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Packers Have More Questions Than Answers on Defensive Line Entering OTAs

In Part 6 of our Green Bay Packers OTAs previews, it’s a look at the revamped defensive line.
Bill Huber|
Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) is sacked by. Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) is sacked by. Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt. | Kayla Wolf-Imagn Images

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Green Bay Packers

Jobs on the defensive line, obviously, won’t be won or lost when the Green Bay Packers begin organized team activities next week. The shorts-and-helmets nature of the spring practices aren’t conducive to making any proclamations about the physical, contentious play in the trenches.

However, the Packers have a lot of questions on the defensive line. The process of learning new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon’s playbook and mastering the techniques during OTAs will be the start of that process.

Having gone through every position on offense, our OTA previews continue with the defensive tackles.

Packers Defensive Line Depth Chart: Starters

Devonte Wyatt: From the 2022 draft class, Wyatt ranks third with 16 sacks; only edge rushers Aidan Hutchinson and George Karlaftis have more. He had 5.5 sacks in 17 games in 2023, five sacks in 14 games in 2024 and four sacks in 10 games in 2025. 

Of the 113 defensive tackles with at least 152 pass-rushing opportunities (Warren Brinson’s number), Wyatt ranked 14th in pass-rush win rate, according to Pro Football Focus. Last year’s season-ending injury – a broken fibula and ligament damage – could sideline him for the spring practices.

Javon Hargrave: The Packers are betting on a blast-from-the-past season by Hargrave, who had a career-high 11 sacks under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon with the Eagles in 2022. After missing most of the 2024 season, he signed with the Vikings last offseason and had just 3.5 sacks in 16 games. He was 17th in pass-rush win rate, though.

Nazir Stackhouse: It will be Stackhouse vs. Jonathan Ford vs. Chris McClellan to be the starting nose tackle in Week 1 in the new 3-4 defense. Stackhouse, who spent all of last season with the team as an undrafted rookie, probably will open OTAs as the starter. In 13 games (one start), he was in on 12 tackles but zero sacks or tackles for losses.

Packers Defensive Line Depth Chart: Backups

Warren Brinson: A sixth-round pick last year, Brinson started the season last on the depth chart but ultimately played more than 20 snaps in each of the final eight games (including playoffs). He had 13 tackles, including a half-sack. He was a promising 24th in pass-rush win rate, though, which was tied with Kenny Clark and just ahead of Leonard Williams.

Jonathan Ford: A seventh-round pick by Green Bay in 2022, Ford spent more than two-and-a-half seasons on the practice squad without playing in a game before finally getting his first opportunity with the Bears in 2024. Ford rejoined the team late in 2025 and had three tackles in 18 snaps in the playoff loss to Chicago.

Karl Brooks: A sixth-round pick in 2023, Brooks has missed only one game in his career. In 2023 and 2024, he played in all 34 games off the bench and had 7.5 sacks and 10 tackles for losses. In 2025, he played in 16 games with seven starts and had just one-half sack and one tackle for loss. He was a decent 50th in pass-rush win rate.

Chris McClellan: The team’s third-round pick had six sacks and eight tackles for losses as a senior at Missouri. The Packers considered drafting him in the second round before trading up in the third round. For the defense to reach its potential, he needs to hit his potential as soon as possible.

Jaden Crumedy: Officially, McClellan was the only defensive tackle drafted by the Packers. They added another draft pick, Jaden Crumedy, after the season. He was a sixth-round pick by Carolina in 2024 after starting the final 39 games of his career at Mississippi State. Crumedy, who has an enticing physical skill-set, played in eight games for the Panthers the past two seasons.

Anthony Campbell: Campbell went undrafted out of Miami last year and spent training camp with Seattle. He failed to make the roster but spent the start of the season on the practice squad. He signed to Green Bay’s practice squad late in the season. At 6-foot-6 and 307 pounds with 5.01 speed and 34 1/2-inch arms, he’s out of Central Casting.

Jordon Riley: A seventh-round pick by the Giants in 2023 who started five games for them in 2024, the Packers grabbed Riley off their practice squad late last season. He played in four games and showed some real promise before tearing an Achilles.

“Jordon Riley’s another one of those really cool stories with all the injuries we've had up front at that position,” former defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said. “You take a guy off the practice squad and, all of a sudden, he's playing like 25 to 30 reps for us, and Jordon was playing really well. Really well.” 

Packers Drafted: Chris McClellan

In need of a nose tackle following the move to a 3-4 defense and the trade of Colby Wooden, the Packers could have drafted big Domonique Orange but opted for Chris McClellan.

The Packers liked McClellan’s ability to be a three-down player and his ability to move up and down the line rather than being a two-down nose tackle. That’s how he was used at the rookie camp.

“The combination of being able to play the nose, the three and actually rush the passer, there’s a lot of these guys that don’t do that. He can,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said during the draft. “That was I think what set him apart a little bit for us.”

He had an impressive week at the Senior Bowl.

“That’s what I really like about certain nose tackles that are more than just what we call need-two guys, and they just eat up two blocks and that’s really all they are,” Senior Bowl executive director Drew Fabianch said.

“When they’re more than that, that’s what makes them more valuable. If they got pass-rush ability, it’s a plus-plus. And again, good athlete for his size. Was motivated all week, competed really well. He had kind of a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. And I called him ‘Sexy Fat Man’ because he can pass rush.”

McClellan won’t win the starting job during OTAs but his ability to master the playbook and fundamentals during the next four weeks will help him in the competition once training camp begins.

What We Know: Devonte Wyatt Is Playmaker

Devonte Wyatt will play the season under the fifth-year option and would seem a likely target for a contract extension.

The Packers, as everyone knows, went 0-5 following Micah Parsons’ torn ACL. Well, the Packers went 6-3-1 when Wyatt played last season. In the three losses, Green Bay allowed 13, 16 and 10 points. In his 15 career games with at least a half-sack, the Packers are 12-3.

“He’s hungry, he’s very passionate, he wants to be great, and he’s very coachable and adaptable,” defensive line coach Vince Oghobaase said. “I believe his best ball is ahead of him. He can rush the passer, he can stop the run. He has an immaculate play style that I love. He’s a vocal guy. He’s taking more of a leadership role, and the guys like him a lot and I like him a lot.”

What We Don’t Know: Everything Else

Just like so many other positions, it’s steeped in mystery.

Can the 33-year-old Javon Hargrave have a turn-back-the-clock season? His four tackles for losses last season matched his healthy-season career low.

Can Karl Brooks ramp up the production? Can Warren Brinson take the next step after finishing strong? Can Stackhouse, Ford or (eventually) Riley be at least reliable players? And, of course, how quickly can McClellan be an impact player?

That process will begin next week.

“He was a guy that really I think checked a lot of boxes since the middle of the season through the all-star process,” Milt Hendrickson, who recently was promoted to vice president of player personnel, said during the draft.

“Just a guy that, the more you watch, the more he grew on us and that’s ultimately why we made the decision to go get him. Big man, good length, he’s got a really good tag. He can do a lot of things. I think there’s a lot of versatility he’s going to be able to bring our defense.”

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.