Packers News
Three Position Battles that Will Carry into Training Camp for the Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers have wrapped up mandatory minicamp and won’t reconvene as a team until training camp opens in late July. While most of the team’s starters are clear barring injuries, there were several position battles going on throughout offseason practices. Here are three Packers position battles that will continue into training camp next month:
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Packers Position Battle Number One: Safety
We know that Darnell Savage will start at one safety spot but who will be the other starter? Rudy Ford is the incumbent although Ford has not started more than six games in a season. That happened last year in his first season with Green Bay.
Ford has good speed and intercepted a career-high three passes last season. He was lining up with the ones throughout OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
There are plenty of other candidates for the job. The Packers signed Tarvarius Moore and Jonathan Owens as free agents. Owens may help improve the Packers tackling skills and both players could help on special teams in addition to competing for time at safety.
Long shots to win the job include rookie seventh round pick Anthony Johnson, Jr., and Innis Gaines. Johnson looked good at OTAs. The seventh round pick out of Iowa State has potential but it’s not clear if he’s ready for a substantial role on defense as a rookie.
Green Bay Packers Position Battle Number Two: Right Tackle
The left side of the Packers offensive line is set with David Bakhtiari at tackle and Elgton Jenkins at guard. But the right tackle spot is up for grabs with Yosh Nijman and Zach Tom as the two leading contenders.
Nijman was the starter for most of last season. He has developed his game since joining the Packers as an undrafted free agent before the 2019 season. He has improved his standing on the team with each season and assumed a bigger role after starting on the practice squad.
Nijman was graded as a better pass protector than run blocker by PFF and hopes to maintain his starting job.
The Packers drafted Tom last season and he started five games while playing in nine. The Wake Forest alum can play any position along the offensive line and played four of them as rookie last year. Center was considered his best position coming out of college yet that was the one position he didn’t play in 2022.
The Packers want the best five linemen in the starting lineup and Tom is likely one of them but where does he fit into the lineup? Right tackle could be his spot this season although he is also practicing at center.
Green Bay Packers Position Battle 3: Slot Receiver
Randall Cobb and Allen Lazard are no longer with the team and now the slot position is wide open. Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs are the favorites to start on the perimeter, but the slot position is likely to be a battle between two players: rookie second round pick Jayden Reed and second-year man Samori Toure.
Reed has good speed and frequently lined up in the slot at Michigan State. The Packers coaching staff projects him to have a big role in the offense, but the question is how quickly he can learn the playbook and adapt to life in the NFL.
Toure made the team last year as a seventh-round pick and has gotten into even better shape this offseason. The Nebraska product hopes to play more and establish himself as an NFL regular in year two of his career.
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