Which Packers Are Locks to Make The Team?

There was much more uncertainty about the quarterback position at this time last year. Now, the Packers will head into next season with their franchise quarterback and one of the best backups in the league. There’s no reason the Packers would keep a third quarterback on the 53-man roster. Both Love and Willis can be locked in as fixtures to make this team. Any other quarterbacks they have or will bring in will be fighting for a spot on the practice squad, but they won’t have much of a chance to make the final roster.

Running Backs

Roster Locks: Josh Jacobs, Marshawn Lloyd

Competing for a Roster Spot: Chris Brooks, Emmanuel Wilson

The running back position comes down to how many running backs the Packers decide to keep. If they decide to keep four, both Brooks and Wilson should make the team. If they decide to only keep three, the Packers will need to decide which skill set they prefer. Wilson is more of a natural runner. Brooks is more of the do-it-all back. Jacobs and Lloyd should be the main guys, with Brooks and Wilson competing for that third and/or fourth running back spot.

Wide Receiver

Roster Locks: Romeo Doubs, Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Savion Williams

Competing for a Roster Spot: Mecole Hardman, Malik Heath, Bo Melton

Five of the wide receivers have roster spots locked up. The only way Romeo Doubs wouldn’t be on the roster is if he were to end up being traded, which is unlikely. Assuming that doesn’t happen, Doubs, Reed, and Wicks will all be on the roster and expected to play significant roles again. Golden (2025 first-round pick) and Williams (2025 third-round pick) will also be on the roster. Christian Watson is still with the team, but he will spend a large chunk of the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, so he isn’t included in this discussion. That leaves potentially one roster spot remaining.

Malik Heath and Bo Melton have both been on the 53-man roster before. The Packers also signed Mecole Hardman this offseason. The man who ends up making the team will likely come down to who makes the greatest impact on special teams. Heath and Melton have played on Bisaccia’s special teams units before, although Hardman has the most experience as a returner. While Hardman was recently signed, his contract has minimal guaranteed money, so the Packers could move on from him easily. It’s anyone’s guess as to which one of these three will win that sixth wide receiver spot.

Tight End

Locks: Tucker Kraft, Luke Musgrave

Competing for a Roster Spot: John FitzPatrick, Ben Sims

Kraft and Musgrave will assuredly be on the team. Kraft is ascending into being a top-tier tight end. Musgrave has had an up-and-down career thus far, but the Packers will not move on from the former second-round pick so soon. That leaves one or two spots open for FitzPatrick and Sims. Sims played more snaps throughout last season, but the Packers brought FitzPatrick in mid-season and re-signed him for 2025. As of today, Fitzpatrick and Sims will likely be competing for spots. Both could end up making the team, but there’s also no guarantee that either player makes the team.

Offensive Line

Roster Locks: Aaron Banks, Anthony Belton, Elgton Jenkins, Jordan Morgan, Sean Rhyan, Zach Tom, Rasheed Walker 

Competing for a Roster Spot: Travis Glover, Donovan Jennings, Jacob Monk, Kadeem Telfort, John Williams

Seven guys are clear locks to make the roster. The Packers lost Josh Myers in free agency, but they brought in Aaron Banks to replace him. Now, the Packers effectively have six starting offensive linemen, and they added Belton in the second round of this past draft. All seven spots are secure. Barring an unforeseen trade of Rasheed Walker, the Packers will be hoarding as many quality offensive linemen as possible. That leaves five guys to compete for potentially three remaining spots. 

Glover, Telfort, and Monk all spent time on the 53-man roster last season. Glover and Telfort became the preferred backups as the season went on. Monk was mostly inactive at the end of the season, but the performance of Glover and Telfort was lackluster. Jennings spent last season on the practice squad after receiving a lot of guaranteed money as an undrafted free agent last season. Williams enters the conversation as a seventh-round draft pick in this year’s draft. All five have multi-position versatility. It might be easier to pick three names out of a hat than to try and guess which three make the final roster. 

Edge

Roster Locks: Rashan Gary, Barryn Sorrell, Lukas Van Ness

Competing for a Roster Spot: Brenton Cox, Kingsley Enagbare, Collin Oliver

It would be easy to argue that more than three edge rushers are locks to make the team. Gary and Van Ness are no-brainers and easily the projected starters. After that, it’s a toss-up. Sorrell comes with a strong pedigree and should easily make the team after the Packers drafted him in the fourth round. While Enagbare and Cox both played substantial roles on last year’s team, it could be assumed they both have an inside track to making next year’s roster, but it’s not that simple. The Packers are likely keeping five edge rushers, so that leaves three players to compete for two spots.

Enagbare hit a performance escalator last season, so his salary for 2025 is $3,406,000 – a drastic increase from the $985,000 he made last season. The Packers may choose to move on rather than pay Enagbare that salary. Cox has a much smaller sample size, but flashed a lot of upside toward the end of last season. Cox is also much cheaper. Oliver is a 2025 fifth-round draft pick, and the team has expressed their desire for him to be a designated pass rusher. He will be given every chance to make the squad. This position battle may go down to the wire in training camp.

Interior Defensive Line

Roster Locks: Warren Brinson, Karl Brooks, Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt

Competing for a Roster Spot: Nazir Stackhouse, Colby Wooden

Brooks, Clark, and Wyatt are all easy locks to be on the 2025 roster. All three played significant roles last season and will be expected to play significant roles again. T.J. Slaton is no longer on the team, and Brinson likely steps into the role he played. That leaves a battle for one final spot between Stackhouse and Wooden. Wooden, the former fourth-round pick, hasn’t shown the ability to be a strong contributor thus far. That said, moving on to Stackhouse, the rookie undrafted free agent, would be quite the leap of faith.

Linebacker

Roster Locks: Edgerrin Cooper, Isaiah McDuffie, Quay Walker 

Competing for a Roster Spot: Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Ty’Ron Hopper, Isaiah Simmons, Kristian Welch

The Packers love the trio of Cooper, McDuffie, and Walker. McDuffie just re-signed a new contract that will keep him around for the next two years. The Packers see Cooper and Walker as their linebacking duo of the future. After those three, picking who makes the team is anyone’s guess. The Packers may only keep four linebackers, but they could keep as many as six. It will all be dictated by the performance of these four battling it out.

Hopper, a former third-round pick, returns after not contributing much as a rookie. Welch is known for his special-teams ability, although he showed flashes defensively in the 2024 preseason. Dumas-Johnson joins a crowded room as an undrafted free agent, but comes with a strong pedigree. The biggest wild card is Simmons. The former top ten pick has bounced between the Giants and Cardinals without ever finding his footing. His contract has minimal guarantees, so he would have to earn his spot on the roster. If Hafley can find a use for him, he could be a steal. Who makes the team from this bunch will likely come down to versatility and contributions on special teams.

Cornerback

Roster Locks: Nate Hobbs, Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine

Competing for a Roster Spot: Jaire Alexander, Kamal Hadden, Kalen King, Micah Robinson

The cornerback room is full of a lot of uncertainty. Without a doubt, Hobbs, Nixon, and Valentine will be on the team. After that, it’s really hard to say. Alexander isn’t “competing” for a roster spot, but his spot is definitely not locked up. If the Packers and Alexander were to come to a resolution, he would easily be on the team. Until then, no one truly knows. If there is a resolution, Alexander can be included as the fourth lock to make the team. After that, it should be an interesting competition for who else makes the roster.

Hadden and King both spent last season on the practice squad. Robinson was brought in as a seventh-round draft pick a couple of weeks ago. The Alexander situation will have a large say in who will make the team. Aside from that, these three are the most likely candidates to compete for the final cornerback spots. There may be a scenario where all three may make the team. That said, there is also a scenario where none of these three make it.

Safety

Roster Locks: Javon Bullard, Xavier McKinney, Evan Williams

Competing for a Roster Spot: Zayne Anderson, Jonathan Baldwin, Kitan Oladapo

A couple of weeks ago, it seemed highly likely that five safeties were locks to make the team. Today, the only three that have secure spots are McKinney, Bullard, and Williams. Undrafted free agent Baldwin was given $115,000 in guaranteed money, which is not common for a UDFA. Anderson and Oladapo both played well last season and gave the Packers good reason to keep them around, but they are not going to keep six safeties. Oladapo and Anderson should be the front-runners to make the team, but no one should count out Baldwin yet.

Specialists

Roster Locks: Brandon McManus, Daniel Whelan, Matt Orzech

Competing for a Roster Spot: N/A

It seems pretty certain these will be the three specialists the Packers roll with heading into the 2025 season. McManus just signed a three-year, $15,300,000 contract after stabilizing a shaky position midway through last season. Whelan returns for his third NFL season. He was bottom five in both gross average and net average last season, but possesses a big leg and does well limiting the number of returns by opponents. The coaching staff has spoken about their belief in Matt Orzech as the long snapper. Barring any injuries, these three should be the core.

The Roster is Far From Final

The Packers are fortunate to be returning more than 30 contributors from last season. They attacked the offensive line and cornerback positions in free agency by bringing in Aaron Banks and Nate Hobbs. They brought in high-quality players at positions of need through the draft. The roster is strong. 35 players are already locked into roster spots, but there will be a lot of competition for those final remaining spots.