Five Biggest Battles of Packers Training Camp (And Who Will Win)

Who will be the Packers’ starting left tackle? Who will be the primary receivers? Those will be among the hottest battles when training camp opens next week.

Green Bay Packers safety Evan Williams (33) celebrates after last year's victory over the Houston Texans. | Dan Powers/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Several important jobs will be won and lost when the Green Bay Packers practice for the first time in training camp on Wednesday.

General manager Brian Gutekunst and coach Matt LaFleur have emphasized competition within their locker room, and it looks like that will translate to Ray Nitschke Field. A deep, talented roster will lead to fierce battles.

We know who the quarterback is going to be. That’s Jordan Love. We know Josh Jacobs will be toting the rock when the team turns to its ground game. After that? Several starting jobs will be up for grabs on both sides of the ball.

Here’s a look at five of our favorite position battles, and our pick to win them, when the team lines up against the Detroit Lions on Sept. 7.

1. Lukas Van Ness vs. Everyone Else

There may not be a bigger bull’s-eye on the back of anyone on the roster than the one on Lukas Van Ness.

At the end of last season, Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur loudly proclaimed they wanted to be able to rush the opposing passer with their front four with greater consistency. The assumption was the Packers would use either prime free-agent dollars or premium draft capital on a pass rusher.

As it turns out, the answer was that the Packers would rely on a new position coach and development from within.

The Packers were never going to give up on Van Ness, nor should they. He was picked 13th overall in 2023 for a reason, and the Packers have liked what they’ve seen with his development. While he has been disappointing from a production standpoint, it’d be bad business to give up on a first-round pick with the physical tools that Van Ness has after just two seasons.

The reality remains that Van Ness has not started a game in his NFL career. He needs to emerge from camp as the team’s starter at defensive end opposite Rashan Gary. That means playing the first snap of the game and playing the majority of those snaps.

With all due respect to Kingsley Enagbare, Brenton Cox and rookie Barryn Sorrell, none of those players are likely to become impact players in 2025.

Van Ness at least has a chance to do that. The talent is there. The physical tools are there. He simply needs to refine his craft and pass-rush plan.

Perhaps health will be a determining factor. Van Ness suffered a broken thumb last offseason and wore a cast for most of the season. He finished the season with just three sacks and six quarterback hits, down from four sacks and 10 hits as a rookie. The Packers will need more consistent pressure.

Behind him, Enagbare moved into the starting lineup after the Packers traded Preston Smith. He’s entering a contract year and should be motivated to earn his next contract. Cox showed some flashes after the Smith trade and Sorrell, a fourth-round pick, had solid production at Texas. Another rookie, fifth-round pick Collin Oliver, missed most of the offseason program rehabbing an injury.

Our Pick: Lukas Van Ness.

Simply put, it’s time to sink or swim for Van Ness. While he might end up winning this battle by default due to his draft status, the Packers need to see what they have in him.

If he has a good season, the defensive line room will be in good shape for 2025 and beyond. If not, there will be a lot of questions, including what could have been had the Packers used the 13th pick on someone like Ravens receiver Zay Flowers or Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

No. 2: Jordan Morgan vs. Rasheed Walker

Rasheed Walker has never had security in his NFL career. As a seventh-round pick in 2022, he had to fight his way onto the roster. In 2023, he had to beat out Yosh Nijman for the swing-tackle before replacing David Bakhtiari at left tackle.

Now, he finds himself in a competition for the starting job with last year’s first-round pick, Jordan Morgan.

As a rookie, Morgan rotated in at right guard with starter Sean Rhyan but never was able to usurp the veteran before landing on injured reserve with a shoulder injury that required surgery. This offseason, with Walker sidelined for the minicamp, Morgan took the first-team reps at left tackle.

Walker started all 17 games last season and has been a solid starter. This should be one of the fiercest competitions of camp.

Our Pick: Rasheed Walker.

Walker has battled for a job before and always come out on top. With the Packers looking to win a championship this season, they probably cannot go with an unknown for their quarterback’s blindside protector.

From a motivation standpoint, Walker should have plenty as he enters his final season under contract. If he starts and even plays average football, he will be in line for a big payday. That could come from Green Bay or via another team in free agency.

Morgan may be the left tackle of the future but, for the present, the bet here is Walker wins the job.

3. Receivers: Who Will Start?

Matthew Golden is going to be the player everyone has their eyes on during training camp and the preseason. He was the team’s first-round pick and received a raucous ovation when his name was announced to the fans gathered at Lambeau Field for the NFL Draft.

The Packers like their returning receivers. They have players who have made plays, but nobody has been consistent enough to have locked up a starting job for Week 1. That should bode well for Golden, who could be the most talented of the group.

Around him, the Packers return everyone else from last season, save for Christian Watson, who likely will start the season on the PUP list due to a torn ACL sustained in January.

Romeo Doubs has been a starter for most of three seasons but struggled with concussions and a suspension last season. He is looking to put the 2024 season behind him as he enters a contract year.

Jayden Reed was the team’s leading receiver each of the last two years, but both he and Dontayvion Wicks struggled with drops in 2024. Reed is the likeliest to have a guaranteed role in the offense. Wicks is the team’s best separator but could be glued to the bench if he doesn’t flash more consistent hands.

The receiver competition should be the hottest it’s been since the days of James Jones and Jordy Nelson waiting in the wings behind Donald Driver and Greg Jennings.

Our Pick: Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Matthew Golden.

Doubs has experience and some level of consistency working in his favor. Reed was the team’s most productive receiver a year ago, even with his drop issues.

This really comes down to Golden against Wicks. To be sure, receivers will rotate based on personnel packages and things like that, but what is telling is who is on the field when the team is in must-pass situations.

The guess is that Golden will win that opportunity because of his speed and playmaking ability. This is a competition that should last all season, but we’ll give the early nod to the team’s first-round pick.

No. 4: Javon Bullard vs. Evan Williams

How far has Green Bay’s safety room come in just two seasons? At this point in 2023, we were talking about Jonathan Owens or Rudy Ford starting next to Darnell Savage. Last offseason, all three players were unceremoniously allowed to leave Green Bay.

Now, Xavier McKinney is fresh off a first-team All-Pro season, and he has two promising players set to battle for a position next to him.

Javon Bullard, a second-round pick last year, started alongside McKinney to open last season before bouncing between the slot and safety. Evan Williams, a fourth-round pick last year, was one of the stars of training camp and started six games.

Bullard struggled with inconsistency due to an ankle injury and the position changes, and Williams was hobbled by lower-body injuries.

Now, with Nate Hobbs presumably moving to the slot in nickel situations, that safety net of the slot position might no longer be there for Bullard.

The winner of this competition between 2024 draft choices will be the only one who is on the field if everyone is healthy. It will be interesting to see who gets the first reps to open camp.

Our Pick: Evan Williams.

Draft pedigree will not matter as much because they were in the same draft class. Williams was simply more consistent last year, and there’s no reason to think that has changed. Williams also made more plays on the ball both in training camp and during the regular season.

Bullard may have struggled learning two different positions, but that versatility is going to remain important because it’s the best way to earn him an opportunity to see the field. As the saying goes, Bullard will be one heartbeat away, but he could be relegated to bench duty to start the year.

No. 5: Kenny Clark vs. Father Time 

This isn’t necessarily an on-field competition, but it’s an important one.

Kenny Clark is coming off the least productive season of his NFL career. Clark won’t make excuses, but a toe injury sustained in the season opener in Brazil hobbled him all season. Perhaps that is an explanation for going from 7.5 sacks in 2023 to one sack in 2024, because Clark did not have the look of a player set to decline so dramatically when he signed a contract extension last summer.

This year, however, is a big one for Clark. He needs to hold off Father Time as a key cog of Green Bay’s defensive line. With T.J. Slaton leaving in free agency, Clark has regained the title of the team’s best run defender. The group behind him is either unproven or on the team for his pass-rush capabilities. Devonte Wyatt, who is in line to replace Slaton in the starting lineup, could be set for a breakout season, but that will largely be due to his ability as a pass rusher.

Clark is the anchor of Green Bay’s defensive line and needs to play as such.

Our Pick: Kenny Clark.

We’re buying Clark’s reasoning that the injury led to diminished production. A three-time Pro Bowler, Clark has been a reliable presence since Green Bay used a first-round pick on him in 2016.

With health presumably on his side to at least start the season, we’re betting that Clark bounces back to find his form that earned him a rare third contract in Green Bay.