Packers Add Another Versatile Lineman

DJ Scaife, an undrafted free agent, was a 52-game starter at the University of Miami.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – At the University of Miami, DJ Scaife started 32 games at right tackle and 20 games at guard. Claimed off waivers by the Green Bay Packers this week, the team listed Scaife at center.

Scaife is no stranger to the Green Bay Way of linemen capable of playing multiple positions.

“A guy like DJ is someone that you’d want to recruit because as an offensive line coach you’re trying to find the best five guys and fit them into the puzzle and put those best five guys on the field,” then-Hurricanes offensive line coach Garin Justice said via Inside the U.

“I always use basketball reference. If you have three really, really good guards on your basketball team and not a whole lot of big men, then you have to play small ball. It’s the same thing with the offensive line. We want to do everything we can with cross-training these guys and develop them where they can play multiple positions. A guy like DJ who has experience at both guard and tackle gives you some of that flexibility.”

Scaife was not selected in this year’s draft. He signed with his hometown Miami Dolphins but was released after rookie minicamp.

Scaife was an honorable mention on the all-ACC team in 2022 after earning second-team honors in 2021. He spent 2022 stationed at right tackle and most of 2021 at right guard. He allowed two sacks both seasons, according to Pro Football Focus.

In the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl all-star game, he played 18 snaps at right tackle.

At 6-foot-3 3/4 and 321 pounds with 33 5/8-inch arms, Scaife lacks the size and length to stay at tackle. While he ran an impressive 5.13 in his 40-yard dash, his 20-yard shuttle of 4.91 seconds was well below average. Added together, his Relative Athletic Score (when placed at center) was 6.87.

With 61 career games on his extensive resume, the Packers hope his experience will translate on the interior.

“Mostly inside,” he said of his NFL projection. “I know I can play tackle but I think with my size and my frame, it’ll be more inside.” He put the “team first” in playing tackle for his final season.

“I most definitely embraced” the challenge.

The addition of Scaife gives the Packers 16 linemen on their roster for the start of organized team activities on Monday.

To make room, the Packers released cornerback Benjie Franklin, who opened last season on the practice squad and was given a futures contract at the end of last season.

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