The Green Bay Packers came away from their highly anticipated Week Eight matchup against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers with a convincing 35-25 victory. Indeed, there was a great deal for the team to feel good about after the win, especially with the way the offense played in the second half. That being said, there are still some question marks on the team that need to get figured out if they are going to be able to make a deep run in the NFL Playoffs later in the year.
One of these concerns, and perhaps the biggest, is the play of the Packers’ cornerbacks. This position group has been under the microscope ever since the offseason, thanks in large part to Green Bay’s decision to move on from two-time Pro Bowler Jaire Alexander (who has only played two games this season for the Baltimore Ravens).
In an effort to replace Alexander, the Packers signed Nate Hobbs in free agency and intended on using him as one of their starting boundary corners across from Keisean Nixon. Unfortunately, Hobbs has not played up to the standard both he and the team have.
Green Bay Packers cornerback Nate Hobbs was benched against the Pittsburgh Steelers
Oct 19, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Green Bay Packers cornerback Nate Hobbs (21) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
In the five games he played prior to Green Bay’s matchup against Pittsburgh, Hobbs had played 77.4% of the defensive snaps. Against the Steelers, though, he played just 6.3% for a total of four plays.
On the season, Hobbs is giving up a 68.2% completion percentage and quarterbacks have a 121.4 passer rating when targeting him.
In other words, he simply has not been good enough, especially since the Packers are paying him $12 million a year.
On Thursday, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic revealed what Hobbs said earlier in the week about being benched against the Steelers and what his attitude is going forward.
“Not exactly what I wanted,” Hobbs said according to Schneidman. “But when you play corner, it boils down to a couple plays. I have a lot of snaps where I played really good, you know what I’m saying? Really good snaps, really good plays. You take two, three plays here and there, but that’s just the life of a corner. That’s why I signed up for it.
“If I’m being honest, there’s a couple plays where dudes have gotten lucky or it’s been late into the play, this, that and the third.
Hobbs was replaced on defense by Carrington Valentine, who played really well against the Steelers. “C.V. did a great job,” Hobbs said according to Schneidman. “Next-man-up mentality. They threw him in there and just played a great game. That’s how it goes. He was hot, so as my teammate, I support him.”
Matt LaFleur has stated the cornerback position will continue to be a battle between Hobbs, Nixon, and Valentine. His willingness to bench one of the highest paid players on the defense shows that the team is serious about putting their best players out there, and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.
Packers upcoming schedule
November 2: vs Carolina Panthers
November 10: vs Philadelphia Eagles
November 16: at New York Giants
November 23: vs Minnesota Vikings
November 27: at Detroit Lions
December 7: vs Chicago Bears
December 14: at Denver Broncos
December 20: at Chicago Bears
Week 17: vs Baltimore Ravens (date and time TBD)
Week 18: at Minnesota Vikings (date and time TBD)
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