hard, and I think he's embraced his role and he's gotten better and better and I hope that continues. Because we're going to need him."
Gary shares first-time Pro Bowl honors with McKinney, whom Green Bay signed as unrestricted free agent in March. It's the sixth consecutive year the Packers have had at least one defensive player make the Pro Bowl.
"I'm actually excited for 'X' and 'RG.' I'm really excited," said cornerback Keisean Nixon, who was voted an alternate as a return specialist. "Pro Bowl is a hell of an honor. Just like All-Pro is a bigger honor. Any time you get an accolade next to your name, it means something no matter what it's at. I got two, 'X' has got one, 'RG' got one now. I'm just excited for those boys."
Recognition is nice, but Gary isn't satisfied. He wants to win a Super Bowl and be All-Pro. A week away from postseason play, Gary believes the "sky's the limit" for both himself and a Packers defense with lofty expectations for itself.
"Just keep being me, the guy that you see on the field," Gary said. "It takes this whole unit, this whole organization, me getting that accolade is everybody in this room pushing me from OTAs to camp to just become a better player."
