Strong or Weak? Packers Depth Chart After Week 1 of Free Agency

The Green Bay Packers haven’t made enormous additions to the roster, but it’s been an offseason of enormous change.

Rasheed Walker (16), Colby Wooden (16), Romeo Doubs (15), Rashan Gary (15), Quay Walker (14) and Elgton Jenkins (nine) started at least half the games last season, and Nate Hobbs (five), Kingsley Enagbare (three) and Emanuel Wilson (two) also started multiple games. That’s a combined 95 starts that went out the door. Plus, tight end John FitzPatrick, the team’s only unsigned unrestricted free agent, started four games.

Whether it’s in-house players stepping into roles or additions to the roster, general manager Brian Gutekunst generally has plug-and-play replacements.

Here’s a look at where the Packers are strong, weak or somewhere in between on a 1-to-10 scale, with 1 being incredibly weak and 10 being overwhelmingly strong. The strength of the starter and the quality of the backups are taken into account.

Quarterback: 7

Starter: Jordan Love.

Backups: Desmond Ridder, Kyle McCord.

Analysis: The Packers have a quality starting quarterback in place with Love. Is he a top-10 starter? Maybe; maybe not. While he might at times leave you wanting more – it was disappointing that he was unable to turn the tide in the playoff loss to Chicago, for instance – he finished fifth in passer rating and threw 23 touchdowns vs. six interceptions.

The question mark, of course, is the backup. Ridder, at least, has significant experience as Atlanta’s starter in 2023 and has made 18 career starts. Will the Packers roll with him or make a high-upside trade for Anthony Richardson or Will Levis in hopes of finding Malik Willis 2.0?

Running Back: 6

Starter: Josh Jacobs.

Backups: Chris Brooks, MarShawn Lloyd, Pierre Strong, Damien Martinez.

Analysis: Jacobs is an above-average starter. His downturn in production would seem to have more to do with his blockers than any wear-and-tear on the 28-year-old, seven-year starter.

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs (8) is tackled by Chicago Bears defensive tackle Andrew Billings. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The question, of course, is who’s behind him. Brooks is an excellent pass-protecting back, but he hasn’t been asked to be a high-volume ball-carrier. Emanuel Wilson did well in that role. It remains to be seen whether Brooks, a draft pick or Lloyd can flourish in the No. 2 option. A healthy and productive Lloyd would raise this to an 8, but who knows if he’ll ever get on the field.

With so much uncertainty, the key to it all will be Jacobs proving he remains a high-quality, high-volume runner.

Receiver: 6

Starters: Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Matthew Golden.

Backups: Dontayvion Wicks, Savion Williams, Skyy Moore, Will Sheppard, Jakobie Keeney-James, Isaiah Neyor.

Analysis: As has been the case the past few years, if strength is judged by numbers, the Packers’ receiver corps will be a powerhouse. And, as has been the case the past few years, if strength is judged by the absence of having a No. 1 receiver, the Packers’ receiver corps is a question mark.

The Packers had to let Romeo Doubs sign with the Patriots. He wasn’t exactly a go-to player on third down or in the red zone – he perhaps should have been – but he was the team’s best player in those areas. Golden’s got a chance to be really good, but who’s going to make a play when the Packers need someone to make a play?

Tight End: 7

Starter: Tucker Kraft.

Backups: Luke Musgrave, Josh Whyle, Drake Dabney, McCallan Castles, Messiah Swinson.

Analysis: Tucker Kraft expects to be ready for Week 1. He had better be.

Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft was a one-man YAC attack last season. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

A healthy Kraft is one of the best in the business. At a position group filled with a lot of specialists – overgrown receivers or underpowered linemen – Kraft is a do-it-all standout. We’ve referenced this stat a few times this offseason but it’s worth repeating here: With Kraft for the first seven games, Jordan Love was first with 6.5 yards after the catch per completion. Without Kraft, Love was next-to-last with 3.7.

Kraft-Musgrave-Whyle is a solid one-two-three punch because Kraft is a stud capable of playing 90 percent of the snaps and limiting what’s needed out of everybody else. That’s why we gave this a 7 on the strength scale. Musgrave-Whyle-Whoever would get a 2 or 3 because there isn’t one tight end who would cause opposing defenses even a moment of consternation.

Offensive Line: 4

Starters: LT Jordan Morgan, LG Aaron Banks, C Sean Rhyan (re-signed), RG Anthony Belton, RT Zach Tom.

Backups: T/G Darian Kinnard, C/G Jacob Monk, T/G Travis Glover, G Donovan Jennings, G John Williams, G Karsen Barnhart, T Brant Banks, T Dalton Cooper.

Analysis: The starting five probably will be good, but there’s a lot of wishing and hoping in that statement. Morgan’s a left tackle and finally will play the position. Banks should be better if he can stay healthy. Rhyan should be better with an offseason at center. Belton should be better in Year 2. Tom is one of the best in the league but was banged up for almost the entire season.

That’s a lot of things that need to work out, though, before that projection can become reality.

The depth is almost nonexistent. Kinnard proved to be a solid player after barely playing in his first three years in the league. Other than Monk starting in Week 18 against the Vikings, the rest of the backups have meager or no experience.

Defensive End: 5

Starters: Micah Parsons, Lukas Van Ness.

Backups: Barryn Sorrell, Brenton Cox, Collin Oliver.

Analysis: A healthy Parsons, obviously, changes everything. According to PFF, he was fourth in pass-rush win rate among edge rushers. According to league data, the run defense was 0.11 yards per snap better when he was on the field and the pass defense was 0.22 yards per snap better when he was on the field. If he were healthy and full-go for Week 1, this group would be a 7.

Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons (1) sacks Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy. | Tork Mason-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

It’s not only the sacks, pressures and impact plays. It’s that he played 77 percent of the defensive snaps in his 14 games. He was at 80-plus percent in each of his first four seasons with Dallas. It’s a lot less stress on the depth chart when the starter is playing 50 snaps at an elite level and the backup is playing 10.

The lack of depth could be a major problem with Parsons likely to be sidelined to start the season and on limited snaps for at least his first few games, which is why defensive end could be a need in late-stage free agency. Van Ness missed half the season with a foot injury. He has only 8.5 sacks in three seasons but showed some promise when on the field. Sorrell, Cox and Oliver played a total of 288 snaps last season.

Defensive Tackle: 3

Starters: Devonte Wyatt, Javon Hargrave.

Backups: Karl Brooks, Warren Brinson, Nazir Stackhouse, Jonathan Ford, Jordon Riley, James Ester, Anthony Campbell, Jaden Crumedy, Dante Barnett.

Analysis: Here’s another position that could use some late help. Hargrave is a player-for-player replacement for Colby Wooden but not a role-for-role replacement. Wooden was the unit’s best run-stopping defensive tackle but rushing the passer will be Hargrave’s niche.

Who can fill that tough-guy void? The Packers probably will draft a defensive tackle early, but expecting big things from a rookie defensive tackle can be risky business. The Packers will hope for second-year jumps from Brinson and Stackhouse, but it might be too much to ask for a sixth-round pick and undrafted free agent, respectively, to be real run-stopping forces.

Wyatt is a really good player and probably the only above-average player on the unit. His ability to get on the field and stay on the field will be a key to the season.

Green Bay's defense will be without Colby Wooden and Quay Walker in 2026. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Linebacker: 8

Starters: Edgerrin Cooper, Zaire Franklin, Isaiah McDuffie.

Backups: Ty’Ron Hopper, Nick Niemann, Kristian Welch, Jamon Johnson.

Analysis: This is a strong group, even if Franklin winds up being not quite as good as Quay Walker, who signed a big contract with the Raiders.

There are three keys. One, Cooper needs to become the player everyone thought he’d be after unleashing a reign of terror during the second half of his rookie season. He had three tackles for losses on running plays last season. As a rookie, he had 10. He wasn’t bad last year – not by a long shot – but he didn’t hit expectations, either. It will be up to Jonathan Gannon to get him rolling.

Two, was Franklin’s diminished production last season with the Colts simply a blip on the radar and perhaps a byproduct of not being a great fit under a new defensive scheme? Franklin had five forced fumbles and two interceptions in 2024, when he led the league with 173 tackles. Walker had one interception and zero forced fumbles during his final three seasons.

Three, what’s up with Hopper? A third-round pick in 2024, he has played 144 defensive snaps in two seasons, with 67 of those coming in Week 18. It’s time for him to challenge McDuffie for a role on the defense.

Niemann, Welch and Johnson will compete for the back of the depth chart.

Cornerback: 3

Starters: Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine.

Backups: Benjamin St-Juste, Kamal Hadden, Bo Melton, Jaylin Simpson, Shemar Bartholomew, Tyron Herring.

Green Bay Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine (24) is tackled after his wild-card interception at Chicago. | Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Analysis: If St-Juste builds upon his solid season as a backup with the Chargers and Hadden can get healthy and stay healthy, the Packers would have decent depth. However, do they have even one above-average starting cornerback on the roster? Probably not, at least not without a superb pass rush to speed up the quarterback’s time clock.

This is supposed to be a strong draft class. Can Gutekunst find a real difference-maker? That would be huge, because Caleb Williams and Jared Goff are not losing any sleep thinking about this group?

Safety: 10

Starters: Xavier McKinney, Evan Williams, Javon Bullard.

Backups: Kitan Oladapo, Johnathan Baldwin, Mark Perry.

Green Bay Packers safeties Javon Bullard (20) and Evan Williams (33) and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) lead Skol chant. — Green Bay Packers safeties Javon Bullard (20) and Evan Williams (33) and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) lead Packers fans in a mock “Skol” chant after an interception by Williams against the Vikings. | Tork Mason-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Analysis: Perhaps no team can match what the Packers have at safety. Plain and simple, this is a superb group. McKinney was a first-team All-Pro in 2024 and a second-team All-Pro in 2025, Williams took a big Year 2 jump at safety and Bullard took a big Year 2 jump in the slot.

With any other team, Oladapo might be an intriguing player perhaps ready to push for a starting job. With the Packers, he’s buried on the bench.

Specialists: 7

Starters: K Brandon McManus/Lucas Havrisik, P Daniel Whelan, LS Matt Orzech, KR Skyy Moore.

Analysis: The key here, obviously, is the Packers settling on a kicker and that kicker coming through in the clutch.

McManus was lights-out in his partial season with the Packers in 2024 but not so much in 2025. Right when it looked like he had found his groove after a midseason injury, he had a disastrous playoff game against the Bears. The Packers just paid his $1 million roster bonus, meaning the battle with Havrisik is set.

Moore might fix the return unit – and perhaps be the rising tide that lifts the special-teams boat – Whelan is a superb punter and holder and Orzech is a solid snapper.

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