The roster might not be what Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur had hoped at this point in the season, but sitting at 5-3, it has to be a delight to see how players have stepped up this year.
Green Bay has been bitten by the injury bug this season, as players like Edgerrin Cooper, Aaron Banks, Sean Rhyan, Zaire Franklin and others have missed time. The Packers have hardly missed a beat though as free agent signings and back-up players have stepped up in big spots to keep Green Bay in playoff talks.
Linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper has been one of those players who entered the season buried on the depth chart and is now in a spot where he is forced to perform well. Hopper’s best game of his career came last week against Carolina, as the Florida and Missouri alum finished the game with eight total tackles, one sack and one interception.
“I think from top-down, bottom-up, however you want to say it, I think he has done a great job,” said Xavier McKinney, on Hopper. “I think he has provided a lot of depth for us, not just on the defensive side, even on special teams. I think he has done a great job for this team.”
A major issue with the Packers over the Gutekunst/LaFleur-era has been the struggles that have come when starters have gone down to injury. So seeing how well Hopper has been playing in his time on the field has to be a sigh of relief for the entire team.
With the injuries and inconsistent play on the offensive line this season, Green Bay went out and signed three veteran linemen in Laken Tomlinson, Mekhi Becton and Kevin Zeitler. While Becton and Zeitler have yet to get on the field, Tomlinson has been one of Green Bay’s better players this season. Tomlinson’s experience in the NFL has seemingly worn off on not only the offensive line but the team as a whole.
“He’s been just a huge pickup for us,” said Jordan Love, about Tomlinson. “You know, a guy that has obviously played a lot of ball in his career. To come in, to be put in the starting role right away — starting at left guard and moving to right guard — just his mindset. Since he has got here, he has had a contagious energy.”
One other player who saw a bit more time on the offensive line over the past two weeks has been John Williams.
Williams, who has seen extended time at center, was a seventh-round pick out of Cincinnati in 2025 by Green Bay. Seen as a depth piece, Williams has been thrust into the starting lineup with an injury to starting center Rhyan. Williams hadn’t played center previously as he was a tackle coming out of college.
“I can’t say enough about guys like John Williams going in there and playing center for the second time,” said LaFleur.
As the NFL season continues to progress, relying on players who may not have been seen as starters at the start of the year is going to have to be key for the Packers. To go as far as Green Bay wants to go, it has to be a next-man-up mentality.
“Guys have to get ready to play, and that is our job as coaches and that is their job as players,” said LaFleur. “I thought our guys have done a nice job.”
