Five Winners, Five Losers With Packers Training Camp Approaching

The Packers pride themselves on being a draft-and-develop franchise. They drafted linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper in the third round in 2024. The development, apparently, hasn’t taken place.

This offseason, knowing that they weren’t going to re-sign Quay Walker, they traded Colby Wooden to the Colts for veteran starter Zaire Franklin. So, that closed a path to a starting job for Hopper. Now, with the extension for McDuffie, Hopper is looking at being LB4 in a scheme that requires only two off-the-ball linebackers on the field.

Hopper was the fifth linebacker selected; the Steelers made Payton Wilson the sixth linebacker off the board. Wilson had 126 tackles last season; Hopper has 33 in his career.

This will be a big training camp for Hopper to show he’s worthy of a role.

Winner: DT Javon Hargrave

The Vikings released Javon Hargrave in a cost-cutting move early in free agency. About an hour later, he had signed with the Packers. His two-year, $23 million contract included a $10.5 million signing bonus.

That comes on the heels of Hargrave pocketing a signing bonus of almost $13 million with the Vikings as a free agent in 2025. In free agency in 2023, Hargrave’s four-year contract with the 49ers included a $23 million signing bonus.

From 2023 through 2026, Hargrave has received $69.5 million in guaranteed salary and bonuses.

Money, however, isn’t what drives Hargrave toward Year 11 in the league.

“I think just the respect of my peers and coaches,” he said. “It’s always about the respect and I’m just real competitive.”

Loser: DC Jonathan Gannon

The Packers are hoping Javon Hargrave can bring the same pass-rushing juice to the Packers that he did for the Jonathan Gannon-coordinated Eagles defenses in 2021 and 2022, when he had 18 sacks, 19 tackles for losses and 34 quarterback hits.

The 33-year-old Hargrave is the only veteran addition to a pass rush that could be incredibly underpowered. Of the team’s 36 sacks last season, Micah Parsons (12.5), Rashan Gary (7.5), Quay Walker (2.5) and Kingsley Enagbare (2.0) combined for 24.5. They added Hargrave (3.5) and Zaire Franklin (2.0). So, combined, the Packers will be minus-19 sacks from last season until Parsons returns.

With no veteran additions in free agency or a trade, Gannon will be tasked with fielding a championship-caliber defense without what appears to be anything close to a championship-caliber pass rush. Good luck.

Winner: RB MarShawn Lloyd

In his two NFL seasons, MarShawn Lloyd as a third-round pick in 2024 has played in 10 of a possible 2,135 offensive snaps. That means he’s played 0.47 percent of the snaps in his career. Yes, that’s the fewest of any player selected in the first three rounds and the third-fewest among the players selected in the first four rounds.

Encouragingly, though, he got through the offseason with no issues. The Packers have a big void to fill in the backfield after letting Emanuel Wilson go in free agency. Maybe – just maybe – Lloyd – will be a weapon.

Loser: Edge Collin Oliver

Collin Oliver was a fifth-round pick in 2025. After missing almost all of his senior season at Oklahoma State with a foot injury, he missed all but one game of his rookie season with recurring hamstring injuries.

The Packers, as mentioned before, badly need to find some pass rush. While he worked out with Parsons after the season, he sat out the offseason practices with an undisclosed injury.

Winner: WR Bo Melton

The Packers love Bo Melton. Last year, to enhance his chances of making the roster, they experimented with him at cornerback while still giving him some reps on offense.

This offseason, with the surplus at receiver turned into a shortage and with the shortage of cornerbacks turned into a surplus, the Packers moved Melton back to offense. For the first time in his career, he has a chance to be on the field for consistent playing time.

“Man, I love having Bo out there,” quarterback Jordan Love said after Melton had a big day at OTAs. “It’s nice to have him back on the offensive side fully and just keep him over here and keep letting him work on his craft as a receiver.

“Everybody knows in the locker room what kind of personality Bo is and he brings that energy and just that infectious mindset wherever he’s at, and he’s a great person to be around, so having him back on the offensive side has been great.”

Loser: CB Carrington Valentine

Carrington Valentine is going into the final season of his four-year rookie contract. That makes this a big season in hopes of earning a big payday.

So, what did the Packers do? They signed Benjamin St-Juste in free agency, drafted Brandon Cisse in the second round and Domani Jackson in the sixth round.

With Keisean Nixon probably locked into the starting lineup, it’s going to be Valentine vs. everyone to keep his job in the lineup. Cisse took some first-team snaps during the offseason practices, and it probably won’t be long before he gets increased action with the No. 1 defense during training camp.

Winner: Passing Game Coordinator Jason Vrable

Last year, passing-game coordinator Jason Vrable had to put 20 pounds of receiver ingredients into a 5-pound sack of playing time.

There weren’t enough snaps to go around – let alone enough passing plays – to accommodate Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Matthew Golden and Savion Williams. Now, with Doubs having signed with the Patriots and Wicks getting traded to the Eagles, Vrable can focus on a small group of receivers in hopes of building a more cohesive passing game.

“It was definitely tough to see those guys go because they’re great friends of mine, great teammates,” Watson said. “This thing always keeps on moving. I definitely think there'll be a lot more opportunities for the guys who are out there this year, myself included. Just got to embrace that and continue to make plays when our numbers are called.”

Loser: (Maybe) Vrable and QB Jordan Love

It sounds great in May and June (and mid-July) to talk about how a slimmed-down receiver corps will mean more defined roles for Watson, Reed and Golden and a more consistent passing game.

As the saying goes, everyone’s got a plan until they’re punched in the face. Chances are, at some point, the passing game will get punched in the face with a key injury. Savion Williams has to show he can run the full receiver route tree after catching almost entirely behind-the-line-of-scrimmage passes as a rookie. Bo Melton has to show he can be a real threat after going from 16 catches in 2023 to eight in 2024 to four in 2025. Skyy Moore has to show he can be more than just a kick returner.

If not, Jason Vrable and Jordan Love are going to have to figure out how to make a passing game work with limited targets.

“I always go into every single year and I tell Matt (LaFleur), ‘We need 10 good receivers to start the year,’” Vrable said. 

Right now, do the Packers have more than three?

“You never know how injuries are going to occur, but you also have to be able to develop guys throughout the year,” Vrable continued. “So, numbers-wise, to me, I want the deepest room in the whole NFL. I want to have more depth. I want to have just as much talent, if not more, than any team in the NFL, to build the room not only for now, but for the future.”