The Green Bay Packers are four days from its final preseason game, hosting the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday. It is also a week from cutdown day which is next Tuesday.
Currently there are roster battles at every position. Yesterday Carter Semb took a look at the players who are all battling for spots on the 53-man roster before the Week 1 game against the Detroit Lions.
My prediction for the 53-man roster on next Tuesday’s cutdown day:
Quarterback (2): Jordan Love, Malik Willis
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
2 Malik Willis QB 6-1 225 4 Liberty
10 Jordan Love QB 6-4 219 6 Nevada
Jordan Love should be ready by Week 1 which means there’s only a need for two quarterbacks on the active roster. The Packers decide to try to add either Sean Clifford or Taylor Elgersma on the practice squad.
Running Back (3): Josh Jacobs, Emanuel Wilson, Chris Brooks – MarShawn Lloyd to IR
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
8 Josh Jacobs RB 5-10 223 7 Alabama
30 Chris Brooks RB 6-1 219 3 BYU
31 Emanuel Wilson RB 5-10 226 3 Fort Valley State
32 MarShawn Lloyd (IR) RB 5-9 220 2 USC
MarShawn Lloyd’s injury from last Saturday will put him on the injured reserve to start the season. It is unfortunate that it’s likely that Lloyd will spend time in his first two seasons on IR, not ideal when you play a physically demanding position like running back. Brooks is the best pass blocker of the running backs.
Wide Receiver (6): Romeo Doubs, Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Savion Williams, Malik Heath – Christian Watson (PUP)
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
9 Christian Watson (PUP) WR 6-4 208 4 North Dakota State
11 Jayden Reed WR 5-11 187 3 Michigan State
13 Dontayvion Wicks WR 6-1 206 3 Virginia
18 Malik Heath WR 6-2 213 3 Mississippi
22 Matthew Golden WR 5-11 191 R Texas
83 Savion Williams WR 6-4 222 R TCU
87 Romeo Doubs WR 6-2 204 4 Nevada
Three of the six will have injury concerns for the first two games of the season. Malik Heath beats out Mecole Hardman for the final spot based on his ability to block in the run game and play special teams. Hardman hasn’t shown enough yet as a return man to earn a spot on the team. Christian Watson will start on the PUP with the hopes of playing after the bye in October.
Tight End (3): Tucker Kraft, Luke Musgrave, John FitzPatrick
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
85 Tucker Kraft TE 6-5 259 3 South Dakota State
86 John FitzPatrick TE 6-7 262 4 Georgia
88 Luke Musgrave TE 6-6 253 3 Oregon State
John Fitzpatrick beats out Ben Sims for the final tight end spot. There’s also a chance Brian Gutenkunst adds a tight end from the outside next week like he’s done in the past, ie. Ben Sims in 2023.
Offensive Line (9):Jordan Morgan, Rasheed Walker, Aaron Banks, Elgton Jenkins, Sean Rhyan, Zach Tom, Anthony Belton, Jacob Monk, Kadeem Telfort – John Williams (PUP)
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
50 Zach Tom T 6-4 304 4 Wake Forest
62 Jacob Monk C/G 6-3 308 2 Duke
63 Rasheed Walker T 6-6 324 4 Penn State
65 Aaron Banks G 6-5 325 5 Notre Dame
71 Anthony Belton T 6-6 336 R North Carolina State
73 John Williams (PUP) G 6-4 322 R Cincinnati
74 Elgton Jenkins C/G 6-5 311 7 Mississippi State
75 Sean Rhyan G 6-5 321 4 UCLA
76 Kadeem Telfort T 6-7 322 2 UAB
77 Jordan Morgan T/G 6-5 311 2 Arizona
The top seven linemen are set. The question marks are regarding the final two players. Gutekunst values his draft picks which gives the edge to Monk as the next interior player. I think Kadeem Telfort beats out Donovan Jennings for the last spot, with 7th-round pick John Williams starting the season on the PUP.
Defensive End (5): Rashan Gary, Lukas Van Ness, Brenton Cox Jr, Kingsley Enagbare, Arron Mobsy – Barryn Sorrell (IR), Collin Oliver (PUP)
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
45 Collin Oliver (PUP) DE 6-2 240 R Oklahoma State
52 Rashan Gary DE 6-5 277 7 Michigan
53 Arron Mosby DE 6-3 250 3 Fresno State
55 Kingsley Enagbare DE 6-4 258 4 South Carolina
57 Brenton Cox Jr. DE 6-4 250 3 Florida
90 Lukas Van Ness DE 6-5 272 3 Iowa
99 Barryn Sorrell (IR) DE 6-3 256 R Texas
Barryn Sorrell had the look of a contributor at edge rusher, but a knee injury will likely have him starting on Injured Reserve with a designation to return. Fellow draft pick Collin Oliver will start on the PUP, as he has yet to practice during training camp. Arron Mosby will get the final edge rusher spot with injuries to the two rookies.
Defensive Tackle (6): Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt, Karl Brooks, Kolby Wooden, Nazir Stackhouse, Warren Brinson
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
91 Warren Brinson DT 6-5 315 R Georgia
93 Nazir Stackhouse DT 6-4 327 R Georgia
94 Karl Brooks DT 6-3 296 3 Bowling Green
95 Devonte Wyatt DT 6-3 304 4 Georgia
96 Kolby Wooden DT 6-4 372 3 Auburn
97 Kenny Clark DT 6-3 314 10 UCLA
I have both Georgia defensive tackles making the roster, as well as 3rd-year tackle Kolby Wooden. Stackhouse and Brinson both add something different to the defensive tackle room, and Guteknust has made it clear in the past that he values young, defensive linemen.
Linebacker (6): Edgerrin Cooper, Quay Walker, Isaiah McDuffie, Ty’Ron Hopper, Kristian Welch, Isaiah Simmons,
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
7 Quay Walker LB 6-4 241 4 Georgia
28 Isaiah Simmons LB 6-4 238 6 Clemson
54 Kristian Welch LB 6-3 240 6 Iowa
56 Edgerrin Cooper LB 6-2 229 2 Texas A&M
58 Isaiah McDuffie LB 6-1 227 5 Boston College
59 Ty'Ron Hopper LB 6-2 228 2 Missouri
Second-year Mike backer Ty’Ron Hopper showed potential in the win over the Colts, earning a spot for him. I think both Simmons and Welch make the team on their potential as backup linebackers and special teamers. It’s likely Simmons only sees the field on special teams and some special packages on defense.
Cornerback (5): Keisan Nixon, Carrington Valentine, Nate Hobbs, Bo Melton, Kalen King – Micah Robinson (PS)
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
16 Bo Melton CB 5-11 189 2 Rutgers
21 Nate Hobbs CB 6-0 195 5 Illinois
24 Carrington Valentine CB 6-0 189 3 Kentucky
25 Keisan Nixon CB 5-10 200 7 South Carolina
26 Micah Robinson (PS) CB 5-11 183 R Tulane
34 Kalen King CB 5-11 190 1 Penn State
I have Kalen King beating out Micah Robinson based on King being ahead of Robinson on the depth chart going into Saturday’s game against Seattle. Kamal Hadden and Corey Ballentine are also still in contention as the next cornerback to be put on the 53-man roster.
Safety (5): Xavier McKinney, Evan Williams, Javon Bullard, Kitan Oladapo, Zayne Anderson
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
20 Javon Bullard S 5-10 198 2 Georgia
27 Kitan Oladapo S 6-2 216 2 Oregon State
29 Xavier McKinney S 6-0 201 6 Alabama
33 Evan Williams S 5-11 200 2 Oregon
39 Zayne Anderson S 6-2 206 3 BYU
Zayne Anderson starts the season on the roster, unless his injuries are too severe, which could put him on injured reserve. I think Kitan Oladpo did enough to make the team as the next safety.
Specialists (3): Brandon McManus, Daniel Whelan, Matt Orzech
# Player Pos Ht Wt Year College
17 Brandon McManus K 6-3 201 12 Temple
19 Daniel Whelan P 6-5 216 3 UC Davis
42 Matt Orzech LS 6-3 245 6 Azusa Pacific
For the first time in recent memory, the three main specialists are very easy to predict on cutdown day. However, it is still anybody guess who the first choices to return punts and kickoffs will be.