Packer Central

Five Biggest Storylines for Packers OTAs

Organized team activities started this week for the Green Bay Packers. From AJ Dillon to the receivers, here are five storylines. 

Jacob Westendorf

A new role for Packers RB AJ Dillon?
A new role for Packers RB AJ Dillon? / Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

The NFL is back. Sort of. The Green Bay Packers are on the practice field this week as the team begins its first organized team activities of the spring.

While some moves could be made between now and the start of the season, for the most part, this is the team the Packers will attempt to get back to the Super Bowl with for the first time since they won Super Bowl XLV on Feb. 6, 2011.

With expectations of winning a championship having returned to Titletown, here are five storylines for the start of OTAs.

Where’s Jordan?

No, not Jordan Love. After years of being one of the top storylines in offseason practices, Jordan Love can fade into the background as much as any starting quarterback.

This is about Jordan Morgan, the Packers’ first-round pick. Morgan is the first offensive player the team drafted in the first round since taking Love in 2020 and Derek Sherrod in 2011.

Morgan’s career is going to begin at left tackle, but it remains to be seen if he stays there.

Morgan does not have the prototypical arm length that is seen as necessary in some circles to play tackle in the NFL. Moreover, Morgan has some stiff competition to find his way onto the field.

Rasheed Walker shook off some early struggles before shutting out Micah Parsons and Nick Bosa in the playoffs. He could build on that to be the team’s preferred blindside protector for Love.

On the right side, Zach Tom’s job is safe. He was the team’s best offensive lineman a year ago and appears primed to stick at tackle.

Do the Packers dabble with putting Morgan at guard as early as these OTAs, or do they let him learn as he goes on the outside?

Safety Dance

With a gaping hole at safety, general manager Brian Gutekunst did what he usually does when he has a hole on the roster.

He attacks the weakness with numbers.

Xavier McKinney is going to be a building block in the safety room. He’ll start.

Who is next to him remains to be seen.

Javon Bullard was the first of three draft picks spent at the position. He has some versatility and could bump down to the slot, as well. Gutekunst used the word “interchangeable” several times to describe the nickel and safety positions during the offseason. Bullard certainly has that.

Along with Bullard, there’s Evan Williams and Kitan Oladapo.

If the preference is to keep Bullard in the slot – Williams and Oladapo will have a prime opportunity to earn some snaps early in their careers.

Watching Receivers

The Packers’ receiver room is as interesting as it’s been in years because of the number of players that have proven in small samples to be productive. Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Malik Heath and Bo Melton had nice moments at various points last season.

They can’t play with six receivers at the same time, and that doesn’t account for the presence of tight ends Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft and running back Josh Jacobs, who figure to be vital cogs in the passing game.

Who has the early leg up on the competition at receiver? How are those roles and reps going to be divided?

Those are questions that are going to be answered further with time, but we’ll get our first glimpse at how the Packers currently feel about the hierarchy of receivers.

AJ Dillon’s New Role

Nothing about the running back position was predictable this offseason.

Aaron Jones was thought to be a lock to remain on the roster after Gutekunst referred to him as the “heartbeat” of the team. Instead, the Packers surprised everyone by signing Jacobs to a multiyear contract. Next, the Packers re-signed AJ Dillon.

Dillon had a disappointing final two years of his rookie deal after showing some promise during his first two years.

With Jones out the door, it seemed easy to think the Packers would go young at running back behind Jacobs. Instead, Dillon was brought back in what might be a different role.

During the 1990s, then-coach Mike Holmgren helped the Packers’ backfield by using Dorsey Levens and Edgar Bennett on the field at the same time.

Dillon, running backs coach Ben Sirmans said, could be in line to replace some of the reps left behind by tight end/H-back Josiah Deguara.

The team also spent a third-round pick on USC’s Marshawn Lloyd, who NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah and the Senior Bowl’s Jim Nagy called the best running back in the draft class. He could be in line for reps as a rookie, as well.

Positional versatility could be a key for Dillon to make the roster.

Kicking Competition

The Packers’ season, among other reasons, ended because they had a kicker who could not put the ball through the uprights.

Anders Carlson led the league in missed kicks last season. He struggled essentially from October until the end of the year.

The Packers and their coaching staff were publicly committed to Carlson during the season. Even as he consistently missed one kick per game, the team did not add a challenger.

That stubbornness was met with a missed field goal in the divisional round that kept the Packers’ lead at a tenuous 21-17. The 49ers would score a touchdown that ultimately won the game 24-21, making those three points loom large.

Such a mistake from Carlson would have been more forgivable if it were not so predictable.

This offseason, Gutekunst added competition to the kicker room. Greg Joseph, the veteran brought in from Minnesota, is likely the top competition to take Carlson’s job from him. Jack Podlesny, an undrafted free agent in 2023, remains on the team, as well.

It remains to be seen if the Packers would really carry three kickers into training camp, but it’s clear Carlson’s job, after being safe all of last year, is in a sticky situation, at best. 

More Green Bay Packers News

Packers OTAs: Incredible roster fact | Battles on defense | Battles on offense | Projected depth charts | NFC North roundtable | Record predictions

College coaches: Edgerrin Cooper | Javon Bullard | MarShawn Lloyd | Ty’Ron Hopper | Evan Williams | Jacob Monk | Kitan Oladapo | Michael Pratt | Kalen King

NFL schedule: Make-or-break moments | Favored in how many? | Bye-week blues? | Predicting every game | Here it is | Game previews | Toughest stretch | Preseason | Schedule for every team

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Jacob Westendorf
JACOB WESTENDORF

Jacob Westendorf, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2015, is a writer for Packer Central, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: jacobwestendorf24@gmail.com History: Westendorf started writing for Packer Central in 2023. Twitter: https://twitter.com/JacobWestendorf Background: Westendorf graduated from University of Wisconsin-Green Bay where he earned a degree in communication with an emphasis in journalism and mass media. He worked in newspapers in Green Bay and Rockford, Illinois. He also interned at Packer Report for Bill Huber while earning his degree. In 2018, he became a staff writer for PackerReport.com, and a regular contributor on Packer Report's "Pack A Day Podcast." In 2020, he founded the media company Game On Wisconsin. In 2023, he rejoined Packer Central, which is part of Sports Illustrated Media Group.