Preseason Thoughts on the 2025 Green Bay Packers

Good news to all of you football fans out there: the 2025 NFL regular season is upon us. For the Green Bay Packers, it has been a long offseason. That does not mean that nothing happened between Super Bowl LIX and the start of the 2025 NFL season on September 4th. There was free agency, the draft, training camp, and other things that happened during that time. With that introduction out of the way, let’s go over how the Packers have used that offseason time.

Ever since the Packers lost in the wild card round to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Eagles, they have gone to work figuring out what went wrong, other than injuries. At his season ending press conference shortly after the loss to the Eagles, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst mentioned having a sense of urgency in terms of competing for Lombardi Trophies. He and head coach Matt LaFleur are in extra pressure to win it all due to the change of CEO during the offseason. As for now, their jobs are safe. During the offseason, there was not any changes at the coordinator positions. Defensive Coordinator Jeff Hafley interviewed with the Jets before deciding to stay in Green Bay (thank goodness). Offensive Coordinator Adam Stenavich and Special Teams Coordinator Rich Bisaccia are still at their jobs for the time being. Hopefully things go well with them this season. Mark Murphy (the one who played for Washington, not Green Bay) was set to retire from the CEO position in July due to the age cap being at 70. To replace him, the Packers decided to go with Ed Policy, who has been with the Packers organization for over a decade now. Before Ed took the CEO position, there had to be some stuff done. In free agency, the Packers’ biggest pickups in the 2025 offseason were OL Aaron Banks from the 49ers and CB Nate Hobbs from the Raiders. They also got receiver Mecole Hardman to potentially help with punt returns, but it initially did not work out. He was cut, but he was then brought back via practice squad. The biggest question mark concerned the future of CB Jaire Alexander, who missed basically half of last season with a knee injury that was frustrating not just for him, but everyone involved with Green Bay. The Packers decided to do a post June 1st cut to save money. I’ll miss Jaire in a Packers uniform, and I wish him all the best with Baltimore, who signed him after that cut.

In the NFL Draft, which was held in Green Bay for the first (and hopefully not last) time, the Packers had a solid draft. It started with a bang as Mark Murphy was on stage to announce the Packers’ first round pick. With that selection, 23rd overall in the draft, the Packers did something that they haven’t done since 2002: draft a wide receiver in the first round. That receiver was Matthew Golden from the University of Texas. Once that pick was announced, the crowd went crazy in Green Bay. Many Packers fans who were watching the draft, including me, was excited as heck when that pick was revealed. In the second round, the Packers selected offensive tackle Anthony Belton from NC State. In round 3, the Packers got another receiver: Savion Williams from TCU. In Round 4, the Packers selected another player from the University of Texas. This time, it was edge rusher Barryn Sorrell, who was actually there in person and got to hug NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and celebrated with the Packers fans after he got picked. In round 5, another defensive front player was picked. It was Collin Oliver from Oklahoma State. Once again, the Packers selected a defensive lineman in the next round. In round 6, they picked Warren Brandon from the University of Georgia. For their last pick, the Packers selected a defensive back named Micah Robinson from Tulane University. That last pick was announced by famous Packers YouTuber Tom Grossi, who recently moved to Wisconsin. Thankfully, all of these draft picks are still with Green Bay. However, Micah Robinson is currently on the Packers’ practice squad. Golden looks like a stud already, and I can’t wait to see him play in his rookie season. Barryn Sorrell played well during preseason before he hurt his knee during the preseason game against the Colts. Thankfully, he should be back soon. I have no doubt that he’ll be a good contributor to the pass rush this season. Belton wasn’t perfect, but I am sure he’ll improve as the years go by. The Packers also got an undrafted free agent in Nazir Stackhouse, who made the 53 man roster, keeping that 21 year undrafted free agent streak alive in Green Bay.

During training camp, the Packers officially made the CEO transition from Mark Murphy to Ed Policy. I have no doubt that Policy will make sure the Packers stay at Lambeau Field for the foreseeable future in addition to holding people accountable every day. Mark Murphy was recently inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame for his contributions as CEO. He wasn’t perfect as CEO, but I will appreciate what he did for the Packers throughout his tenure as CEO. On the field, the Packers dealt with some hiccups throughout training camp. Some of the receivers, including Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks, have missed a lot of practice time due to injuries. For Reed, he has a Jones Fracture in his foot, which is basically a fracture of the bone that connects to the pinky toe. He is trying his best to play through it, but I would suggest that he sits out the first few weeks of the season and come back after the Week 5 bye week. For Dontayvion Wicks, he has dealt with a calf issue, which is hopefully not too serious. Obviously, Christian Watson is still recovering from his ACL inury, but I think that he'll be ready by the middle of this season. In addition to those, Nate Hobbs and Xavier McKinney, two key players on the defensive side of the ball, had to sit out most of training camp due to injury concerns. Both of those players should be ready for Week 1. Jordan Love, who recently got married to his girlfriend Ronika Stone, had to have an operation done on his left thumb after he hit it on a helmet during the first preseason game against the Jets. Thankfully, he’ll be ready for Week 1. Malik Willis, who helped the Packers win a couple of games last year, is still with the Packers as QB2 behind Love. Josh Jacobs will continue to be productive in the running game, along with Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks. Receiver health and consistency is still a question mark, but I just hope there aren't as many drops as last year. I have no doubt that the offensive line, which includes Zach Tom (who recently got extended), will be able to protect Love and create holes for the RBs to go through. For Special Teams, the trio of kicker Brandon McManus, punter/holder Daniel Whelan, and long snapper Matt Orzech will make sure that the field goal and punt units are stable. Whoever does the return duties needs to not be careless with the football.

Most recently, the Packers agreed on a trade that made everyone go crazy. Edge rusher Micah Parsons, who has wanted an extension with the Dallas Cowboys for a while now, recently requested a trade out of Dallas. Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones tried to negotiate a 5 year deal worth $40.5 million dollars per year, but the problem was that the deal was negotiated without Micah Parsons’ agent in the room. After a few months of drama, the deal was made at 5:04 PM ET on Thursday August 28th between the Packers and Cowboys. In exchange for Micah Parsons, the Packers gave up two first round picks and long-time Packers DT Kenny Clark. I was excited as heck when the Packers got Micah Parsons, but I do feel bad about Kenny Clark leaving. Clark was a great contributor to the Packers defense for nearly 10 years, and I’ll miss him in Green Bay. As for what Parsons received when he was traded to Green Bay, he received an extension for 4 years and 188 million dollars ($47 million per year) with 136 million of those dollars fully guaranteed. The trade for Parsons immediately makes the pass rush more of a threat. There is still a concern about the CB room, which includes Carrington Valentine and Bo Melton (who recently transitioned from WR to CB). However, I think that the pass rush can help the defensive backs by getting to the quarterback more often.

Overall, I am excited for this upcoming season for the Green Bay Packers. The schedule is tough for them, but I am sure that they will take it one game at a time. On Sunday September 7th, the Packers’ regular season will start at Lambeau Field for the first time in the Matt LaFleur era. Their Week 1 opponent is the Detroit Lions, who have won the previous 3 games at Lambeau Field. I have hope that the Packers will open their season with a win in front of their home crowd. I hope that the Packers get mostly if not fully healthy by the time that the game happens. I'll be back after that game to recap it regardless of the outcome. In the meantime, the wait is almost over, everyone. Have a great day and as always, Go Pack Go!