Predicting the Packers' Roster After the 2024 NFL Draft

This is not a roster prediction.

Well, it is. But this is mostly an exercise in two things.

First, it’s a vibe check on the overall roster. How do we feel about individual positions? How do we feel about individual battles within those position groups? How do we feel, man?

Second, it’s a reminder that this thing is basically done. We’ve got the 2024 Packers already, and here they are. Most of these positions are essentially set. When we talk about position battles, we’re really talking about stuff on the margins. Fringe guys, basically. There’s not going to be much turnover between now and whenever the initial 53-man roster is set. The odds of an impact free agent signing are long, but level-setting on our feel for individual positions might help us identify where we think roster additions could happen.

So here it is: our first roster prediction/vibe check/pointless prognostication of 2024.

Quarterbacks (2): Jordan Love, Sean Clifford

Analysis: I know they drafted Michael Pratt, but I’m leaning Clifford right now just because of the experience factor. It might be in vogue to carry three QBs, but I don’t see a reason to do that. Pratt (or Clifford, for that matter) can develop just as well on the practice squad.

Of note: USFL MVP Alex McGough is no longer listed among the quarterbacks. He’s apparently transitioning to wide receiver, which is an odd move considering his not-at-all blistering 4.62 40-yard dash time.

Running backs (4): Josh Jacobs, AJ Dillon, Marshawn Lloyd, Emanuel Wilson.

Analysis: This is the most “set” position on offense, at least in terms of the top three. Jacobs is the top dog/bellcow/workhorse/animal of your choice, and Dillon and Lloyd will fall in some order behind him. I think Emanuel Wilson is a real roster candidate right now if only because of how high the Packers seem on him, but he is not assured a spot by any means.

Wide receivers (6): Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Bo Melton, Malik Heath

Analysis: No surprises here, as the Packers carry over the same group with which they ended the season. The only questions for me are whether or not 2023 draft pick Grant DuBose can make a run at the roster and if 2022 draft pick Samori Toure is done in Green Bay. I don’t think McGough makes a splash at his new position.

Tight ends (3): Luke Musgrave, Tucker Kraft, Tyler Davis

Analysis: The tight end group is in better shape now than it’s been in a long, long time. Musgrave and Kraft both ended the season with their respective arrows pointed directly up. I think Tyler Davis, the Packers’ leading special teams snap getter in 2022, has an edge on Ben Sims, but he’s also coming off ACL surgery and won’t yet be a year removed from his injury when training camp opens.

Of note: there is no Josiah Deguara/Henry Pearson/Dominique Dafney fullback-adjacent player (or in Pearson’s case, actual fullback) on the roster in this prediction. That seems to be something Matt LaFleur is moving away from over the years, and this could be the first season with none on the roster.

Offensive line (9): Rasheed Walker, Elgton Jenkins, Josh Myers, Zach Tom, Jordan Morgan, Jacob Monk, Andre Dillard, Caleb Jones, Sean Rhyan

Analysis: A lot is up in the air on the offensive line, but there is certainly no shortage of interesting options here. I think it will all come together nicely, but exactly what it looks like is very much an open question. This group is very tackle heavy right now, and if there’s going to be a summer roster addition I think that’s a good place to look. I have Caleb Jones ahead of fellow massive linemen Luke Tenuta and Kadeem Telfort, but both Tenuta and Telfort could both easily make a push. Roster spots are certainly not guaranteed to Jones or to late free agent signing Andre Dillard, well into the “reclamation project” point of his career.

I don’t think Royce Newman is going to make it. Even though he has utility as an interior lineman, he’s simply too expensive for what he offers the team. If the Packers were to make a signing on offense, I’d look at an interior lineman.

Defensive line (5): Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt, TJ Slaton, Karl Brooks, Colby Wooden

Analysis: Even though the guys that used to be classified as outside linebackers are now considered defensive linemen, I’m going to group those guys as edge rushers for our roster prognostication purposes.

The defensive line might be another spot where the packers look to add a body between now and training camp. Clark and Wyatt are roster locks, and Brooks is a solid bet, but I think things are murky beyond that. Slaton is a bit of an odd fit for what the Packers likely will want from their defensive line. He is an adept space eater but has been their worst pass rusher since arriving in Green bay. And that’s not a criticism! It’s just not his job and not an alignment with his skill set. He could be a trade candidate.

Meanwhile, Colby Wooden is probably in a bit of roster danger, though he has supposedly added some weight in the offseason, bulking up from this mid-270s playing weight in 2023 to near 290. That’s good, but I wonder if he’d have been better served going the other direction. He did a lot of edge rusher stuff in college and might be a better fit there.

Edge rushers (5): Rashan Gary, Preston Smith, Lukas Van Ness, JJ Enagbare, Brenton Cox

Analysis: The Packers’ top three edges are as set as a position can be: Gary, Smith, and Van Ness aren’t going anywhere. Beyond that, I’d normally have expected to see Enagbare on the PUP list to start the year but for the recent revelation that he did not fully tear his ACL near the end of last season and did not have surgery this offseason. I’m assuming that means he’ll have a good chance of being good to go at the start of training camp.

Finally, I think Brenton Cox makes it after essentially redshirting last season. He’s an intriguing pass rusher and fits what others who run similar schemes to Jeff Hafley look for on the edge. Maybe he looks a little bit better in year two than in year one, though I don’t think we can count out 2023 practice squad member Keshawn Banks.

Linebackers (5) Quay Walker, Edgerrin Cooper, Isaiah McDuffie, Ty’Ron Hopper, Eric Wilson

Analysis: Two things are true about this linebacker group. First, their responsibilities are going to be different in Jeff Hafley’s defense than they were in Joe Barry’s defense. And second, I have no idea what those responsibilities are going to look like.

I think it’s clear that the Packers’ top four linebacker options are Quay Walker, Edgerrin Cooper, Isaiah McDuffie, and Ty’Ron Hopper, with Eric Wilson around for special teams duties (sorry Kristian Welch). but I don’t know how playing time sorts out between those three. I don’t know enough about the linebacker roles in Hafley’s defense to say what the pecking order will be, though it seems fair to assume Walker and Cooper will be the top two. How things shake out between McDuffie and Hopper, though, is anybody’s guess.

Cornerbacks (6): Jaire Alexander, Carrington Valentine, Keisean Nixon, Corey Ballantine, Kalen King, Eric Stokes

Analysis: It’s an open question as to who will start opposite Jaire Alexander, but the candidates are not a mystery, nor is their roster status. Valentine and Ballentine, barring truly disastrous camps, are going to make the roster. Keisean Nixon was a lock anyway, but as the Packers’ only real slot corner, he’s an extra-firm lock. I think Kalen King makes it, given that there are no other strong candidates who can match his college productivity (though if special teams matters Robert Rochelle might have a shot), and the Packers seem very encouraged by Eric Stokes right now. I think they’ll give him every possible opportunity to make the roster.

Safeties (5): Xavier McKinney, Javon Bullard, Evan Williams, Kitan Oladapo, Anthony Johnson

Analysis: If the Packers have not acquired you via a massive free agent deal or turned in a draft card with your name on it, good luck making the roster this year. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but I think you can all but write the four safeties the Packers acquired this offseason onto the roster sheet in pen. Maybe erasable pen in the case of Evan Williams or Kitan Oladapo, but pen just the same. Anthony Johnson might be the only vulnerable candidate here, and if someone’s going to push him, I’d bet on Benny Sapp.

Specialists (3): Daniel Whelan, Greg Joseph, Peter Bowden

Analysis: I think there’s a very good chance the Packers turn over two of their three positions in the special teams battery. Whelan is the only punter around right now and there’s little reason to think that won’t continue, though the Packers do have one in rookie minicamp this weekend. I think Joseph beats out Anders Carlson on consistency, and Bowden does the same to Matt Orzech. 

I don’t know where else to put this, so I’ll say it here: I am confident of two things regarding roster construction and the new kickoff rules. The first is that it will affect how teams build their rosters. The second is that I have no idea exactly how. Will they carry multiple returners? How will it affect their roster allocations as far as the blocking and coverage units? I will be watching this very closely in the preseason.