How Big is the Packers Offensive Line Problem?

Lafleur comes right out of the gates in the second half with what ends up being a winning play call. The Packers run a flood concept to the field side that pops Luke Musgrave wide open rather quickly. The problem was that this was not the defense Jordan Love was expecting to see pre-snap. The Bears ran a double corner blitz that left their two strong side linebackers with what seem to be man-coverage assignments. Need I say that this is an incredibly gutsy call for Bears DC Dennis Allen to start the half off with? 

While the coverage is rather wonky and unexpected, it still wouldn’t take a savant to see that Musgrave has incredibly advantageous positioning on this route. Running an out route away from a linebacker who started the play lined up a good 10 yards inside of you is about as easy as it gets in the NFL. Long story short, Love knows that he’s going to have Musgrave open on this play. 

Well then, why didn’t they connect for a big chunk on this play? The easy answer is a protection breakdown on the offensive line. Rasheed Walker was not able to recognize the weak side blitzing corner and get out to block him fast enough. You can see Love turn his head to avoid pressure just a split second before Musgrave makes his break. Protection breakdowns on the offensive line ruined what was going to be a winning play. 

I also want to note that I am a big believer in the power of momentum in football games. Even if you are not, think to yourself about how much differently things could have felt in this game. Imagine if the Green Bay Packers’ first play out of the half went for a gain of 20, rather than an incompletion en route to a 3-and-out. If Rasheed Walker makes that block, it’s first and 10 Green Bay at somewhere around mid-field. 

But, Brandon McManus would have missed an eventual FG attempt, so it wouldn’t have mattered anyway! 

Second drive of the second half now. The Packers ran a little mirrored hitch/go route combination against a single high coverage on this play. Josh Jacobs stayed in to help pass protect as the Bears were showing blitz pre-snap. The blitz did come and Josh Jacobs misses quite badly with his blitz pick up. Aaron Banks also could have likely done more to keep the second blitzer from easily hitting the backfield, but I can’t say for sure. 

The part that makes this play so painful is the second part of the above embedded tweet. Right as Love sees the closing Bears defender in his face, he is forced to turn right and effectively throw it away. However, if you look at Christian Watson on the bottom of the screen, he’s got a step on his defender and the safety help is so far away that it doesn’t even show up on screen. Once again, this was another potential game-changing play that was foiled by protection issues on the offensive line. If Josh Jacobs and Aaron Banks make those blocks, this could have been a literal touchdown. 

But, Brandon McManus would have likely missed the extra point anyway, so no big deal! 

Time for the next play. This was the play that led to the first intentional grounding penalty. This one is just weird. Not sure what the protection change at the line of scrimmage was, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some sort of miscommunication between Emmanuel Wilson and Rasheed Walker here. It sucks, but this is the sort of thing that just can’t be happening at this point in the season. 

No Brandon McManus slander after this play. Packers offense plain old beat themselves, and didn’t need any help from their special teams to twist the knife. 

And here’s the last specific play I want to highlight. A run play, this time on a drive that did in fact end up with a Brandon McManus missed field goal! 

In the moment on Saturday night, it felt like the Packers ran this same exact play 8 different times. Inside zone to Josh Jacobs from the shotgun, and it always felt like it was being called on 2nd and long. I don’t remember any of them being much more successful than this one was here. 

Upon rewatch though, the variety in the run game wasn’t quite as bad as I remembered it being. That being said, the Packers really struggled running in the second half against the Bears 5 man fronts. This sad play is a good example of that. The blocking here from the rest of the offensive line really isn’t that bad, but Belton gets blown up and it ruins the play. Tough look for him.  

I also had another thought watching this Green Bay Packers run game. It sure seemed like the Bears had the Packers snap count timed up pretty darn well. Maybe it’s the fact that the Packers drain the play clock down close to 0 on every play, or the fact that Sean Rhyan bobs his head with the exact same rhythm before snapping it on every single play. I don’t know, but it really does seem like the Packers are operating at a severe disadvantage when they have to go silent-count during road games. And it’s not just a Sean Rhyan problem. I noticed it earlier in the year when Elgton Jenkins was still playing center. Something I hope the team addresses in the offseason for sure. 

So, to wrap up the first part of this article, and make my post-mortem case on the Packers offensive line in 2025. I stand by my belief that the offensive line lost this game for the Packers more than anything else. I know that everybody wants to poke at Lafleur, pretend he’s not a good play caller, and say he takes his foot off the gas in the second halves of games. While I do believe that all those sentiments about Lafleur can be at least somewhat true, I hope that my film breakdowns have at least somewhat restored your faith in him. If the offensive line makes just a couple blocks here and there, the pulses of these second half drives beat completely differently. 

If you listen to Matt Lafleur’s post-game presser you’ll hear much of this same thought. He knew they were so close in so many situations on Saturday, and the difference was often the offensive line not doing their jobs. Well, that and Brandon McManus. Please don’t forget about Brandon McManus. 

Offensive Line in 2026 

Here are some notable things to keep in mind when wondering what this line could look like next season: 

• – Zach Tom is having surgery for a partially torn patellar tendon. He should be back by training camp, but that’s a serious injury nonetheless. 
• – Rasheed Walker is a pending unrestricted free agent. Spotrac has his estimated contract valuation coming in at 20 million dollars. Packers have almost zero chance of being able to afford that. 
• – Sean Rhyan is a pending unrestricted free agent. Spotrac has his estimated contract valuation coming in at roughly 6 million dollars. There is some chance the Packers choose to re-sign him at a number like that. 
• – Darian Kinnard is a pending restricted free agent. 
• – Elgton Jenkins is heading into the final year of his contract, but is almost a sure cap casualty. The Green Bay Packers will save 20 million dollars and incur only 4 million dollars of dead cap when they likely cut him this spring. 
• – Jordan Morgan will likely be given the chance to start at LT in week 1. 
• – Aaron Banks hugely underperformed his contract in 2025. The Packers could move on from him this offseason and save quite a bit of cash while clearing up some cap space, mostly in 2027. 

To me, the most intriguing question surrounding the 2026 offensive line is what to do with Aaron Banks. While his play has been a problem, the bigger thing to consider is the hefty contract he somehow managed to secure. 

If I am reading Ken’s work correctly, this shows that cutting Aaron Banks now would save the Green Bay Packers 18 million dollars in 2026 cash, roughly 4.5 million in 2026 cap space and clear any dead cap holds that would have otherwise lasted into 2027 or 2028. This also means that if Aaron Banks was cut, that he would have essentially played on a 1 year, 29.5 million dollar contract. That’s quite the overpay, but that’s also not the smartest way for decision makers to look at the contract. For the TLDR version, cutting Banks now saves the Packers cash now and saves them lots of cap space for 2027. 

Looking at Banks’ play specifically, it doesn’t look much better for him. According to PFF, Banks ranked 51st out of 61 qualifying guards in their signature pass blocking efficiency stat. On true pass sets, which filter out screens and RPO’s, Banks was also 51st out of 61 guards with a pass blocking grade of 48.4. So, I think it’s safe to say that the Banks signing has looked as bad as we all feared it would last summer. I know there’s not a great option ready to step up and fill his place, but at this point, I would be more than fine moving on from Aaron Banks. 

The other big change I want to touch on is Rasheed Walker. It is almost a foregone conclusion that Rasheed Walker is going to leave and secure a large payday with another team. While I think that he will deserve that money, I also will not be too sad to see him leave the Green Bay Packers. My reason for that is my unwavering optimism in Jordan Morgan. 

I’m about to unleash my hottest lukewarm Packers take right now.

Jordan Morgan was the second best offensive lineman on this team, even as the 2025 roster stood heading into the playoffs. Jordan Morgan played at the highest level of any of the Packers guards this year, and I can back this up with any PFF stat of my choosing. Let’s start with the pass blocking efficiency stat that cast all sorts of doom and gloom over Aaron Banks. Jordan Morgan ranked 22nd out of 61 guards in that category, almost 40 spots ahead of the guard who’s making 19.5 million/year.

But don’t let those numbers fool you, because Jordan Morgan is actually a tackle. And he’s a pretty darn good one at that. Look for Morgan to step in at LT and improve the level of play in 2026 over what Rasheed Walker has provided the last few years. 

Free Agency and/or Draft 

It’s almost a guarantee that the Packers will be addressing their offensive line in one or both of these fashions this spring. That is, unless they want to go into the 2026 season with Jacob Monk as a starter and almost zero depth behind him. 

Keep in mind that the Packers are without significant cap space, and they don’t have a first round pick in this year’s draft. Resources will be limited, and the Green Bay Packers will be forced to bargain bin shop for whatever is available at their price point. 

So keep that in mind when you daydream about guys the Packers could sign this offseason. Players like Tyler Linderbaum, Cade Mays and Ethan Pocic might be fun to consider, but the team just won’t have near the funds to afford players of that caliber. Think more along the lines of Austin Corbett, Evan Neal, or maybe Kevin Zeitler. I would also place Sean Rhyan into that group of realistic possibilities. 

The good news is, it won’t take much for the Green Bay Packers to improve on what they got from their 2025 offensive line. And they do have some young and talented players we could expect to improve next season. That being said, it is imperative that those improvements actualize. The offensive line as it currently stands, quite obviously cost the Packers a playoff game we all know they should have won. They can’t let that happen again. 

Whether it’s improved coaching, an influx of cheap but experienced veterans, or a new crop of young and talented rookies, the offensive line will be a top priority for this offseason. Oh, and don’t let yourself be frustrated when the team drafts a boring offensive lineman this April, rather than a flashy skill player. If you’ve learned anything from me today, it’s that the Packers need more of those boring offensive lineman.