Happy New Year! The Green Bay Packers are ringing in the new year by preparing for their Week 18 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings, but they might be doing so with some new faces. The Packers have already made 15 roster moves this week, including the addition of former All-Pro cornerback Trevon Diggs. The Packers don’t have anything on the line in Sunday’s game, so they shouldn’t run the risk of any key players getting hurt. That said, they still have to field a full active gameday roster.
After locking up the NFC’s seventh seed, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Packers would rest key players in a meaningless Week 18 matchup, which Matt LaFleur confirmed yesterday. “Here’s what I told the team. We have 53 spots on our roster. You can have two call-ups. You have 48 dressed on gameday,” LaFleur shared. “So there are going to be some starters who are not going to play. Shoot, they might not suit up, they might suit up. And then there are going to be some starters who are going to play. Basically, you guys will find out on Sunday who’s playing.”
There’s no reason the Packers should trot any of their starters this Sunday in Minnesota, but as LaFleur pointed out, they can’t treat this like a preseason game and make 20+ players inactive. They still have to have 48 players active, and they’re only allowed to elevate two players from the practice squad. The Packers can only have seven inactive players. Some starters will have to play due to the slew of injuries. Amongst the most likely candidates to be inactive are:
- Jordan Love (concussion)
- Josh Jacobs (knee)
- Christian Watson
- Jayden Reed
- Dontayvion Wicks (concussion)
- Romeo Doubs
- Zach Tom (knee)
- Rasheed Walker
- Aaron Banks
- Rashan Gary
- Quay Walker
- Edgerrin Cooper
- Xavier McKinney
- Evan Williams (knee)
- Javon Bullard
The Packers are choosing rest over rust, and rightfully so, considering they are one of the most banged-up teams in the playoffs. They had as many as 20 players on their injury report last week, and are starting this week with 12 injury designations. “I wouldn’t say it’s ideal, but it’s the circumstance,” LaFleur said on Wednesday. He also acknowledged that Sunday will be a great opportunity for some of the younger, inexperienced players.
Packers’ Offense Won’t Be Pretty
Clayton Tune will likely get the start at quarterback for the Packers on Sunday. Tune was just signed to the active roster yesterday. The Packers will likely opt to rest Jordan Love as he continues to recover from a concussion he suffered against Chicago. Malik Willis, Green Bay’s primary backup, probably won’t see much time either due to a shoulder issue. Despite the health of Love and Willis, the Packers won’t go into Sunday with only one quarterback. Desmond Ridder was signed to the practice squad on Wednesday. Ridder has familiarity with Green Bay’s offensive system and spent time with Luke Getsy in Las Vegas last season, so he should be up to speed by Sunday. It wouldn’t be a total surprise to see Ridder get into the game at some point.
Josh Jacobs, who has been battling a knee injury since November 16, is a strong candidate to be inactive on Sunday. Emmanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks would be the next in line to receive a lot of the work at running back, although the Packers probably won’t want to run either one into the ground. Pierre Strong, who is currently on Green Bay’s practice squad, is out of gameday elevations, so the Packers will either have to sign him to the active roster or turn to another option. Damien Martinez was just signed to the practice squad on Tuesday, so he could also be elevated from the practice squad on game day.
Rookies Matthew Golden and Savion Williams could be in line to play the bulk of the wide receiver snaps for the first time this season. Bo Melton should also see a high snap share. The Packers may opt to rest Christian Watson, and Dontayvion Wicks (concussion) may be forced to miss Sunday’s game. Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed may have to be active, although the Packers will probably want to limit their snaps. The Packers have three wide receivers on their practice squad (Jakobie Keeney-James, Isaiah Neyor, and Will Sheppard), but they may not be able to elevate any of them due to needs elsewhere.
Green Bay’s tight end situation should be business as usual. Luke Musgrave and Josh Whyle should see most of the work, considering they are the only tight ends on the active roster. Drake Dabney was elevated last weekend, but only played seven snaps. The Packers will consider bringing up Dabney and/or McCallan Castles from the practice squad, but that will depend on the number of elevations available.
The offensive line on Sunday could look a lot like it did during the preseason. Zach Tom will likely sit out after missing the last two and a half games due to a knee injury. After that, anything is fair game. Once the game against Baltimore was out of hand, the Packers pulled Rasheed Walker, Aaron Banks, and Sean Rhyan from the game. The offensive line from left to right was Darian Kinnard, Donovan Jennings, Jacob Monk, Anthony Belton, and Morgan. This may be the same group the Packers decide to roll out on Sunday. Walker, Banks, and Rhyan might need to be active, but it would be surprising to see them play much. The Packers also have Lecitus Smith, Brant Banks, Dalton Cooper, and Karsen Barnhart on the practice squad as potential options.
Less Flexibility on Defense
Green Bay has 12 defensive linemen on their active roster, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them all active on Sunday. Karl Brooks, Colby Wooden, and Warren Brinson have played the majority of the snaps on the interior as of late, but haven’t been very effective. Rookie Nazir Stackhouse and newly acquired Jonathan Ford will now have to rotate in after the Packers lost Jordon Riley last weekend to a season-ending injury and opted to release Quinton Bohanna on Tuesday. The Packers have James Ester on the practice squad, but they shouldn’t need to bring him up with all the bodies they already have.
It should also be a heavy rotation on the edge. The Packers could give veteran Rashan Gary the day off, but his poor performance as of late hasn’t warranted it. Lukas Van Ness and Kingsley Enagbare may also have their snaps limited. That leaves plenty of snaps up for grabs for Brenton Cox Jr., Collin Oliver, Arron Mosby, and Barryn Sorrell. Oliver has yet to play in a game this season, but Sunday may be his debut. It should be an excellent opportunity to see what some of the younger guys have to offer.
There’s no reason Quay Walker or Edgerrin Cooper should play on Sunday. There’s no reason to put them out there in a meaningless game. The same argument could be made for Isaiah McDuffie, but he may have to play and serve as the on-field defensive signal caller. Ty’Ron Hopper should see a lot of work on Sunday. Jamon Johnson, currently on the practice squad with one more elevation available, may also see significant playing time. The Packers could opt to sign him to the active roster. Nick Niemann, primarily a special teams player, was designated to return from IR this week after suffering a torn pectoral muscle. It’s unclear if he will be ready to play this week, but he gives the Packers another option.
Cornerback will be the biggest mystery on Sunday. It would be surprising to see Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine play much, but the Packers don’t have many other options. Nate Hobbs and Kamal Hadden were both recently placed on IR with pretty significant injuries that they suffered last week. That leaves Bo Melton, Shemar Bartholomew, Jaylin Simpson, and Trevon Diggs, none of whom have played a defensive snap for Green Bay this season. Melton and Simpson have never played a defensive snap in a regular-season NFL game. Bartholomew played 17 snaps for Carolina last season, but none for Green Bay. The Packers also brought back Tyron Herring to their practice squad. Herring spent time with the Packers during training camp, so there is some familiarity there.
The most intriguing option at cornerback for Green Bay is former All-Pro Trevon Diggs, whom the Packers just claimed off waivers yesterday. Diggs will only have three days to get up to speed. Luckily, Jeff Hafley will probably have a vanilla game plan, making it much easier on Diggs. Diggs had 11 interceptions back in 2021, but he hasn’t been the same player since then. If Diggs is ready to go by Sunday, the Packers should give him as much work as possible to see what he still has to offer. If Diggs is unable to go, don’t be surprised to see Melton, Bartholomew, Simpson, and maybe even Herring playing a majority of the snaps.
Xavier McKinney, Evan Williams, and Javon Bullard should all get the day off, but that might not be a possibility. Someone has to suit up for the Packers. The only other healthy true safety on the active roster is Kitan Oladapo, who has only played two defensive snaps this season. Oladapo will almost assuredly see a lot of snaps, but it’s unclear who will be lining up next to him. The other option is Johnathan Baldwin, who was just signed to the active roster yesterday, but he’s not exactly a true safety. Another option is Mark Perry, whom the Packers just added to their practice squad. Zayne Anderson would’ve gotten plenty of work if he were healthy, but he suffered a serious-looking ankle injury last weekend that landed him on IR for the foreseeable future.
Uncertainty Will Trickle Into Special Teams
Sunday could serve as an opportunity for the Packers to experiment at their returner spots. Savion Williams and Bo Melton have been the primary kick returners, although neither one has been very effective. Romeo Doubs has been the main punt returner, but his 94 total punt return yards rank 30th in the NFL. The Packers should consider seeing what someone else can do at both spots.
McKinney, Williams, Bullard, and Anderson are all core members of Green Bay’s kick coverage units. If none of the four play, Rich Bisaccia will have to find other players to fill those roles. Williams is also a key member of the punt coverage team. Isaiah McDuffie is also a key member of kick coverage, but the Packers may want to limit his snaps on special teams if he is playing a lot on defense.
The only regulars on Sunday will be Brandon McManus, Daniel Whelan, and Matt Orzech. Other than those three, Green Bay’s special teams units could look very different. For better or worse, the Packers may have to put new faces into new positions, but that isn’t always a good thing. If some of the starting offensive linemen aren’t playing, the field goal block team could be a rollercoaster. Green Bay’s special teams are never particularly good, but Sunday might be even worse.
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