Analysis: Nate Hobbs Gives Packers’ Secondary Needed Lift in NFL Free Agency

Given a four-year, $48 million contract, new Green Bay Packers defensive back Nate Hobbs will increase the versatility in the secondary.

Cornerback Nate Hobbs has agreed to sign with the Packers in free agency. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst addressed arguably the team’s biggest need on Day 1 of NFL free agency when cornerback Nate Hobbs agreed to a four-year, $48 million contract that includes $16 million guaranteed.

Hobbs joins a cornerback group that is occupied by Jaire Alexander (for now), Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine. He was one of the league’s best slot defenders a season ago, and presumably will play there in Green Bay, as well.

The Packers have done a lot of work on their slot position over the last two years. Nixon was re-signed last offseason to be the team’s primary nickel but moved to the boundary when Alexander was out with injuries.

In the second round of last year’s draft, they selected Javon Bullard, who was a Week 1 starter at safety but ultimately took Nixon’s place in the slot.

Two of the best nickel defenders in football, Kansas City’s Trent McDuffie and Philadelphia’s Cooper DeJean, were big parts of the defenses that played on Super Bowl Sunday last month.

That’s why the Packers were willing to pay a pretty penny for a slot defender, something they had been hesitant to do.

Hobbs was excellent last season for the Raiders. According to The 33rd Team, his minus-15.6 coverage EPA ranked 11th-best among all defensive backs that saw more than 40 targets.

He’s not just a coverage player, though. He’s willing to stick his nose in during the run game, as well. According to Pro Football Focus, Hobbs during his four-year career has the sixth-best run defense grade and the seventh-most defensive stops among defensive backs.

Now that Hobbs is in the fold, the question becomes how the rest of the secondary is going to line up.

Hobbs has excelled in the slot when he’s been on the field, though he did play primarily on the boundary in 2022. He could play both spots for the Packers, depending on situations and matchups.

The only players that seem to have a good idea of where they’ll be lining up in 2025 are Nixon and All-Pro safety Xavier McKinney. Apart from that? There are a lot of questions to be answered.

Alexander likely has played his last game in Green Bay. Assuming he’ll be traded or released, that leaves the Packers with two true boundary cornerbacks who were on the roster last year.

Nixon, who stated he wanted to be the team’s “CB1” during the final media session of the season, is one.

“I think he played really, really well,” Gutekunst said. “I think he really fit what Jeff (Hafley) was trying to do. First of all, he’s an outstanding competitor. I didn’t blink when we asked him to do that. I think his athleticism and his ability … with his eyes and his ability to tackle served us well out there. For me, he may not have the length that some of those guys on the outside have, but his awareness and ball skills make up for that.”

Valentine, who was last seen bouncing off the turf in Philadelphia thanks to Dallas Goedert, is the other.  

Both players had nice moments, but they weren’t so good that Gutekunst wouldn’t upgrade via free agency or the draft.

Based on who is on the roster, the big question is how the Packers will deploy Hobbs, Bullard and Evan Williams, the fourth-round pick who started six games at safety after Bullard moved to nickel.

Hobbs is going to start. It’s just a matter of if Green Bay wants him to play on the boundary or in the slot. Perhaps the plan is for Hobbs to play on the outside in base before kicking inside to the slot in the team’s subpackages.

If any of the answers puts Hobbs in the slot, that would put Bullard and Williams in a heated competition to be the starting safety alongside McKinney.

Williams has better ball skills and playmaking ability than Bullard, which was on display at almost every practice during training camp. That playmaking is something that might fit well next to McKinney.

Bullard has good instincts and showed flashes as a defender in the run game, but struggled in coverage with just one pass breakup. He did end the season on a high note with good recognition of a smoke screen and forced fumble on Chicago Bears receiver DJ Moore.

If you’re looking for encouragement, perhaps this is a sign of the sense of urgency that Gutekunst discussed in his season-ending news conference.

In past years, the Packers may have sat on their laurels, relying on internal development from two premium draft choices to help improve their defense in the middle of the field.

Instead, Gutekunst opened up his checkbook and gave Hafley some real versatility and competition in his secondary.

Competition breeds excellence, as the old saying goes.

With Williams and Bullard theoretically competing for one spot on the field, both will have to be on top of their game or they’ll be relegated to bench duty.

If both players make the second-year leaps that a draft-and-develop team like the Packers relies on, that’s even better for a secondary that will likely receive more reinforcements before the regular season begins.

Depth is never a bad thing to have, as the Packers and the rest of the NFL have learned. That’s especially true in the secondary, with the dangerous passing games that occupy the NFC North.

Gutekunst said he was going to attack the secondary with numbers as he often does with positions of need.  Hobbs is likely not the last addition here. 

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