Packers Training Camp Preview: Cornerback Battles, X-Factor, Game-Changer

GREEN BAY, Wis. – It takes a great quarterback to get to the Super Bowl. Therefore, it stands to reason that a defense needs quality cornerbacks to stop those elite passers.

The development of the most question-filled position on the roster will be one to watch at Packers training camp.

Coming and Going

It was a busy offseason at cornerback. When the Packers hit the practice field for the first time on Wednesday, the cornerbacks might be wearing those, “Hello, my name is …” stickers.

The Packers let former first-round pick Eric Stokes and backups Corey Ballentine and Robert Rochell walk in free agency. Unable to reach agreement on a restructured contract with Jaire Alexander, the Packers released the All-Pro.

From last year, key veterans Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine are back, as are practice-squad players Kamal Hadden (a sixth-round pick by the Chiefs in 2024) and Kalen King (a seventh-round pick by the Packers in 2024).

New to the team are Nate Hobbs, who the Packers inked to a four-year, $48 million contract in free agency. They used a seventh-round pick on Micah Robinson and added Gregory Junior, a sixth-round pick by the Jaguars in 2022, just before the start of OTAs.

“Nate’s a good football player. Physical. Kind of like me, can play inside/outside and versatile,” Nixon said during OTAs, when Alexander’s place on the roster was in limbo. “I think he’s a good addition to the defense. We didn’t lose nobody, so everybody who’s come in is just an addition. He’s a great player. He’s going to be a hell of a help.”

Biggest Battle: The Starting Trio

Assuming everyone stays healthy, this will be one of the battles of training camp. When Green Bay lines up in its nickel package – which it will about 70 percent of the time – will it go with Carrington Valentine and Keisean Nixon as the perimeter cornerbacks with Nate Hobbs in the slot? Or will it go with Nixon and Hobbs on the perimeter and safety Javon Bullard in the slot?

Nixon’s progression from kick returner to slot to cornerback is probably set in stone.

“Not really learn nothing about myself,” he said of moving to cornerback to replace Jaire Alexander last year. “I always knew what I was capable of doing. I just needed the opps to do it. I didn’t really feel like I started in the NFL until I got to the Packers. I felt like my fourth year was really my rookie year. So, this is really going onto my fourth year.

Green Bay Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon commits pass interference while defending Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson. — Green Bay Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon (25) commits pass interference while defending Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson. | Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“Just me showing I am the type of player I say I am and show it on the field. I proved last year I can play inside/outside consistently against whoever’s the type guy on the other team. The confidence level for me is through the roof.”

Most of Hobbs’ NFL experience has come in the slot. The good: According to Sports Info Solutions, he allowed a 42.9 percent catch rate with zero touchdowns last season. The bad: He missed six games last season and 16 games the last three seasons.

“Obviously, there’s no secret, I’m a versatile player,” he said. “I’ve played inside and outside in the past. I’m willing to do whatever the team needs me to do. I’m a dog, so I’m going to step wherever I step. If I step at nickel, if I step at corner. If they need me to play safety, God damn it, I’ll play safety.”

Valentine started 12 games as a rookie and seven games last season. SIS charged him with a 63.2 percent catch rate last year, but he forced a turnover in each of the final four games with two interceptions and two forced fumbles.

Bullard started 11 games as a second-round pick. He spent all of training camp playing safety, only to spend most of the season in the slot. SIS charged him with a 73.1 percent catch rate with three touchdowns allowed, zero interceptions and only one breakup.

The four main contestants are combative, competitive players. Will that be enough?

At least this isn’t foreign territory. The Packers fielded a decent pass defense last season with Eric Stokes playing 588 snaps and Jaire Alexander missing 10 games. The addition of Hobbs and a more experienced Bullard should, in theory, make the secondary at least a little better than it was last year.

Game-Changer: Wanted

There isn’t a game-changing cornerback to be found on the roster. Combined, every cornerback on Green Bay’s roster has eight career interceptions.

In six seasons, Keisean Nixon has three – one in each of his three seasons with Green Bay. In four seasons, Nate Hobbs has three – one apiece in 2021, 2023 and 2024. In two seasons, Carrington Valentine has two – both last year. Everybody else has zero, including Gregory Junior, who entered the NFL in 2022, Isaiah Dunn, who entered the NFL in 2021, and Kamal Hadden and Kalen King, who were draft picks last year.

Nixon talks a big game but, when push comes to shove, will he be able to stop Justin Jefferson or Amon-Ra St. Brown in a big moment? That’s not a knock on Nixon so much as it’s the reality of Green Bay’s cornerback group, where somebody must rise to become that game-changing defensive stopper.

X-Factor: Nate Hobbs

The Packers opened the vault for Nate Hobbs. His $12 million average salary ranks just outside the top 20 at the position.

Hobbs has been a quality player but top-25 money indicates being a team’s No. 1 cornerback. He has not been that. In four seasons, he has three interceptions, 19 passes defensed, three forced fumbles and 14 tackles for losses. By catch percentage, Sports Info Solutions shows a strong trajectory with 72.2 percent as a rookie, 67.8 percent in 2022, 55.8 percent in 2023 and 42.9 percent in 2024.

General manager Brian Gutekunst’s track record in high-stakes free agency has been impeccable. The Packers need him to be right again.

“Whenever we can get versatile players on our team, I think that’s a huge advantage for us because it gives you a lot of flexibility,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “Injuries are part of our game, and how you pivot and adjust is a big deal. I know that a lot of people just view him as a nickel. Well, we think he can play on the outside and play on the perimeter.

“I just love the guy’s mentality. I love how he plays the game. He plays it the right way. He’s tough, he’s competitive and he brings an edge.”

Under the Radar: Carrington Valentine

Green Bay Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine (24) celebrates his interception during the third quarter at the Vikings. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In the first eight games of last season, Carrington Valentine played more than a dozen snaps in only two. Down the stretch, though, he became a critical member of the secondary with an interception in Week 15 against Seattle, a forced fumble in Week 16 against New Orleans, an interception in Week 17 against Minnesota and a forced fumble in Week 18 against Chicago. Four of his five passes defensed came during the final five weeks.

“Obviously, when you make plays and stuff like that, your confidence keeps going up in the room,” Valentine said. “You also have some times you get humbled a little bit, but you never lose it. It’s just a part of you. It’s always going to be a part of me. I’m never going to change. I’m always going to be myself.”

Noteworthy Number

Zero: Snaps of NFL defense played in 2024 by the cornerbacks battling behind Keisean Nixon, Nate Hobbs and Carrington Valentine.

Gregory Junior was a sixth-round pick in 2022. He has played in 10 games (one in 2022, nine in 2023, zero in 2024) with zero starts. Isaiah Dunn, who entered the NFL in 2021, has played in 17 games (12 in 2021, five in 2022, zero in 2023 or 2024) with one start.

Kamal Hadden, a sixth-round pick by the Chiefs last year, spent his rookie year on Green Bay’s practice squad and played special teams in two games. Kalen King, a seventh-round pick by Green Bay last year, spent the season on the practice squad and didn’t play at all.

Micah Robinson, Johnathan Baldwin and Tyron Herring are rookies.

Given the war of attrition that is an NFL season, the battle to provide competent depth might be almost as important as the battle for the starting jobs.

Roster Projection

Keisean Nixon, Nate Hobbs, Carrington Valentine, Kamal Hadden and TBA from another roster.

Key to Success: Brian Gutekunst Being Correct

After the 2023 season, general manager Brian Gutekunst dropped a bomb on the safety position. The main characters from 2023, Darnell Savage, Jonathan Owens and Rudy Ford, were allowed to leave in free agency.

After the 2024 season, Gutekunst did the same thing at cornerback with the departures of former starters Jaire Alexander and Eric Stokes along with backups Corey Ballentine and Robert Rochell.

In 2024, Gutekunst replaced the safeties with Xavier McKinney in free agency and Javon Bullard, Evan Williams and Kitan Oladapo. The approach at cornerback in 2025 wasn’t nearly as bold. He signed Nate Hobbs in free agency and drafted only one cornerback, Micah Robinson, in the seventh round.

Clearly, Gutekunst believes in returning cornerbacks Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine, and he believes in Bullard’s ability to play in the slot. He is betting on the veterans staying healthy because there is no proven depth.

If Gutekunst is right, the Packers will have a chance to compete for a championship. If not, the Packers’ Super Bowl hopes are going to be torched on a weekly basis by the likes of Jared Goff in Week 1, Jayden Daniels in Week 2, Dak Prescott in Week 4, Joe Burrow in Week 6 and so on.

Packers Training Camp Previews