As Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur enters his fourth NFL season, he is considered one of the league's most promising young coaches. Of course, it helps that he has a potential Pro Football Hall of Famer and four-time NFL MVP at the helm of his potent offense.
During the 2022 NFL Draft, Packers GM Brian Gutekunst added a pair of first-round defensive specialists and waited until the second round to get the seventh wide receiver to come off the board. Because of that, people wondered if the Packers were due for a change in identity.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) flips head coach Matt LaFleur's hat backwards during training camp. @gbpressgazette @PGPackersNews @AaronRodgers12 @CoachMLaFleur pic.twitter.com/qqtrOhB8nw
— Samantha Madar (@samanthamadar) August 4, 2022
When they asked LaFleur about it, he simply grinned. Were the Packers now going to be a grind-it-out, defensive-focused, run-the-ball team in 2022?
“We're going to play to whatever strength we have,” he said. “If you have to run the ball 40 times in a game, then you do what you've got to do. But certainly, I don't think we necessarily have to do that here, especially when you have a quarterback of the caliber that we have. We'll do whatever it takes to win, though — bottom line.”
The Packers will surely need to do whatever it takes, especially as they released their initial depth chart of 2022.
3 biggest surprises from Mike Tomlin's first Packers depth chart
3) Zach Tom is not starting
During the 2022 NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers kept making investments in their offensive line. One of the main pieces they acquired was Zach Tom. The Packers snagged Tom in the fourth round, and they love his versatility. He was also a member of the 2022 All-ACC First Team.
Pro Football Focus named Tom as the top selection in the whole fourth round. He also had a PFF pass-blocking grade of 92.1.
Tom can play a number of offensive line positions, but people observed that mainly played as a guard during training camp. He has had extensive experience playing center and left tackle, too.
Experts felt that Tom was good enough to start for the Packers this coming season. Heading into training camp, pundits projected that Royce Newman and Jon Runyan Jr. would have the inside track to start. Newman, however, was possibly going to be supplanted by Tom.
Remember that in his first season, Newman secured a starting position at guard. Nothing prevents Tom from doing the same thing. It's a little surprising that Tom is not a member of the starting unit yet, but he should make it there sooner rather than later.
2) Quay Walker over Krys Barnes
Krys Barnes is starting his third NFL season. The Packers are looking for a player at this position with high athletic ability. Barnes is not really that guy, but the former UCLA standout does train very hard and has an excellent football IQ.
On the other hand, Quay Walker offers the athleticism that the Packers are looking for. When training camp started, experts projected that Barnes would still hold on to his starting spot, but we see now that Walker has taken over.
Since the beginning of training camp, Walker has owned on defense. The Packers undoubtedly have high hopes for Walker's potential to improve their secondary. The Packers haven't played a single snap of dime defense (one linebacker, six defensive backs) in camp despite being a potentially loaded three-down tandem. Having said that, if Walker plays at a high level, the Packers can certainly be one of the top dime defenses in the NFL.
This means that for 2022, Barnes will likely play a significant role on special teams and still step in on defense when necessary.
1) Amari Rodgers is off the bench
Amari Rodgers was viewed as a potential replacement for Davante Adams in the Packers' wide receiver group when he came to Green Bay in the 2021 NFL Draft.
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Adams left the Packers after a trade to the Las Vegas Raiders, making Rodgers' development and role for the Packers in 2022 even more vital following a lackluster first season. He is confident that his play will become better and that his adaptability will help him succeed in the future.
Rodgers lost some weight during the offseason. That should help him regain some of the speed and explosiveness that he showed at Clemson. As such, he will likely play more outside as well as in the slot. In the second season of his NFL career, the Packers need him to advance and contribute to the offense. During camp, Rodgers has also shown the coaches that he could play any position. He wanted them to see him as highly dependable in any circumstance. Some pundits expected him to start alongside Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb.
As things stand, though, Rodgers (and Cobb) will not be starting yet. LeFleur has named Sammy Watkins and rookie Christian Watson to start alongside Lazard.
Having said that, expect the Packers to shuffle their WR corps as time moves forward. For his part, Rodgers (and Cobb) will see the light of day sooner rather than later.
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