Over the last decade, there has been plenty of chatter about the Green Bay Packers being soft. While we could debate whether that assessment is accurate, Robert Saleh said something that should be a wake-up call for the Packers.
“The mindset to go 60 minutes,” Saleh told the New York Jets at halftime while coaching them in a Week 6 game against the Packers. “And to give them 60% more. And just keep giving them body blow after body blow after body blow. And just keep hitting them, keep hitting them in the mouth. The O-line just kept pushing and just kept leaning on them, and we felt like if we could just keep taking them down to deep water, they’ll find out they can’t swim.
It should have been a slap in the face to Green Bay. While it took two years for the Packers to fully absorb the blow, a closer look at their roster moves over the past two seasons shows a shift toward the style of football they are trying to build on offense.
They want to bully opponents in the trenches.
The Packers started building that mindset when they signed Josh Jacobs in free agency last year. Hours later, they moved on from Aaron Jones, shifting from an elusive playmaker to a more physical, powerful back. A month later, they backed it up by drafting Jordan Morgan with their first selection in 2024, the first offensive lineman they’ve taken in the first round since 2011.
Adam Stenavich compared Jones and Jacobs before Green Bay’s game in Detroit. “Josh (Jacobs) is a downhill runner,” the Packers’ offensive coordinator said. “Josh runs more physically in that sense. He’s playing really well, and the team is rallying around his play style. We’re playing very physically right now.”
Green Bay centered its offense around the running game last year. They finished seventh in EPA per rush and ranked among the top five teams in rushing yards. Still, it wasn’t enough to overpower more physical teams like the Philadelphia Eagles and the Detroit Lions.
The Packers continued to add physicality to their offense up front by signing 6’5”, 324-pound Aaron Banks in the 2025 free agency. They followed that move by drafting 6’6”, 336 lb. Anthony Belton in the second round of the 2025 draft.
Every member of Green Bay’s projected starting five weighs at least 310 lbs. It’s no coincidence that they are adding big bodies to their offensive line, especially just two months after the Philadelphia Eagles featured the heaviest offensive line ever to win a Super Bowl, doing so in a dominant fashion.
According to Brian Gutekunst, Green Bay wants to reset the line of scrimmage. When asked about the additions of Aaron Banks and Anthony Belton this offseason, he referenced T.J. Lang and Josh Sitton – two big, physical guards who set the tone up front during some of the team’s most dominant years.
One would assume the Packers want to keep making the run game the soul of their offense. A big, bullying offensive line that easily opens gaps is a recipe for making Jacobs an even more dangerous weapon. It also creates opportunities for the under-center play action to thrive, a cornerstone of Matt LaFleur’s offense and the Shanahan tree for many years.
The trenches are the most important part of football. If the Packers can successfully construct and execute their vision for the offense, they can transition from a good offense into a great one.
