After not participating in practice through Wednesday and head coach Matt LaFleur listing him as week-to-week, it would appear that Devonte Wyatt won’t be out there on Sunday for the Green Bay Packers. As a result, Karl Brooks and Colby Wooden are in line to start at defensive tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, Jeff Hafley shouldn’t shy away from experimenting with Lukas Van Ness even more at that same spot in the absence of Wyatt.
Van Ness has played 34 snaps on the interior of the defensive line this year. It doesn’t sound like much on the surface, but when you consider he’s played 140 snaps total, it is more significant. For the most part, those 34 reps have come in obvious passing downs, and that should continue in abundance with Wyatt likely to be on the shelf.
Testing out Van Ness on the interior in non-obvious passing downs isn’t the worst idea, either.
With Wyatt out, the Packers will use Nazir Stackhouse as a depth player, and Warren Brinson could also be a game-day elevation. Van Ness isn’t as wide as the Packers’ other defensive tackles. His frame is a better fit for playing on the edge. However, he has enough traits and size that it wouldn’t be a disaster, and could be a pleasant surprise.
Micah Parsons put it best after his arrival when he predicted what kind of year the former first-round pick out of Iowa would have.
Van Ness is going to have his best year yet. I’m going to make sure of it. That guy is a very selfless player, he’s very selfless. He’s one of those guys that can go anywhere, he plays the run, he does everything. He’s the high-quality player that you just want to be around.
When everyone first saw Van Ness lined up on the inside in training camp, it instantly raised the antennas. Was this just something to mess around with in camp, or was it an actual plan?
LaFleur tried to play it off, but after seeing 34 snaps on the interior in four games, it has become very real.
Situationally, you can do that. I think in known pass situations, there’s some thought around that. A lot of it is gonna be just depending upon everybody else as well. Lukas has shown a lot of growth and I’m excited to see him once we get pads on and, really all those guys, how they compete.
The key within that quote is when LaFleur mentioned how much of it would be dependent upon everybody else. Now with Wyatt’s injury popping up on the radar, it may become a necessity to see what Van Ness can do on a larger snap scale on the interior.
Brooks and Wooden can hold their own. However, there is a severe lack of experience behind them. Stackhouse is an undrafted rookie, and Brinson is a sixth-round rookie.
Don’t forget that in Week 1, Van Ness logged a sack against Detroit while lined up at defensive tackle.
The Packers have long valued versatility in the draft, to the point where it sometimes feels excessive. Van Ness played on the interior and on the edge in college, and the Packers took note of that when they drafted him. With Wyatt likely to miss some time, now is a perfect opportunity to explore it even further.
It also worth noting who’s on the schedule this weekend.
Cincinnati’s offensive line has been atrocious. They acquired Joe Flacco, who is an upgrade over Jake Browning, but is a complete statue in the pocket at this point in his career.
Per Ben Baldwin, when blending PFF’s grading on offensive linemen, Sports Information System’s blown block percentage, and ESPN’s pass-block win rate, the Bengals have by far the worst offensive line in football.
It might be a stretch ever to suggest truly experimenting on the fly in a game that counts in the NFL. Still, if there were ever a week to do that with Van Ness, it’s against this offensive line and this type of quarterback who can’t move around.
Flacco might not be a complete crash-test dummy on Sunday, but it’d be wise to have some crime scene “Do Not Cross” caution tape on the sidelines just in case.
Wyatt’s injury opens up the door for Brooks and Wooden. There’s no doubt about it. It carves out a chance for Stackhouse to show what he’s got, as he played 27 snaps against the Dallas Cowboys once Wyatt exited after playing a combined 21 in the first three weeks.
It should also allow Hafley to be more flexible — at least for this week — in using Van Ness even more on the inside. There’s no better time to put that versatility to the test.
