Packers Add Almost 700 Pounds to Defensive Line

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Where’s the beef?

On the Green Bay Packers’ defensive line.

Two days after signing Jordon Riley off the New York Giants’ practice squad, the Packers claimed Quinton Bohanna off waivers from the Seattle Seahawks on Friday. The Packers list Riley as 6-foot-5 and 338 pounds. The Seahawks listed Bohanna at 6-foot-4 and 355 pounds.

That’s 693 pounds of defensive tackle to replace standout starter Devonte Wyatt, who was placed on injured reserve on Friday.

Bohanna was a sixth-round draft pick by the Dallas Cowboys in 2021. He played in 27 games with 10 starts in two seasons for the Cowboys. In 2023, he played in three games apiece with the Lions and Titans. With Tennessee, he played in one game in 2024 and five games this season.

In a total of 39 games, including 13 starts, Bohanna has 42 tackles. He has zero sacks and three tackles for losses.

With the addition of Bohanna, the Packers have a full 53-man roster. That means activating receiver Jayden Reed off injured reserve for Sunday’s game against the Bears would require another roster move.

Bohanna has an interesting family history. An uncle, Brian Ingram, played linebacker for the New England Patriots and the San Diego Chargers. In six seasons, he played in 40 games.

His father is Courtney Ingram – aka Gangsta Blac, a Memphis rapper.

“I'm from Memphis,” Bohanna said after being drafted. “That grit and grit and grind mindset. Just take that with me everywhere I go and it's been working with me good so far.”

Bohanna was listed at 357 pounds at Kentucky, where he was a team captain, but was down to 327 for pro day.

Quinton Bohanna is a DT prospect in the 2021 draft class. He scored a 2.28 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 1010 out of 1307 DT from 1987 to 2021. https://t.co/LcjMhRBgBV #RAS via @Mathbomb pic.twitter.com/wfFoRYYU7G
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 13, 2021

“I am a big guy who can move real good,” he said. “I love this. There’s no pressure on me. This is what I have been doing since I was 4. I love it.”

Bohanna, 26, had two sacks and nine tackles for losses in four seasons at Kentucky, where he was teammates with Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine.

“I am just a football fan,” he said at pro day. “It’s hard growing up as a kid saying my favorite spot is nose guard. We are not too flashy. But I still feel like I always have. I am supposed to be here. I dreamed about playing in the NFL. It probably won’t really hit me until I am officially part of this team or organization, but I am ready.”

No different than with adding Riley, the focus will be on stopping the run as the weather gets cold. After hosting the Bears on Sunday, the Packers will play at Denver and Chicago and host Baltimore. That’s a series of cold-weather games before the finale at Minnesota.

“It’s what I do,” Bohanna said of stopping the run after being drafted. “I take pride in stopping the run and letting those guys behind me run free and make plays. They know that’s what I love to do. My physicality just fits well with the system that (defensive coordinator Dan) Quinn wants to run on defense.”

He did it well, then-coach Mike McCarthy noted.

“I think you're seeing a guy who is really starting to make a move in the area of pass rush, not just the transition pass rush on first and second down,” McCarthy said. “I thought Q definitely took a big step against Denver.”

Bohanna – he goes by “Big Bo” – was a nose tackle for the Cowboys. With Seattle, he diversified a bit with a little work on the edge to help him win a roster spot.

“In the league, opportunities come up. People get hurt. People leave. Transactions,” Bohanna said during training camp. “I had my time when I was younger that I worried about the room and who was here; who they going to keep with it? But it’s, like, man, I’m just working and I’m just enjoying it. “Appreciative.”

Bohanna has always been a big kid. In high school, he played nose tackle and was a backup quarterback.

“If something would've happened to either guy, he would've played quarterback,” his high school coach, Anthony Jones, told ESPN. “He's a freakish athlete. He probably had the best hands on the team. He could've played on the offensive line and been really good at it. He could've done it all. He could throw it.

“Quinton might've been the best athlete. He wanted to run routes. We didn't play with a tight end much, plus, he was just too big. But he definitely could have. He was a heck of a basketball player, too.”

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