Over the past few years, the Green Bay Packers have tried to bring along their first-round picks slowly. The Packers have often given their first-rounders plenty of time to develop, keeping them out of the spotlight until they had more time to learn and grow. They don’t like playing their rookies until they’re ready — but this season may be a little different.
Jordan Morgan is Green Bay’s most recent first-round pick. He has been taking starting reps at both guard spots and mixing in at tackle. The Packers view him as a tackle in the long term, but Morgan has displayed that he’s good enough to be among the starting five linemen.
Since the beginning of training camp, the Packers have been working Morgan on the inside. Morgan is competing primarily with Sean Rhyan for that right guard spot and filling in for Elgton Jenkins on the left side.
“He’s been predominantly inside,” Matt LaFleur said. “Certainly, in OTAs, we put him a decent amount at tackle, but I think he’s starting to feel more and more comfortable inside. But I think he’s talented enough, if need be, that if we have to kick him outside, we can do that.”
The Packers have typically let their picks sit in reserve roles for a year or two until they’re ready to contribute. That mentality applies to many of their picks, where the player has many excellent traits that they must refine.
We saw this with a few of the defensive line picks the Packers have made over the years. Green Bay picked Lukas Van Ness last year. He had a respectable season, playing in all 17 games and bagging four sacks. However, Van Ness played in a reserve role behind Preston Smith and Rashan Gary. The Packers gave Van Ness some opportunities but mostly played him in a reserve role. Gary had a similar experience as a rookie, playing a limited role in all 16 games.
Jordan Love’s time sitting behind Aaron Rodgers is another example. The Packers molded Love and put him in games to test his mettle, but the Packers had a long-term plan for him.
However, Green Bay is breaking this trend on both sides of the ball. They’re doing it along the offensive line with Morgan and also in the secondary.
The Packers selected four new players for their secondary in last year’s draft: three safeties and one cornerback. These rookies, Evan Williams, Javon Bullard, and Kalen King, are making plays in training camp and are pushing hard for starting spots come September.
Williams is having a tremendous training camp. With three interceptions, the former Oregon safety has been making plays all over the field this week at practice.
“They say a pick-a-day makes the bad feelings go away,” Williams joked. “It’s been a good little streak. I think just our whole defense. We probably have more than double-digit interceptions, probably around 15, in the first week of camp. And that’s definitely something to be proud of.”
Williams has done a tremendous job of reading the quarterback and showing off his coverage skills. Williams was known for playing near the line of scrimmage and delivering big hits. However, now he’s showing he’s more of a complete player.
“Honestly, I was just reading the quarterback,” Williams said. “I kind of felt the route combos to the front side push away from me and knew there was probably something coming from the back side, got a dig from the backside and was just able to jump it.”
Along with Williams, second-rounder Bullard has been in stiff competition for who will line up next to Xavier McKinney. Based on how the Packers have chosen to allocate playing time in team drills and situations, Bullard and Williams will see a lot of playing time.
The Packers have traditionally started rookies in a reserve role, letting them ease their way into NFL life. However, this year, it seems like the Packers will be willing to immediately play some of their rookies in important roles.
All stats and data via ESPN and Football Reference unless otherwise noted.
