Packers Add Speedster Thompkins to Undermanned Receiver Corps

At Penn State’s pro day, DeAndre Thompkins ran his 40 in 4.34 seconds.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – To fill the vacant 90th roster spot, the Green Bay Packers signed receiver DeAndre Thompkins on Wednesday.

With Davante Adams among the five veteran receivers who weren’t at organized team activities on Tuesday, the Packers had only six receivers available. With quarterback Jordan Love leading a group of players on one side of the practice field and Kurt Benkert leading another group on the other side, that left only three receivers with each unit. So, perhaps the transaction is a signal the team expects to be at least a little shorthanded at that position ahead of practices on Thursday and next week.

Thompkins (5-11, 188) went undrafted in 2019 out of Penn State after catching 83 passes for 1,245 yards and six touchdowns in four seasons. Plus, he averaged 10.2 yards with two touchdowns on punt returns. He concluded his career tied for fourth in punt-return touchdowns and ranked 21st in receiving yards.

At Penn State’s pro day, he ran his 40 in 4.34 seconds.

“My mother and father told me I was always fast,” he told NBC Sports. “I always thought I was slow. I was always the smallest kid on the field. I was always playing with bigger guys, so I always thought I wasn’t fast. I was just too small for them to see me.”

He spent training camp with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019 and the final week of training camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020. In between, he played for the D.C. Defenders of the XFL.

Green Bay released cornerback KeiVarae Russell earlier in the week, leaving it a man short of the roster limit. Russell was a midseason addition to the practice squad last year who was elevated to the gameday roster ahead of former draft picks Josh Jackson and Ka’dar Hollman for both playoff games.