Packers Adding Experienced Former Fifth-Round Pick to Practice Squad

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers are signing defensive tackle Eric Johnson, a former fifth-round draft pick with a lot of experience, to their practice squad.

Johnson worked out for the team on Tuesday. While the Packers have seven defensive tackles on their 53-man roster, they had none on the practice squad after Jaden Crumedy was signed to the Texans’ 53-man roster last week.

The Packers started Tuesday with 14 players on their practice squad. One opening came when Bo Melton, who was released from the roster and signed to the practice squad on Friday, was re-signed to the roster on Monday. Also, long snapper Scott Daly was released from the practice squad on Monday.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Packers made another move by releasing receiver Chris Hilton from the practice squad.

Eric Johnson Has Experience

Johnson was a fifth-round pick by the Colts in 2022. He played in 51 games in his four-year career, including 12 last year in his return to Indianapolis after spending the 2024 season with the Patriots. He has career numbers of 41 tackles, one sack and two tackles for losses with exactly 700 snaps on defense.

This year, his training camp was split between the Vikings and Falcons.

Johnson was the first Missouri State player drafted since 2011.

After his senior season, when he had 6.5 tackles for losses and three blocked kicks, he was selected for the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl all-star game.

“I feel like I showed I was a pretty good player, but I also feel like there was some shock value, as well," Johnson said at the time. “A lot of the scouts there weren't aware of me. Coming from Missouri State, compared to a lot of the others, that's a small school. Me coming out from a small school and showing out that I have the build and mixture of speed and power to play at that level just kind of shocked a bunch of people that they didn't expect it.”

His play at that game got an invite to go to the prestigious Senior Bowl, where he lined up with Packers first-round pick Devonte Wyatt.

“Missouri State defensive lineman Eric Johnson was overpowering all week long,” former ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay said at the time. “I have to go back to tape on him, but he could be a great 5-technique in a 3-4 scheme.”

Eric Johnson Has Athleticism, Too

Johnson measured 6-foot-4 and 299 pounds before the draft. He posted elite testing numbers, including a 4.88 in the 40, for a Relative Athletic Score of 9.39. The Falcons listed him at 320.

https://x.com/MathBomb/status/1520483136131538956

Johnson was the 159th pick of the 2022 draft, taken between the Packers’ selections of Zach Bako-Bewele in the fourth round and Kingsley Enagbare in the fifth round.

“He flashes phonebooth explosiveness, functional hand use and play range,” The Athletic’s Dane Brugler wrote before the draft. “He should appeal to multiple schemes and is ideally suited as a five-technique or quick-penetrating three-technique.”

After the draft, Colts director of player personnel Kevin Rogers compared him to Grover Stewart, who played at Albany State and is entering his 10th season in the NFL and just made his 110th career start with the team.

“A little bit raw but has some physical upside,” Rogers said. “He’s got lean mass, which we always talk about. Lower level of competition but he went to the Senior Bowl and flashed. We watched him against some 1-A schools and he flashed. I think there’s upside there to be kind of a backup to Grover, a one (technique). He flashes some three-technique stuff, too. I think our D-line coach Nate Ollie is getting excited to try and pull that out of him.”

Maybe you're still feeling a Week 1 hangover. @JacobWestendorf has an anecdote better than any hair-of-the-dog shot.

It's his Week 2 Packers-Jets matchups. ⬇️https://t.co/sv0BAnhFW4
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 15, 2026

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