Since we’re in the middle of a dead season, let’s use this time to talk about some deeper topics. Obviously, the Green Bay Packers want to improve from their 11-6 record and wild card loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2025, but where will that improvement actually be coming from?
Unless you think that guard Aaron Banks, cornerback Nate Hobbs and receiver Matthew Golden are the needle movers here, then at least one of the Packers’ rostered players from the 2024 season will need to take that next step for Green Bay’s record to improve this regular season. Go ahead and stake your claim for who that will be.
Here are a couple of options I’ve come up with:
LT Rasheed Walker: Walker has been a solid pass protector in recent years, but he hasn’t had the run-blocking production to claim that he’s a well-rounded player. Walker is also facing a contract season, so motivation should be high.
OL Jordan Morgan: At the moment, the 2024 first-round pick is seeing most of his practice snaps come at the left tackle position — pushing Walker — be it on the first- or second-team units. Last year, he played only 46 percent of the offensive snaps in games he was available for. With an open hole at right guard, there’s some hope for him getting playing time this year.
DE Lukas Van Ness: We now know that the second-year pass-rusher dealt with a broken thumb last season that the Iowa product stated wasn’t right until about Week 11 of the regular season. That explains why he was passed up for the starting defensive end job by Kingsley Enagbare, even after the team traded Preston Smith at the trade deadline. Hopefully, a healthy Van Ness makes his first start since high school in 2025.
DT Kenny Clark: Like Van Ness, it revealed to fans at the start of camp this summer that Clark suffered a foot injury that limited him throughout last season and required offseason surgery in January. Maybe this means that Clark’s career isn’t taking a downturn and that he was just played with a hand tied behind his back this year. A rebound, especially if he moves to his natural nose tackle position, would do wonders for the Packers’ front.
DT Devonte Wyatt: For the first time in his NFL career, Devonte Wyatt will be asked to be a full-time starter for Green Bay. The former first-round pick has made five starts in his three-year career, all in the 2023 season, but has had the runway cleared for his opportunity in 2025 with T.J. Slaton signing with the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency. Wyatt is one of the most productive interior pressure players in the league, which warranted the Packers picking up his $13 million fifth-year option for the 2026 season. With that being said, if Wyatt wants to earn a big, multi-year contract in this league, the time is going to have to be now. As an older prospect, Wyatt is already a 27-year-old despite still being on a rookie deal.
LB Quay Walker: Walker didn’t have his option picked up, unlike Wyatt, a fellow 2022 first-round pick. Last season, toward the end of the year, Walker looked like he was taking the right steps forward to raise the floor of his game. If he can’t prove that negative plays are in his past, and still take advantage of his high upside, the pairing of Edgerrin Cooper and Walker could be one of the best linebacker units in the league.
CB Carrington Valentine: It’s uncertain right now whether or not Valentine will be a starter for this defense. Ultimately, Xavier McKinney, Keisean Nixon and Nate Hobbs are locked into starting roles, one way or another, while Valentine, Evan Williams and Javon Bullard are fighting for the two remaining jobs in nickel looks. Valentine, only a 24-year-old, has a chance to become a full-time starter for the first time in his career as an outside cornerback, depending on how the Packers feel about their secondary after training camp and the preseason. Last year, Valentine was the second-most efficient coverage cornerback on the team, only behind the now-gone Jaire Alexander, but lacked some of the physical traits you want to see from an NFL starter when it comes to fitting the run and perimeter screens on the outside.
Let us know who you think is going to take the step up this year in the comment section below.