Which Undrafted Free Agent Is the One to Watch for Packers?

Compared to most years, the Green Bay Packers opened the vault to sign their group of undrafted free agents.

Georgia defensive tackle Nazir Stackhouse got a total of $150,000 guaranteed, and Minnesota guard Tyler Cooper, UNLV defensive back Johnathan Baldwin and Kentucky linebacker Jamon Johnson each got $100,000.

In a story picking an undrafted rookie to watch for each team, CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso didn’t pick any of those players. Instead, he selected Georgia Southern running back Jalen White.

“I don’t care what conference or football subdivision you’re playing in – if your missed-tackle forced rate in five seasons is 26.9 percent, you’re an elusive cat,” Trapasso wrote. “And that’s precisely Jalen White’s rate across five years at Georgia Southern.”

White, like fellow running back Amar Johnson, received a $15,000 signing bonus to compete for a roster spot with the Packers. There is a potential opening in the backfield behind Josh Jacobs. MarShawn Lloyd, a third-round pick last year, played 10 snaps in one game due to a long list of setbacks. Without Lloyd, Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks – both of whom entered the NFL as undrafted free agents in 2023 – provided the depth.

Wilson had a strong season. He rushed for 502 yards on a 4.9-yard average with four touchdowns while getting 24 percent playing time in 17 games. Brooks spent his rookie season with the Dolphins and last year with the Packers. In 15 games with Green Bay, he rushed for 183 yards with a 5.1-yard average on 19 percent playing time.

Wilson has proven himself to be a solid runner while Brooks’ blocking got him on the field in some key moments.

While solid players, they’re hardly irreplaceable, which is why there’s an opportunity for White. He never had a big season, but he did rush for 650 yards in 2024, 899 yards in 2023 and 923 yards in 2022. His five-season total was 2,881 rushing yards (5.2 average) and 34 touchdowns. He fumbled twice in his career – both in 2023 – and added 55 receptions during his final three seasons.

According to Pro Football Focus, he forced an impressive 150 missed tackles on 549 career rushes.

“After bellcow Josh Jacobs, who is now more than 1,600 carries into his NFL career, do you feel confident about Green Bay’s reserves at running back? Yeah, me neither,” Trapasso wrote. “The nifty runner from Georgia Southern could sneak his way onto this Packers team and make noise as a rookie.”

At 6-foot and 205 pounds, White ran his 40 in 4.60 seconds and posted a Relative Athletic Score of 7.71.

As for Johnson, he turned in an All-American final season at South Dakota State with 1,222 rushing yards (6.3-yard average), 30 receptions for 233 yards, and 15 total touchdowns. At 5-foot-9 3/4 and 205 pounds, he ran his 40 in 4.39 seconds and posted a Relative Athletic Score of 8.80.

“I think I bring a lot of different capabilities of what I can do, like return, catch a ball out of the backfield, be a third-down back, be an early-down back,” Johnson told Packers On SI. “So, I just think from that standpoint, I have a lot of value to what I can bring to the Packers.”

The second week of organized team activities began on Monday. Next week’s mandatory minicamp will conclude the offseason practices.

“I’m actually pretty excited about both of those guys because they both move around pretty well,” running backs coach Ben Sirmans said recently. “Obviously, Amar, he’s pretty fast, and I think looking at Jalen, he has really good feet. They’re moving around pretty good just doing the drills, going through the bags, seeing their ability to cut, picking things up.

“But it’s too early, you know, because you really don’t know until you get out there on the field and until you get them in a situation playing preseason games, going up against other people and defenses to really see what they’re about. But so far, I’m pretty excited about them.”

In the NFC North, the picks were a receiver for the Lions, a pass rusher for the Vikings and a linebacker for the Bears.