Analysts Say Packers Should Sign Veteran Backup Quarterback

With Jordan Love entrenched as the starter, one of the Green Bay Packers’ big training camp battles will be Sean Clifford vs. Michael Pratt to be the backup.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Sean Clifford throws a pass at minicamp. / Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

 

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers didn’t sign a veteran backup quarterback last year, and they almost certainly won’t sign one this year – no matter what the pundits say.

Last offseason, with the Packers moving full steam ahead with Jordan Love, general manager Brian Gutekunst could have signed a veteran backup to provide some insurance and a seasoned set of eyes to help Love. Instead, he chose to go with rookie Sean Clifford. It hardly was a battle, with Clifford easily outclassing USFL MVP Alex McGough.

With Packers training camp set to start on July 22, the Packers again seem poised to go young. It’ll be a legit battle this year. Clifford is back for Year 2, and he’ll be challenged by seventh-round rookie Michael Pratt.

At Pro Football Network, Lorenzo Reyna had one potential free-agent signing for every team. For the Packers, it was quarterback Ryan Tannehill.

“Love and the Packers will need someone reliable in case he goes down,” Reyna wrote. “Ryan Tannehill gives immediate assurance.”

A former first-round pick, Tannehill has 11 seasons and 151 starts under his belt. He spent the previous five seasons with the Tennessee Titans. Though he didn’t overlap with coach Matt LaFleur, there would be some schematic familiarity.

Last season, Tannehill played in 10 games with eight starts. He completed 64.8 percent of his passes, which was decent enough, but he threw four touchdowns vs. seven interceptions, his first season with more picks than TDs since his rookie season with the Dolphins in 2012. The Titans went 3-5 in his starts.

Tannehill was a Pro Bowler in 2019, when he threw 22 touchdowns vs. six interceptions and led the NFL with a 117.5 passer rating and 9.6 yards per attempt. In 2019, 2020 and 2021, Tannehill had a combined 94 touchdown passes and runs and went 30-13 in 43 starts.

Tannehill, who will turn 36 on July 27, completed 22-of-27 passes for 333 yards and two touchdowns as the Titans beat the Packers 27-17 at Lambeau Field in 2022.

At CBS Sports, Cody Benjamin listed the Packers among six teams with “quietly concerning backup QB situations.” Benjamin sent Tannehill back to the Dolphins and suggested the Packers trade for C.J. Beathard, who could be expendable after the Jaguars acquired Mac Jones from the Patriots.

“A scrappy former 49ers prospect, Beathard also has ties to the Packers staff, as offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich previously worked under Kyle Shanahan in the Bay Area,” Benjamin wrote.

The 30-year-old Beathard was a third-round pick by the 49ers in 2017. For his career, he’s thrown 19 touchdowns vs. 14 interceptions with an 82.1 rating. He is 3-10 in 13 starts, including a 33-30 loss at Lambeau Field in 2018.

With the Jaguars last year, he won his lone start (17-of-24 passing in a 26-0 win over the Panthers) and went 11-of-15 vs. Tampa Bay and 9-of-10 vs. Cincinnati in relief appearances.

Chances are, the Packers will stick with Clifford and Pratt.

Clifford showed a lot of promise last training camp and preseason. While he’s deemed one of the worst backups in the NFL, that’s mostly because of his lack of opportunity.

Pratt – who outdueled Caleb Williams at the Cotton Bowl a couple years ago – is a well-regarded prospect, even though he slipped into the final round. He played with poise during the offseason practices.

“There’s so much information thrown at these guys and it’s a big learning curve,” LaFleur said. “I think much as how we saw Sean adjust, I think OTA’s, it’s survival mode because you’re drinking basically water out of a firehose and you’re just trying to survive out there. I think these next five weeks will be good for him to kind of like decompress a little bit. He’s going to have to stay in the book and, hopefully, it will help him digest it a little better so, when he gets to training camp, he’s ready to roll.”

With or without a veteran addition, the backup quarterback battle will be one of the best clashes in training camp.

“It’s all love at the end of the day,” Clifford said of the quarterback room. “I think when you’re looking at it from the outside-in, you would think of it as a very, very rigorous competition. You might feel like there’s bad blood but, really, at the end of the day, this group is awesome.

“Mike getting added was fantastic. I’m super-excited for him. Obviously, J-Love is our leader. He’s one of, if not the, best quarterback in the league right now. It’s cool to watch because you just see him making those steps and it’s like, ‘OK, where can I find mine, as well?’ From a competition perspective, at the end of the day, let’s just be honest, it’s either Jordan, me, Mike or some other guy in the league. They can bring in anybody at the end of the day, so I’m going to try to put on my best self and continue to get better.”

The Packers made two moves at quarterback this offseason. Before drafting Pratt, LaFleur added former NFL quarterback Sean Mannion to his staff.

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