Green Bay Packers: Ranking Options at Center from Least Likely to Start to Most
By Paul Bretl
For the most part, the Green Bay Packers were able to keep thier roster intact this offseason. However, one key player that won’t be back is center Corey Linsley, who signed a well-deserved lucrative deal once free agency began with the Los Angeles Chargers.
Linsley’s final season in Green Bay was his best, as he allowed just one sack and four pressures the entire year and wasn’t called for a single penalty. He was tied for second in PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency metric out of all offensive linemen, and he was fifth among centers in ESPN’s run-blocking win rate metric. As a result of this stellar performance, he was named a first-team All-Pro as well.
While individually, there may be no replacing Linsely, offensive line play is very much the sum of the parts is oftentimes greater than the individual–especially along the interior. And as far as on the roster options go when it comes to playing center in 2021, the Green Bay Packers have a few candidates to choose from–and two of them are pretty good.
Below I took a look at the three candidates to win the starting job this summer and ranked them from least likely to start Week 1 to the most likely to start at center in the first game.
Least Likely to Start at Center for the Green Bay Packers: Jake Hanson
Jake Hanson was a sixth-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in 2020 after an excellent career at Oregon. With the Ducks, Hanson had nearly 3,500 career snaps and allowed only two sacks and just 42 pressures during that span. While he put together a very impressive college career, Hanson didn’t test well athletically, and there were concerns about his functional strength.
With the Packers last season, Hanson was a practice squad player and was eventually placed on IR in October. At the end of the season, he was released before being re-signed for 2021. As a former sixth-round pick who was a practice squad player and missed ample practice time during his rookie year, I just don’t see how he could be ready to start. I also don’t believe the Packers would have cut a player — even knowing that they could re-sign him — if they were truly in love with him.