Packers blast Ravens to create some tough choice on the final 53-man roster
Green Bay blew out Baltimore 30-7 in a "bullying the bully" effort on the ground, but where does that leave the team in trying to find the best 53 players on the roster?
Good morning!
The Green Bay Packers put an exclamation point on the preseason with a bounceback performance against the Baltimore “We never lose in the preseason” Ravens. The ground game dominated, the defense created turnovers from every level and set up Brian Gutekunst and Co. to make some difficult decisions on the roster.
Today's edition of The Leap looks at who made their case, who could be out and what positions will drive the final numbers.
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What positions will decide the final spots on the roster?
Peter Bukowski: While the wide receivers get all the headlines, it’s the spine positions that will decide the roster: running back, linebacker, tight end. These are all players who affect the middle of the field, impact the run game on each side of the ball and will play critical roles on special teams. Remember, a great grab here or a stick tackle there isn’t what decides these final few jobs. What these players can do on offense or defense will be secondary to what they can provide to special teams.
An extra tight end like Ben Sims or Joel Wilson could keep Kristian Welch off the time and vice versa. They’re like-for-like on special teams in terms of body type and those three combine to provide roughly the same amount of differentiated offensive value.
Between those three players there may only be one spot to be had.
Another could open if the Packers decide to keep six receivers where the question isn’t “How many NFL players do they have?” but rather “How much would a team give up to get one of these clear NFL-caliber receivers?”
A trade would open up a roster spot and there would be suitors for a player like Bo Melton who proved in a small sample last year to be more than a token practice squad pickup. The Packers ran a special for Melton in the playoffs and it worked! He could be WR3 or WR4 on some teams tomorrow, but he could also be Green Bay’s WR4 tomorrow if there was an injury.
The Packers lost Christian Watson for extended time last year, and the for as superlative as the pair of rookies were, Dontavyion Wicks and Jayden Reed each battled injuries. Depth is the superpower of this group.
The new injured reserve rules could come into play here as well. Both A.J. Dillon and Marshawn Lloyd are currently hurt. Green Bay no longer has to carry a player on the 53-man roster to then put them on IR, but they do have to sit a minimum of four weeks. That would set back Lloyd’s development in particular, but he’s already behind and if he can’t help the Packers right now, Emanuel Wilson looks good enough to shoulder the load in his stead if an extended stay on the injured list is needed.
Who is the best player in danger of getting cut?
PB: Royce Newman. Just kidding, the question was ‘best player.’ If Dillon weren’t hurt, he’d be in play here, ditto for if Lloyd had been healthy and performing well in training camp. While I was putting together my 53-man roster, I found myself wondering if Colby Wooden was better than 50/50 to make the team.
T.J. Slaton, Kenny Clark and Devonte Wyatt all run clearly ahead of him in the pecking order. Karl Brooks flashed far more often last year, though each played well into their preseason games and neither distinguished himself as standouts even against backups. Brenton Cox and Arron Mosby could each credibly argue they outplayed Wooden in the preseason and they appear to be more juiced-up pass rushers.
Lukas Van Ness played inside at Iowa early in his career and could slide back to tackle in a pinch as well. Hell, they’re practically the same size.
Plus, Green Bay just signed Madison native Keonte Schad to a three-year from the USFL’s New Orleans Breakers. Wooden played some traditional 4-3 DE at times through the summer process and that versatility appeared to be a boon. He’s the ideal penetrating one-gap defensive tackle this defense relies on, but perhaps we ought to be have been reading his positional switching as a bug, not a feature.
Is he a man without a position in Jeff Hafley’s new defense? I wouldn’t have thought so until he was playing heavy rotational snaps in a meaningless third preseason game.
There’s also one or two names that shock us and he’s one to watch. Speaking of …
Who is this year’s surprise cut?
PB: Ever since Saturday night, I’ve been intrigued by the idea that the Packers would go full fantasy football and either keep only one quarterback or no kickers. That would make this answer “Sean Clifford and Michael Pratt” or “Anderson Carlson and Greg Joseph.”
It does not seem unreasonable to me at all that either QB2 or K1 aren’t already on the Green Bay roster. Given the way the Packers operate, going full fantasy bro with zero kickers and only one quarterback to save room for another player while exploring the waiver wire would beggar belief even if I wouldn’t be opposed to such a strategy.
The key difference is the team doesn’t actually save any roster space because they’re not going to roll with one quarterback on the roster. Signing Mike White or Ryan Tannehill or Dorian Thompson-Robinson still precludes the team from adding in some other area. They have to get a QB2 at some point; same with the kicker. They might as well keep one of Pratt or Clifford on the team and if they still feel like they have to go the veteran route, they can cut the backup after the fact but only once they’ve actually agreed to terms with a suitable replacement.
Still, I think it would be surprising to see those guys cut even if it’s the most prudent course of action right now.
Final Predictions
This was the 53-man roster Jason and I put together on today’s episode of Locked on Packers cosplaying Matt LaFleur and Brian Gutekunst. It’s not exactly how either of us would put the roster together, but it’s how our discussion went and I think that’s just as interesting an exercise.
QB: Love, Pratt
RB: Jacobs, Dillons, Lloyd, Wilson
TE: Musgrave, Kraft, Davis, Ben Sims
OL: Walker, Jenkins, Myers, Morgan, Tom, Monk, Rhyan, Dillard,
WR: Watson, Doubs, Reed, Wicks, Melton, Heath
DL: Gary, Preston, Clark, LVN, Kinglsey, Wyatt, Brooks, Slaton, Wooden, Cox
LB: Walker, McDuffie, Hopper, Cooper, Wilson
CB: Stokes, Ja, Nixon, Valentine, Ballentine, Rochell
S: X, Bullard, Williams, AJJ, Oladapo
P: Daniel Whelan
LS: Matt Orzech
K: Greg Joseph
Kalen King over Robert Rochelle