Projecting the Packers’ 53-Man Roster Before Training Camp

Here is Bill Huber’s pre-training camp projection of the Green Bay Packers’ 53-man roster. The “final cuts” list hints at what could be a strong roster.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Sean Clifford (6) will be joined by Jordan Love and Michael Pratt for training camp. / Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Let Green Bay Packers training camp – and the roster battles – begin.

The Packers will take a 91-man roster onto the field for the first practice on Monday; defensive end Kenneth Odumegwu is exempt as part of the International Player Pathway program.

Barring injuries, this will be a strong and deep roster. I remember doing this exercise before the start of training camp last year, with the first run-through landing at 51 players. This year, I kept 58.

Here’s my first guess at the 53 players who will survive the Aug. 27 roster cuts.

Quarterbacks (3)

On the roster (3): Jordan Love, Sean Clifford, Michael Pratt.

Released (0)

Why?: Here’s a challenging decision right off the bat. Would the Packers keep a third quarterback? With a year of seasoning and strong preseason tape, Clifford might be scooped up if he were to be released. Would Pratt, who fell into the seventh round so was bypassed several teams by every team in the league in this year’s draft, be a commodity if he were to be released? It takes a lot of time to develop a quarterback. So, if Pratt has a solid preseason, the guess is they’d keep all three rather than risk losing one on waivers.

Running Backs (6)

On the roster (3): Josh Jacobs, AJ Dillon, MarShawn Lloyd.

Released (3): Emanuel Wilson, Ellis Merriweather, Jarveon Howard.

Last cut: Wilson.

Why?: An undrafted rookie last year, Wilson led the NFL in preseason rushing. He showed some juice when it mattered with a 31-yard run against the Rams in Week 9 and a broken tackle in each of the playoff games. With Dillon back on only a one-year contract, it makes sense to keep another powerful runner on the roster. But the Packers seem determined to give Lloyd an early role and there are only so many roster spots.

Receivers (12)

On the roster (6): Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Bo Melton, Malik Heath.

Released (6): Samori Toure, Grant DuBose, Julian Hicks, Dimitri Stanley, Jalen Wayne, R.J. Starkey.

Why?: This one seems pretty easy. The undrafted Heath beat out Melton, Toure and DuBose – all seventh-round picks – for a roster spot last year and played with appealing physicality. Melton earned a promotion for the stretch run and delivered the team’s first 100-yard game of the season and scored against the 49ers. There should be a lot of confidence in those players. The asterisk to all of that is most teams have receiver depth or young players young players they’d like to develop. So, maybe they could get Heath on the practice squad. DuBose, who missed the entire offseason program last year and spent his rookie campaign on the practice squad, is going to need a big-time training camp to see a second year.

Tight Ends (7)

On the roster (4): Luke Musgrave, Tucker Kraft, Ben Sims, Tyler Davis.

Released (3): Joel Wilson, Messiah Swinson, FB Henry Pearson.

Last cut: Pearson.

Why?: Davis will be back from his torn ACL for the start of training camp. Judging by the way he was moving, he probably could have practiced in OTAs. He’s a favorite of special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia; with the Packers back-tracking from 22nd to 29th in Rick Gosselin’s special teams rankings, it appears he was missed. 

Pearson will be an interesting player to watch during training camp. He’s the team’s lone fullback, putting him in position to take Josiah Deguara’s role. Do the Packers need a fullback-type player? His play on special teams will be a deciding factor.

Offensive Line (15)

On the roster (9): LT Rasheed Walker, RT Zach Tom, OT Andre Dillard, T/G Jordan Morgan, OT Travis Glover. LG Elgton Jenkins, C Josh Myers, RG Sean Rhyan, C/G Jacob Monk.

Released (6): OT Caleb Jones, T/G Kadeem Telfort, T/G Luke Tenuta, G Royce Newman, G Donovan Jennings, G/C Lecticus Smith.

Last cut: Jennings.

Why?: The nine on our 53 seem fairly well cut-and-dried. With Myers headed to free agency, they need to groom a center as a potential replacement. That’s Monk’s path to the 53. You can make an argument for Telfort, Tenuta and Jennings to earn a spot, too, but anything resembling a tie tends to go to the draft pick, so that should put Glover – an impressive-looking prospect, anyway – in position for the ninth spot.

The Packers kept 10 last year. Jennings, an undrafted rookie who played left tackle at South Florida and has impressive athleticism, should be a candidate after the Packers went the unusual route of guaranteeing $100,000 of his base salary. He will open camp with a short stay on PUP.

The big name on the cuts list, obviously, is Newman. He started 24 games and played 1,718 snaps from scrimmage in three seasons, but the influx of draft picks should mean a churning of the depth chart. With his experience, he might fetch something in a trade.

Defensive Ends (9)

On the roster (5): Rashan Gary, Preston Smith, Lukas Van Ness, Kingsley Enagbare, Brenton Cox.

Released (4): Keyshawn Banks, Kenneth Odumegwu, Arron Mosby, Deslin Alexandre.

Why?: Cox made the 53 as an undrafted rookie last year but played only four defensive snaps in four appearances. He had a good offseason, though. “We’re just letting him pin his ears back and go and he’s embraced that,” coach Matt LaFleur said at the end of minicamp. Banks played some defensive tackle during the offseason, so he could be a player to watch in a more-you-can-do role. With Enagbare coming off an ACL injury, the Packers could go heavy here for insurance.

Defensive Tackles (8)

On the roster (5): Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt, T.J. Slaton, Karl Brooks, Colby Wooden.

Released (3): Jonathan Ford, James Ester, Spencer Waege.

Why?: This seems too easy. Clark, Wyatt, Slaton, Brooks and Wooden played all 17 games last year. Ford, a seventh-round pick in 2022, still hasn’t played in a game. Ester and Waege are the lone additions to the group, with Ester going undrafted this year and Waege going undrafted last year. Waege spent last year on the 49ers’ practice squad and has some impressive athleticism.

Linebackers (8)

On the roster (5): Quay Walker, Isaiah McDuffie, Eric Wilson, Edgerrin Cooper, Ty’Ron Hopper.

Released (3): Kristian Welch, Christian Young, Ralen Goforth.

Last cut: Welch.

Why?: The top five on the list are easy. Wilson is a top player on special teams who proved his worth on defense when forced into action last year. Will they keep six? The Packers re-signed Welch to a one-year deal. Welch, who grew up about 60 miles from Lambeau Field, is a proven player on special teams with 1,101 career snaps on the kicking units. In 14 games last year, he finished third on the team with six tackles on special teams. However, keeping a third quarterback had a downstream impact.

Cornerbacks (9)

On the roster (5): Jaire Alexander, Eric Stokes, Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine, Corey Ballentine.

Released (4): Robert Rochell, Kalen King, Zyon Gilbert, Gemon Green.

Last cut: King/Rochell.

Why?: I struggled with keeping only five considering the injury history of Stokes. Goodness knows, the Packers know the importance of cornerback depth. Last year, Corey Ballentine, who seemed like a bubble player entering camp, played the second-most snaps of the perimeter corners. But, for the sake of this, let’s assume that the specialists in Madison and the team’s new training staff have it figured out and Stokes, a former first-round pick, can move forward in his career with no issues. 

Rochell, a fourth-round pick by the Rams in 2021, had a strong finish to minicamp. The wild card, obviously, will be King. A seventh-round pick this year, did the Packers draft the Penn State All-American? Or did they draft a cornerback unable to overcome 4.60 speed in the 40?

Safeties (8)

On the roster (5): Xavier McKinney, Javon Bullard, Evan Williams, Kitan Oladapo, Anthony Johnson.

Released (3): Benny Sapp, Zayne Anderson, Tyler Coyle.

Why?: McKinney, the team’s enormously important free-agent acquisition, and Bullard, a second-round pick, will start. The Packers also drafted Williams in the fourth round and Oladapo in the fifth round; Oladapo missed the offseason program with a broken toe and could miss the first days of camp, as well. Johnson started four games last year, Sapp was promoted to the 53 late last season, Anderson spent the season on the 53 and Coyle has an.

Special Teams (6)

On the roster (3): K Anders Carlson, P Daniel Whelan, LS Matt Orzech.

Released (3): K Greg Joseph, K James Turner, LS Peter Bowden.

Why?: Perhaps the biggest battle in training camp will be at kicker. The addition of Turner once again makes it a three-man battle. Carlson had a rocky rookie season but he kicked better than Joseph during the offseason practices. If the Packers sign a punter, it’ll be to give Whelan’s leg a break; he had an excellent offseason after a strong finish to his rookie season. Bowden, an undrafted rookie from Wisconsin, might need a year on the practice squad to crank up his snap speed.

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With the first practice of training camp tomorrow, here is @JacobWestendorf's initial 53-man #Packers roster projection. ⬇️https://t.co/fMCP3jHots

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) July 21, 2024

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