Cal Football: The Packers Are Re-Inventing James Looney as a Tight End

James Looney, who played three seasons at defensive tackle or end for Cal, has spent the past two years waiting for his opportunity with the Green Packers.

Selected in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL, Looney saw action in three games his rookie season but spent all of the ’19 campaign on the Green Bay practice squad.

Now Looney has a new shot at finding himself a niche in the NFL after the Packers shifted him late last season from defensive end to tight end.

Yep, if Looney finds himself a spot on the roster at his new position, he could eventually be catching passes thrown by fellow Cal alum Aaron Rodgers.

In an interview last weekend with Bill Huber, who operates the Packer Central website for Sports Illustrated, Looney expressed nearly unbridled excitement about his second chance.

“I’m honestly thankful for the opportunity,” Looney said. “I always felt like I could lose a little bit of weight and play a position more to my size. It’s been a really good transition.

“I always thought I was going to stay on the defensive side of the ball. When they told me offense, I was all-in. I was excited. It’s good. It’s really good, new energy. Honestly, I’m just blessed that God gave me the opportunity. Not a lot of guys get a second chance to play a different position in the NFL. I’m super-blessed.”

*** Here is Bill Huber's video on Looney's transition to tight end:

Formerly No. 99, Looney is wearing No. 49 as a tight end.

Looney was listed at 6-foot-3, 280 pounds coming out of Cal, and was at 287 pounds last fall before making the position change.

As the Packers’ season reached the NFC Championship weekend last year, Looney had additional time to work with strength and conditioning coordinator Chris Gizzi. Looney believes he dropped about 15 before season’s end, and now says he’s at 256 pounds.

“With diet and weight room, everything was made for me to not lose too much weight too fast where it would have hurt me during the week,” Looney said. “It was built for me to gain the right muscle in the right places – a lot of hamstring work, for example, that can help me in a different position.

Looney is convinced he can make the transition to tight end three years after finishing his Cal career with 130 tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss, four sacks, four fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. He played his freshman season at Wake Forest, then transferred to Cal, playing the 2015, ’16 and ’17 seasons with the Bears.

“I feel like I’m a pretty athletic guy,” Looney said. “They put me at tight end for certain teams that we played and certain looks that they wanted. It just worked out from there.”

Huber wrote about why he is curious to see how Looney fares in his new role:

Looney is an intriguing prospect at tight end for the same reason he was an intriguing prospect as a defensive lineman. For instance, at the 2018 Scouting Combine, Looney ran his 20-yard shuttle in 4.37 seconds. That would have tied for seventh-fastest of the 13 tight ends to do the shuttle at the 2020 Scouting Combine. Of the 15 tight ends to do the vertical jump at this year’s Combine, Looney’s leap of 35.5 inches would have tied for fourth.

Here is Huber’s entire story from PackerCentral.com.

Looney is living these days in Dallas, where older brother Joe Looney is coming off a season in which he started all 16 games for the Cowboys. The two have been able to work out together, but James said he is excited for the day NFL teams will be allowed to gather again.

“There’s nothing like re-creating that team atmosphere,” Looney said. “I can’t wait to get back and get these plays down, go through the reps and actually do it and hopefully make this team and help us in any way to make it to the Super Bowl.”