A common theme throughout the Green Bay Packers’ disappointing 2025 season was the feeling that the coaching staff didn’t have confidence in how they were deploying personnel.
Which kicker should they start?
Which position should this highly drafted offensive lineman play?
Who should start at outside corner? Who should start in the slot?
Which receivers should be out there?
These questions seemed to be answered by the coaching staff with “all of them.” In other words, that means “I don’t know.” It’s time for that to change.
They held two kickers on the 53-man roster for multiple weeks. Jordan Morgan was playing guard when it was obvious he was better at tackle. Anthony Belton was playing tackle when it was obvious he was better at guard. Keisean Nixon held his spot at outside corner, but there was no conviction as to who should start across from him when Nate Hobbs was healthy. Matthew Golden was nowhere to be found, despite the numbers and the eye test both indicating he was one of their best receivers.
Adam Stenavich furthered the confusion at Tuesday’s press conference. He said he knew Morgan would be good at left tackle after last season’s preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts.
“I saw him play and thought, ‘Yeah, he’s ready,’” Stenavich said. That begs the question: Why didn’t it seem there was a real “competition” despite Matt Lafleur saying there would be one?
Because Morgan was awesome in the preseason, Steno said he knew he was ready, and Rasheed Walker wasn’t some All-Pro or even Pro-Bowl-level left tackle in his way, nor did he have his best season. So, was it because they didn’t actually think Morgan was ready? Was it because they were expecting a nice comp pick if Walker started all year?
Regardless, Stenavich somewhat answered that question later, adding, “We had to use him in other spots last year because that’s what was best for the team.” Still, that doesn’t make much sense considering he didn’t start anywhere in Week 1.
Morgan didn’t make a start until he slowly took over at right guard for Sean Rhyan, and Green Bay later benched him. That came as no surprise to Packers fans, because Morgan has always looked much less comfortable at guard than at tackle.
The same goes for Anthony Belton, who many projected to be a guard but came in for relief at right tackle after Zach Tom’s injury. He struggled mightily, got benched, and came in at right guard for Morgan later in the season. While he wasn’t perfect, he looked much more comfortable.
Stenavich also briefly mentioned Matthew Golden. Similar to the offensive line, Golden’s deployment by the coaching staff throughout the season left fans confused. That confusion reached a peak before the playoff game against the Chicago Bears, when Stenavich said of Golden, “He’s not gonna be in that premier role when the playoffs come around.”
Of course, because nothing made sense last season, Golden followed that up by having one of the most impactful games by a Packers receiver all season with four catches for 84 yards and an all-time should’ve-been-game-sealing touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Now, this past week, Stenavich said of Golden, “It’s gonna be a big year for him.” You know many Packers (and Bears) fans are going to bookmark that.
As for the kicker and corner situations, I’ll give them some wiggle room, because there clearly wasn’t a great answer. Fortunately, the front office has helped consolidate some of the talent to make some clearer pecking orders.
With Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks out of the mix, the WR room has a clear pecking order with Christian Watson as the X, Golden as the Z, and Jayden Reed as the slot. There should be no confusion there this season. The same goes with kicker. After trading up to draft Trey Smack, the best kicker in the draft, Green Bay released Brandon McManus. That leaves Smack as the obvious choice as kicker.
As for the offensive line and corner room, there needs to be some decisions made, and the Packers must make those with confidence and conviction.
After Rasheed Walker and Elgton Jenkins‘ departures, and re-signing Sean Rhyan, the pecking order along the offensive line feels set for now. Morgan and Tom are the clear starters at each tackle spot. Aaron Banks, Rhyan, and Belton are the obvious front runners to start in the interior. However, rookie fifth-round pick Jager Burton is an intriguing addition to the room.
People identified Burton as a Packers type throughout the draft process. Many think he could have a path similar to Zach Tom, who was also an obvious Packers type that ended up with the team.
While Belton and Rhyan, and I’d even throw Banks in this conversation, considering his poor play to start last season, are the front runners to start in the interior, none of them have earned the right to be immune to competition. If Burton comes in and is the dominant pass blocker he was in college, and any of the three aren’t playing up to standard, there shouldn’t be hesitation to make a change because those guys were paid more or drafted higher.
The same goes for the cornerback room. There is likely a competition for the second starting boundary corner spot throughout the whole offseason. However, while Keisean Nixon feels pretty locked in as one of the guys to start, he should not be immune to competition, either. There should be competition for all five spots in the pecking order between Nixon, Carrington Valentine, rookie second-round pick Brandon Cisse, rookie sixth-round pick Domani Jackson, and free-agent addition Benjamin St-Juste.
The Packers shouldn’t give away spots. The players should earn them. Still, there’s no reason to slow-play the rookies like they did with Golden because the vets in front of them are not the same caliber as the vets Golden competed with. If the rookies give you the best chance to win, they’re the ones the coaching staff needs to roll with, even though the other three options have the major edge in experience.
There’s no more time for this staff to dilly-dally around with rotations and platoons. Have some conviction and get the best players out there. No more “we knew he was ready” quotes about players that rode the bench. It’s time to start doing rather than just saying.
