Versatility is a word the Green Bay Packers braintrust has obsessed over for years. Whether it’s on the offensive line with someone like Elgton Jenkins or at running back with Aaron Jones, the Packers love players who wear multiple hats. Tariq Carpenter is just the next in line as he transitions from safety to inside linebacker. It’s a move Green Bay will hope packs a punch.
This move shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Carpenter played inside linebacker during the Senior Bowl before they drafted him in 2022. Green Bay flirted with putting him on the edge during practices at different junctures last season.
Size isn’t an issue. Carpenter is listed at 6’3”, 230 lbs., which blends in with the other inside linebackers on the roster. De’Vondre Campbell comes in at 6’4”, 240 lbs., while Isaiah McDuffie is 6’1” and 225 lbs.
What might be most fascinating about the move is that it isn’t as though Green Bay has an embarrassment of riches at safety. The opposite is true. Still, each player is a separate case, and this was clearly something Carpenter and the Packers thought would benefit both sides. From Carpenter’s perspective, he’s trying to soak in all the information he can by diving into the playbook and looking at it through the lens of a linebacker.
“Still feeling like a fish out of water,” Carpenter said after a recent OTA practice. “It’s on me. I’ve got to spend my time in the playbook. It’s a whole new language. Me coming from playing safety, I didn’t need to know what the D-line is doing and what gap I’ve got to fit and get the defensive linemen set and know what the back-end coverage is, as well. So, there’s a lot more to it.”
Despite the change and the learning curve already taking place, Carpenter sounds confident that he will adjust and figure it out.
“I kind of already seen it coming,” said Carpenter. “They were just talking about their plans, putting me in packages, because they like the way that I blitz and punt-blocker stuff. I love playing the game. I know I can be very good at it. You’re not going to see too many skillsets like mine.”
While Carpenter will aim to earn snaps at inside linebacker and not just time on special teams, there won’t be any immediate pressure with Campbell and Quay Walker. They have a firm grasp on the two starting spots. But the idea of using Carpenter at inside linebacker has been floating around. Packers safety coach Ryan Downard praised Carpenter’s athleticism, via Packers.com.
“He’s a hybrid, he’s kind of a freak athletically,” Downard said. “He gives us some options to do some more exotic things with him just because he can rush the passer. We’re going to see if he can do that. We’re going to see if he can cover. … I think he can do both, but we’ll see where we put him.”
Somewhere, general manager Brian Gutekunst is smiling ear to ear.
While the change for Carpenter will be unique to him, it isn’t something foreign to the Packers. The aforementioned Jenkins has played everywhere on the offensive line. But that’s been out of necessity, not because Jenkins has struggled at some spots. He’s flourished nearly everywhere. Think back a few years to when Green Bay flipped Ty Montgomery from wide receiver to running back and Micah Hyde from cornerback to safety. Although it was late in his career and after he was phenomenal at cornerback for the Packers, even winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2009, Charles Woodson flipped to safety in 2012.
It’s nothing new in Green Bay. This time, it will add another puzzle piece for defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
If Barry is willing to line up outside linebacker Preston Smith against slot receivers in some sets, which is always the wrong decision, he’d best be willing to deploy Carpenter in a variety of roles even if the sample size is limited. This of course assumes Carpenter grabs hold of the opportunity and catches on to the switch.
While special teams will still be Carpenter’s golden ticket to getting a spot on the 53-man roster, adjusting well to inside linebacker will give the Packers even more of a reason to keep him aboard.
One thing that will work in Carpenter’s favor: His work ethic.
Just my work ethic now, I’m always working hard. When I’m on the field, just sprinting to the ball. I’m in great shape. That’s just Rich checking on me all season, telling me to run. I just want to be able to run all day because I feel like I can be pretty good if I can just run all day.
Another year sees another situation in which the Packers hope selecting versatile players pays off in the long run.
