Green Bay Packers: Top 5 things to watch against Patriots
By Dan Kasper
Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Defensive Line Depth
If Letroy Guion still ends up being suspended to start the season, the Packers will be down their top two defensive linemen on the left side with Datone Jones missing the first game against the Bears due to suspension.
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That means the Packers will be counting on some backup lineman to help fill the void before those two players return from their suspension. The player that will get the first crack is Josh Boyd. Boyd has regular season experience for the Packers, but has been average at best. Other options the Packers have are Bruce Gaston, Khyri Thornton, and Christian Ringo.
Gaston was claimed off the Arizona Cardinals practice squad last year, but didn’t see any playing time. Thornton has been unimpressive and the former third-round pick could be a candidate to be cut before playing one snap in the regular season. Ringo is a rookie and has intriguing upside, but is still pretty raw to give him a lot of playing time right away.
Mike Pennel is there, but he seems to be more of a nose tackle for the Packers.
So the eyes will be on Boyd. If Boyd plays well in these preseason games, it will make the Packers a little bit more comfortable with starting the season without Guion and Jones. The Packers will play a lot of nickel defense during the season, which requires only two down lineman. However, the Packers no doubt want to have a plan in place for replacing Guion and Jones.
With Guion also coming off of an injury, Boyd will have plenty of opportunities against the Patriots to show the Packers he can help contribute.
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