As training camp rolls on, it’s becoming increasingly clear that Jordan Love will not have any veteran pass-catchers to lean on. The wideout trio of Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, and Jayden Reed are all in their first or second season. So is Samori Toure and the rookie tight end duo of Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft. Love will have an elite backfield duo, though. He’ll also have a stacked defense on the other side, and a finally healthy offensive line that is widely expected to crack the top 5-10 units in the league.
According to Warren Sharp, Love was one of just three quarterbacks who faced a 0% pressure rate in the first week of preseason action. He only played a little, but it’s likely a harbinger of what is to come for a deep, talented Packers front. David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins are fully recovered from ACL tears in the past couple years, and that left side should be the league’s best if everything runs smoothly. The reliable Jon Runyan Jr. returns to anchor the right guard spot, and third-year center Josh Myers will be looking for the breakout that Creed Humphrey had in Kansas City after being drafted just a few picks after him. Heading into camp, only right tackle seemed to be uncertain. According to the first unofficial depth chart, that position will belong to last year’s fourth-round pick, Zach Tom.
Tom is ostensibly the early favorite over Yosh Nijman, who has done excellent work over the past couple of years in relief. According to PFF, Tom himself also scored extremely well in his time helming the blindside last season. It remains to be seen how well that will translate to the right side, but that uncertainty makes him the most consequential player on the Green Bay’s offensive front.
One week into the preseason, things are looking pretty good. Tom was dominant in Cincinnati, earning the third-highest PFF grade of any Packer in that game. He started on the right side but also repped center after Myers departed. His assignments, paired with how well he has executed them, are conveying his importance to the team’s present and future. He also reportedly added 15 to 20 lbs. this offseason but is looking just as versatile. After seeing him play all five positions since he was drafted — and excelling at them — it’s worth wondering if his ceiling could be as high as Elgton Jenkins’.
Jenkins was a second-round pick out of Mississippi State and stands alongside Jaire Alexander and Rashan Gary as one of Gutekunst’s sharpest selections. After being the 10th lineman off the draft board in 2019, Jenkins has made the Pro Bowl and been better than each of the men taken before him. He has played center in the absence of Myers, tackle in the absence of Bakhtiari, but is most dominant at guard. While Tom has hardly inspired the same expectations that Jenkins had out of college, he’s on the verge of finding himself in a very similar role. And if he continues to flash when real games start, it has the ability to transform the Packers’ identity — or at least control the narrative of the sweeping transformation that became real the day that Aaron Rodgers declared his intention to move on from Green Bay after 17 years.
Even during a season in which Green Bay is widely expected not to contend for a championship, the quality of offensive line play is crucial to ensuring an easy transition to the NFL for Love and creating an environment in which he can thrive. Since he will essentially be growing and developing alongside his young pass-catching corps, if his linemen assert themselves as among the league’s best, it could have positive ramifications that last for years to come.
After all, Packers CEO Mark Murphy set a timeline of about half a season to evaluate Love’s long-term potential. Their financial commitment to him lasts just two years. But with all that was invested and sacrificed for his arrival and preparation, there is immense pressure to get this right. Time in the pocket and lanes for his runners is crucial to that outcome. By the looks of it, Love will be spoiled by good protection from both his lineman and running backs, and by LaFleur’s measured play calling.
On manning the right side, Tom said, “They had me playing everything [last year]…being able to focus on right tackle makes a pretty big difference because the footwork is consistent. It’s helping me out a little.” Between his impressive, versatile rookie season and his early training camp victory over Nijman, the incumbent and the favorite, it appears the Packers really have something in Zach Tom. As it stands, he is the mid-round offensive line pick that appears poised to break through amongst a log jam of Sean Rhyan, Royce Newman, and others. And everyone can stay healthy, he can transform the offense.
