Packers Sign CB Corey Ballentine to 53-Man Roster

The Green Bay Packers are making two moves on Wednesday to deal with injuries at cornerback.

Author:
Bill Huber
Updated:
Oct 25, 2023 12:13 PM EDT
Original:
Oct 25, 2023

In this story:

GREEN BAY, Wis. – According to a source, the Green Bay Packers are signing cornerback Corey Ballentine from the practice squad to their 53-man roster to bolster the depth in the secondary.

Ballentine fell short of his bid to earn a roster spot in training camp but has been elevated to the gameday roster three times. That’s the max allowed, so getting him on the field for future games – such as Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings – meant adding him to the 53-man roster.

The Packers’ cornerback depth has been hit hard by injuries. Two-time All-Pro Jaire Alexander has missed three of the last four games with a back injury. Eric Stokes’ long-awaited season debut following last year’s season-ending foot injury lasted all of four snaps before he sustained a hamstring injury on special teams.

When Stokes went down, the Packers were down to just three corners against Denver: starting cornerback Rasul Douglas, starting slot Keisean Nixon and seventh-round rookie Carrington Valentine.

The Packers are hopeful Alexander will be ready for Sunday’s game against the Vikings. Even with star receiver Justin Jefferson on injured reserve, quarterback Kirk Cousins leads the NFL in 300-yard passing games.

The Packers will need to make a corresponding roster move. That could be safety Darnell Savage going on injured reserve. He aggravated a calf injury vs. Denver and could miss multiple weeks, according to ESPN.com.

Stokes' injury is not considered a long-term issue, a source said, though the Packers might want to be extra-cautious given the hamstring issues he battled during his comeback.

In other cornerback news, the Packers added a player to their practice squad and signed a fourth-round draft pick off another team's practice squad.

Corey Ballentine
Photo by Tork Mason/USA Today Sports Images

Ballentine was a sixth-round pick by the Giants in 2019. He started two games for the Giants as a rookie and two more in 2020. The Packers signed him to their practice squad early last season.

After playing 17 defensive snaps in a Week 7 game with the Giants in 2020, Ballentine didn’t play another snap on defense until last year’s Week 10 game against Dallas.

In three games for the Packers this season, he’s played 80 snaps on defense and 48 more on special teams. He’s allowed 4-of-6 passing for 50 yards with one pass breakup, according to Pro Football Focus.

At Washburn, Ballentine was a Division II All-American who won the Cliff Harris Award as the nation’s best small-college defensive player. As a senior in 2018, he had three interceptions with two forced fumbles and added three blocked kicks.