The Good News and Bad News from Packers OTAs This Week

The Green Bay Packers held OTAs that were open to the media on Wednesday. The team has begun preparing for the 2025 NFL season with these voluntary OTAs. Mandatory OTAs will take place in June before training camp gets under way in July. Here is some good news and bad news from Packers OTAs.

Good News and Bad News from Packers OTAs: Good News on Christian Watson

Wide receiver Christian Watson suffered a serious knee injury that required surgery during the final game of the 2024 season. Experts expect him to miss at least half of the 2025 season as he continues to rehab from the injury.

The good news is that Watson was on the field stretching with his teammates. While he did not participate in any drills, it was good just to see him on the field.

After practice, head coach Matt LaFleur told reporters, “Christian is doing outstanding. I would say he is ahead of schedule.”

While the Packers are usually conservative with players rehabbing from injury, it is encouraging to see Watson stretching and to hear that his rehab is progressing well.

Bad News: Who Wasn’t There

The two Packers players who have ongoing disputes with the team remain away from practice. Cornerback Jaire Alexander was not present, and neither was offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins.

According to published reports, the Packers have made an offer to Alexander on a restructured contract which he has yet to agree to. The team and the player have been on shaky ground since the end of last season. It still remains possible that Alexander returns to the Packers this season on a restructured deal.

Meanwhile, Jenkins wants reassurances on his contract situation after the team asked him to move to center this season. Jenkins seems willing to make the position switch, but he reportedly wants reassurances about his contract and his future with the team.

Since neither player’s situation has been resolved, they are not at voluntary OTAs.

Good News and Bad News from Packers OTAs: The Offensive Line

With Jenkins not available to play center, the Packers coaching staff moved things around a little bit along the offensive line. While we have a long way to go before Week 1 in September, the way the coaches have the players line up gives us some idea of how they view the competition for various jobs.

The first team offensive line on Wednesday included Rasheed Walker at left tackle and free agent addition Aaron Banks at left guard. Two players alternated at center and right guard in Jenkins’ absence. They were Sean Rhyan, last season’s starting right guard, and second-year man Jacob Monk. Zach Tom remains the starter at right tackle.

Monk slotted in with the first string ahead of Kadeem Telfort and Travis Glover, who filled in during the playoff loss to the Eagles when Jenkins was injured. Monk appears to have made progress since last season.

The Cornerback Situation

With Alexander not participating, the coaching staff needed to make changes at cornerback as well. We got a look at how the coaches expect the players to line up if Alexander does not stay with the team or is again unavailable due to injuries.

In the base defense, Keisean Nixon and Nate Hobbs lined up on the boundary. When the team went to a nickel defense, Hobbs moved to the slot and Carrington Valentine stepped in and played on the boundary.

That leaves second-year safety Javon Bullard without a starting job unless he can beat out fellow 2024 draft pick Evan Williams for the starting safety spot opposite Xavier McKinney.

Again, there is a long way to go between now and the start of the season and these position battles are far from settled. But at least at OTAs, we get an initial view of who the coaching staff feels deserves a first look at each of these positions.