We made our 53-man roster projection earlier this week, but after Monday’s practice, I feel like we now have the full scope of the Green Bay Packers’ entire depth chart. Let’s take you through, position-by-position, where this Packers team stands today, in terms of roster-relevant players.
We’re going to skip specialists for this one, because each position only has one player in training camp, aside from international exemption kicker Mark McNamee from Ireland.
All of the depth chart layering below has been informed by how the Packers have treated their positional rotations throughout this summer. Opinions are not added unless specified. Facts only! If you have an issue with it, let 1265 Lombardi Ave know.
With that being said, the Packers will make their 53-man roster decisions for reasons beyond just the offensive and defensive depth chart. Special teams roles and contract situations are obviously factors there.
Quarterback
Jordan Love
Malik Willis
Jordan Love is going to be the Packers’ starter, and Malik Willis is locked into the backup role. Enough said.
Running Back
Josh Jacobs
MarShawn Lloyd (hamstring)
Chris Brooks
Emanuel Wilson
As soon as he was healthy, MarShawn Lloyd was given opportunities with the second-team offense over Emanuel Wilson. Clearly, the team has a favorite here. Unfortunately, Lloyd has since gone down with a hamstring injury that will lead to him missing “some time,” according to head coach Matt LaFleur. Chris Brooks isn’t exactly number three on the depth chart, but he will get the third-most (maybe even second) looks when the running back room is healthy, because he plays the team’s blocking back role that LaFleur has almost always had, in either A.J. Dillon or Patrick Taylor. If you want to think of Brooks as another position entirely, I wouldn’t blame you. Wilson would be the third true ball-carrier up behind Lloyd.
Outside Receiver
Romeo Doubs
Matthew Golden
Dontayvion Wicks (calf)
Savion Williams (hamstring)
Malik Heath
With Christian Watson out with his ACL recovery, this is pretty much what you should expect from the Packers this year on the outside. It’ll be a three-man rotation with Romeo Doubs, Matthew Golden and Dontayvion Wicks taking most of the true wide receiver snaps as long as Watson is sidelined.
Slot Receiver
Jayden Reed (foot)
Matthew Golden
Malik Heath
Mecole Hardman
Jayden Reed continues to be a slot-only starter for the Packers. They haven’t hesitated to use Matthew Golden or Malik Heath in the slot with Reed out with a foot injury, either. So far, punt returner Mecole Hardman has only carved out a role as a reserve slot receiver. It’s unknown how Dontayvion Wicks factors into this mix, though, because he’s mostly been hurt when this new crop of players has hit the field.
Tucker Kraft
Luke Musgrave
John FitzPatrick
Ben Sims
Tight end is a pretty clear pecking order. The fact that Luke Musgrave doesn’t contribute on special teams is a pressure point on this roster, as teams can usually rely on a number two tight end playing in the kicking game. Because of that, we’ve seen an increase in special teams opportunities for Ben Sims during the preseason, including him contributing as a punt rusher last week. There’s a real chance, especially with injuries piling up, that he makes the 53-man roster again this year, even after he was sort of phased out of non-kick return looks with the emergence of John FitzPatrick last season.
Zach Tom
Rasheed Walker
Jordan Morgan
Anthony Belton
Kadeem Telfort
With Travis Glover on the injured reserve, there’s really no debate at this position. Rasheed Walker and Jordan Morgan are competing at left tackle, but Walker is a tackle-only player, and Morgan instantly subs into a different position the moment another starting offensive lineman goes down. Consider Anthony Belton to be the team’s backup right tackle, as he’s essentially taken all of the second-team snaps at the position this summer and subbed in for Zach Tom for a two-minute drill on Family Night. The next tackle up is Kadeem Telfort, who was a member of the 53-man roster last year.
Aaron Banks (back)
Sean Rhyan
Jordan Morgan
Jacob Monk (hamstring)
Donovan Jennings
Aaron Banks is locked into the left guard job, while Sean Rhyan and Jordan Morgan have competed at right guard. If Banks misses reps, Morgan also slides to the left side. Consider Morgan to be the next man up at left tackle, left guard and right guard. If there are multiple injuries at the position, it’ll be Jacob Monk and Donovan Jennings to get opportunities, in that order. John Williams, a rookie draft pick, has been on the physically unable to perform list for all of camp due to a back injury, so it’s uncertain how he plays into the mix if he were healthy.
Elgton Jenkins
Sean Rhyan
Jacob Monk (hamstring)
Donovan Jennings
If Elgton Jenkins ever goes down, the next man up will be Sean Rhyan, with Jordan Morgan displacing Rhyan at right guard, assuming the rest of the offensive line is healthy. Multiple injuries at the position could get Jacob Monk action, though. For what it’s worth, I believe that Monk has looked much better at center, where he’s working in tandem with a guard for most of his blocks, than guard, where he’s often isolated into one-on-one blocks, this summer. The emergency center is Donovan Jennings, who had some poor snaps on Family Night. Others have gotten looks at center, but they are not roster-relevant at this point in time. Notably, Zach Tom hasn’t gotten much work, if any, at center this year.
Defensive End
Rashan Gary
Lukas Van Ness (back)
Kingsley Enagbare
Brenton Cox Jr. (knee)
Barryn Sorrell
Arron Mosby
Now that we’ve seen how the Packers responded to losing Lukas Van Ness for a practice, the pecking order has been established. Rashan Gary and Van Ness are the starters, with Kingsley Enagbare and Brenton Cox Jr. as the second-unit players. Enagbare got the “starting” nod in practice over Cox, with Van Ness dealing with a back injury, which is pretty big considering the numbers pinch at the position and the fact that Cox seems to be the only defensive end on the team who can’t contribute on special teams. Behind those four, Barryn Sorrell is the next man up, with Aaron Mosby getting snaps after him. As a reminder, fifth-round rookie Collin Oliver has spent all of training camp on the physically unable to perform list with a hamstring injury.
Defensive Tackle
Kenny Clark (back)
Devonte Wyatt
Colby Wooden
Karl Brooks
Warren Brinson
Nazir Stackhouse
Consistently, Colby Wooden has been the Packers’ backup nose tackle this year behind Kenny Clark, despite the team having plenty of opportunities to give those snaps to Georgia rookies Warren Brinson and Nazir Stackhouse. Wooden should be viewed as the team’s primary backup defensive tackle this year, behind Clark and starting three-technique Devonte Wyatt. Karl Brooks and Wooden split second-team reps, with Brooks mostly playing three-technique and Wooden playing both positions. Warren Brinson is playing both three-technique and nose tackle, with Nazir Stackhouse getting a role limited to nose tackle on mostly obvious run downs.
Linebacker
Quay Walker
Edgerrin Cooper
Isaiah McDuffie
Isaiah Simmons
Ty’Ron Hopper
Kristian Welch
Safety convert Isaiah Simmons is no longer really pushing Isaiah McDuffie for starting looks in three-linebacker sets, but he is getting burn ahead of Ty’Ron Hopper and Kristian Welch when there’s an injury to the first-team defense. Simmons is arguably having the worst preseason of any Packer, but the coaching staff continues to talk about him as a player who is very early into a positional change, so who knows if they’ll drop him down the depth chart. In nickel looks, Quay Walker and Edgerrin Cooper will be your starting linebackers this year, when healthy.
Cornerback
Keisean Nixon
Nate Hobbs (knee)
Carrington Valentine
Bo Melton
Kalen King/Kamal Hadden
Keisean Nixon and Nate Hobbs, when healthy, are going to start as outside cornerbacks in base defense this year. The only question is if Hobbs will kick into the slot on nickel sets, which will bring Carrington Valentine, the next outside cornerback up, off the bench. Behind Valentine, the next man up seems to be receiver convert Bo Melton, who looks the part of an NFL cornerback in the preseason, in terms of both athleticism and physicality. Behind them, it’s sort of a toss-up between Kalen King and Kamal Hadden. Rookie draft pick Micah Robinson has basically been a reserve outside cornerback all summer. It’s not looking good for Robinson’s chances to make the team.
Slot Defender
Javon Bullard
Nate Hobbs (knee)
Kalen King
Corey Ballentine
Backup safety Javon Bullard seems to be the team’s preferred choice to play the slot this year, based on how the team lined up before Nate Hobbs’ knee surgery. They mixed in looks where Hobbs kicked into the slot, though, so that door isn’t shut. Kalen King has been getting looks with the second-team defense as the squad’s nickel, kicking in from the outside cornerback position. Interestingly, the Packers have almost exclusively played Corey Ballentine in the slot this preseason, a role he hardly ever played in the past. The difference between making Green Bay’s 53-man roster or not may come down to whether a defensive back can credibly play in the slot. Ballentine has already started games for the Packers at outside cornerback, so the King and Kamal Hadden snaps on the outside very well might just be preseason filler from an evaluation standpoint.
Xavier McKinney (calf)
Evan Williams
Javon Bullard
Zayne Anderson (knee)
Kitan Oladapo
Safety is pretty clear-cut. All of these players made the 53-man roster last year, and the depth chart looks untouched. Evan Williams is keeping Javon Bullard away from his starting job as a safety, but Bullard will be the next man up. Behind Bullard are Zayne Anderson and Kitan Oladapo in that order. Anderson is currently dealing with a knee injury.