How Many Bricks Are Missing in Packers’ 12-Piece Super Bowl Foundation?

The Green Bay Packers hit the practice field this week for the first time since their 2025 season went up in smoke at Soldier Field at the hands of the Chicago Bears.

The Packers hoped that last year would be the year they would break their championship drought. Instead, they blew a big lead and lost in the first round of the playoffs for the second consecutive year.

The Packers believe their roster is talented enough to win their first Super Bowl in 16 years. They kept their head coach, who they clearly believe is the right man to lead the team back to championship glory.

The question remains what is missing?

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network recently tweeted that to build a championship foundation, a team needs to fill 12 spots.

I'd like to revisit this concept for every NFL team. To build a championship foundation, you need to fill these 12 spots:
QB-1
Off Playmaker-3
Quality OL- 3
Pass Rusher- 2
Def Playmaker-3

Fun exercise to compare teams with this focus
— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) May 26, 2026

Looking at the above criteria, do they have those 12 pieces to the puzzle? Let’s look at what they have, what is lacking and who needs to step up in order to give the Packers enough at these spots to reach championship glory.

Quarterback

Jeremiah says teams need: 1. Packers have: 1.

Who fits?: Jordan Love

The only question that matters at the quarterback position is whether that player is good enough to win a Super Bowl. Over three seasons as the starting quarterback, Love has had some ups and downs, but certainly more ups since fully recovering from the lower-body injuries that hampered his 2024 season.

Love’s final numbers from last year’s playoff game against Chicago were mostly brilliant, and he might have led a game-winning drive had a perfect pass on the final series that hit Jayden Reed’s fingertips been hauled in deep in Bears territory.

Whether it is fair or not, quarterbacks are judged by the games they win compared to the games they don’t. Since winning and playing brilliantly in his playoff debut against the Cowboys in the 2023 wild-card round, Love and the Packers have lost three consecutive playoff games.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) passes the ball during the playoff loss at Chicago. | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

That’s not all Love’s fault, but that judgment with the position he plays. The next step in his maturation is to elevate the team around him. The best players at the position, like Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes and Buffalo’s Josh Allen, have an ability to find ways to win even if everything around them is not going well.

Love has shown the ability to do that at times. Other times, like last year in Cleveland, Love faltered along with the rest of the team en route to an embarrassing loss.

Regardless, Love’s best games are as good as almost anyone in the NFL. It’s not hard to envision a team winning a championship with him under center.

Offensive Playmaker

Jeremiah says teams need: 3. Packers have: 2

Who fits?: Josh Jacobs, Tucker Kraft

Obviously, there are several big caveats by the inclusion of Jacobs in this category, but as things sit today, Jacobs is on the team and would be projected to start at running back when the regular season begins.

Jacobs was the engine that kept Green Bay’s offense running as the passing game sputtered through the 2024 season. Jacobs was not as good in 2025 and was hampered by a multitude of injuries, but has earned the benefit of the doubt with his ability on the field.

Kraft also is getting some benefit of the doubt by being included on this list, but he looked like a player who was having an All-Pro-caliber season before tearing his ACL in early November against the Panthers.

Kraft missed the second half of the season but led all Packers tight ends in receptions and yards and all NFL tight ends in passer rating when targeted and yards after the catch per catch. He has also grown into a leadership role and proved to be an indispensable part of Matt LaFleur’s offense.

Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft (85) celebrates a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Who needs to step up?: Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Matthew Golden.

The Packers have three receivers they like. If you follow the Packers throughout the season, you can appreciate how much Watson does for Green Bay’s offense. You can see the ability that Reed has flashed throughout his young career. You can see the talent that led the Packers to select Golden in the first round of the NFL Draft.

The reality is none of those players have established themselves as a true star at the position. Coming into the season, no Packers receiver has reached even 900 yards in a season in his career.

Will that ultimately matter? Who knows. The Packers have continued to insist they do not need a go-to receiver in obvious passing situations and that coverage will dictate where the ball goes.

Sometimes, however, the best players are simply asked to be better than the best players in the other uniform.

Davante Adams made so many plays over the years in key situations. Before him it was Jordy Nelson or Randall Cobb. In Super Bowl XLV, it was Greg Jennings catching key passes from Aaron Rodgers.

Who would the Packers draw up a play for late in the game when they need a key first down? Right now, that’s a question that any of the three aforementioned players can answer, but none have done so consistently enough.

Quality Offensive Lineman

Jeremiah says teams need: 3. Packers have: 1.

Who fits?: Zach Tom.

The offensive line is the position with the most question marks.

Sure, Jordan Morgan could be a better left tackle than what the Packers had the last few seasons with Rasheed Walker. Aaron Banks could stay healthy and live up to his contract. Sean Rhyan could prove that he is a long-term answer at center. Anthony Belton could take a jump at right guard.

The reality is that none of those are certainties.

The only offensive lineman who is a sure-fire quality starter is Tom. Much was made of the losses of Micah Parsons and Tucker Kraft throughout the season, and deservedly so. Those are two of the best players on the roster.

Tom was lost for what turned out to be the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury against the Broncos, part of an avalanche off injuries that hit the team during the second half of a season-changing loss.

Green Bay’s offensive line struggled immensely without Tom on the field last year. According to Warren Sharp, with Tom on the field, the Packers had a 3.2 percent sack rate and 1.0 percent interception rate. When Tom was out of the lineup, those numbers doubled to 7.2 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively. In the run game, Josh Jacobs averaged 4.2 yards per carry with Tom on the field. That number dropped to 3.6 when Tom was sidelined.

He’s vital to their success in both phases of the offense.

The Green Bay Packers need Zach Tom (50) to stay healthy and Jordan Morgan (77) to rise to the occasion. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Who needs to step up?: Jordan Morgan, Aaron Banks.

Realistically this section could include everyone else on the offensive line but, in this case, we’re focusing on an age-old saying of to whom much is given, much is expected.

Morgan was given the keys to the car this offseason as a former first-round pick who will finally step in as the starting left tackle. The Packers don’t have time for him to go through growing pains, as he’s only started one game in two seasons as a blindside protector. They’re trying to win a championship, and it’s hard to imagine them doing so if Morgan is not ready for primetime. Furthermore, there is not much of a contingency plan in place if Morgan misses time. He needs to be both available and able.

Banks was given a big contract last offseason, which was questioned at the time of the signing. He did little to quiet the skeptics, as he spent most of the year banged up and was average, at best, when in the lineup.

Banks was not paid to be average. He was paid to be a stud. The Packers need him to be one to protect Love and open holes for the running backs.

Pass Rusher

Jeremiah says teams need: 2. Packers have: 2.

Who fits?: Micah Parsons, Devonte Wyatt.

Parsons is an obvious answer here. He’s one of two players in their NFL career to have 12 or more sacks in each of his first five seasons. The other player was some guy named Reggie White.

Parsons is in elite company. Even if he’s not going to return until a few weeks into the regular season, the Packers can count on him to be an impact player.

Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons (1) celebratess sacking Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy. | Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Another player that they feel like they can count on is Wyatt. Green Bay’s defense has been drastically different when Wyatt has been healthy and playing his best.

Unfortunately, those occasions have been relatively rare. Even still, last year’s game at Lambeau Field against Minnesota showed what Parsons and Wyatt could do as a tandem, when they single-handedly ruined one series in the second half against the Vikings.

Interior pressure is more important than ever with quarterbacks getting the ball out of their hands quicker than ever. Wyatt is best suited to provide that kind of juice.

Who could step up?: Lukas Van Ness, Javon Hargrave.

Hargrave has good experience with Jonathan Gannon as his defensive coordinator, including the best season of his career coming in 2022. Hargrave reached 11 sacks that season as the Eagles’ defensive line spearheaded them into the Super Bowl before they fell against the Chiefs.

Van Ness had a strong finish to his 2025 season but missed about half of the year with a foot injury. The 13th pick of the 2023 draft should be penciled in as a starter across from Parsons when the defense gets to full strength.

The Packers need him to live up to his first-round billing, because a team can truly never have too many quality pass rushers.

Defensive Playmaker

Jeremiah says teams need: 3. Packers have: 2.

Who fits?: Xavier McKinney, Micah Parsons.

Maybe it’s cheating to include Parsons in two of these categories, but it’s Parsons. Parsons is arguably the best non-quarterback in all of football this side of Myles Garrett. He’s their closer and biggest playmaker on that side of the ball.

McKinney also fits this billing, even if he had a down season in terms of takeaways. After intercepting a pass in each of his first five games as a Packer in 2024, McKinney had only two in 2025. The Packers insist that was a byproduct of teams not testing him.

There is value in that. If a team won’t test a certain area of the field because they know McKinney is lurking back there, it limits where the offense can go.

When teams did test him, we’ve seen McKinney make enough plays on the ball to include him in this category.

Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney (29) misses an interception on pass intended for Giants receiver Jalin Hyatt. | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

Who could step up?: Edgerrin Cooper, Evan Williams, Lukas Van Ness.

All three of these players feel like they’re right on the cusp of joining the group as a trusted playmaker but just need one or two things to go their way.

In Cooper’s case, he needs to be unleashed as someone attacking into the backfield. Cooper looked like he was going to be a terror for opposing quarterbacks during his rookie campaign, but did not receive as many pass-rushing opportunities in 2025, when he finished with just a half-sack. The Packers will need more from their third-year linebacker as he tries to grow into a star.

Williams has been steady through his two seasons and led the team in interceptions a year ago with three. Williams needs to stack another season like that one.

Van Ness looked like a player who was ascending when he broke his foot sacking Joe Flacco in early October. He finished the season strong, though, with a big game against the Ravens and a strip-sack of Caleb Williams in the playoff loss to the Bears.

This will be a huge season for Van Ness. If he can grow into a true playmaker, the Packers’ defensive line could be cooking with gasoline before adding the napalm that is Parsons by midseason.

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