Green Bay Packers Have 1 Roster Spot Open Following Draft
By Paul Bretl
The maximum amount of players that an NFL team can have on their training camp and preseason rosters is 90. Prior to the draft, the Green Bay Packers had 64 of those roster spots accounted for, but now, they are just one player shy of being at max capacity.
Through the draft, the Packers would add 11 players through their selections. They would also sign 14 undrafted rookies once the draft was complete. So in a matter of days, they added 25 new players to this roster, giving them a grand total of 89.
So who is going to fill that final roster spot for the Green Bay Packers?
Well, they could look to sign one of the tryouts that they had in for rookie mini-camp over the weekend. For those wondering, rookie mini-camp gives draft picks and UDFAs an opportunity to get acclimated with the facility, meet the coaching staff in person as well as the media, and go through some on-field drills as well.
In addition to the 11 draft picks, 14 UDFAs, and eight players who were already on the roster but eligible for rookie mini-camp, the Green Bay Packers also had 18 players in for tryouts–giving them a grand total of 51 players competing on the field over the last few days.
Below is a look at each of the 18 tryout candidates:
Ryan Wisniewski, WR, UW-Whitewater
Keke Chism, WR, Missouri
Zafir Kelly, CB, South Carolina State
Max Bortenschlager, QB, FIU
Anthony Tuner, WR, Grand View
Andrew Whitaker, CB, Washington (St. Louis)
Alex Spillum, S, Coastal Carolina
Xavior Williams, S, Iowa
Will Spiers, P, Clemson
Kendall Karcz, S, St. Norbert College
Sean Dykes, FB, Memphis
Carson Terrell, TE, Utah
Ryder Anderson, LB, Indiana
Jack Coco, LS, Georgia Tech
Cameron Kaye, LS, Troy
Sam Renner, IDL, Minnesota
Kyler Schott, OG, Iowa
Kobe Jones, LB, Mississippi State
Obviously, I wasn’t at any of these practices, so I have no idea who stood out or if anyone did. But on paper, adding one of the long-snappers to this roster wouldn’t be a bad idea. At the moment, Steven Wirtel is the only long-snapper on the roster, and after an up and down first season in Green Bay, some competition this summer wouldn’t be a bad thing.
Or perhaps instead of signing one of these tryout players, the Packers could still choose to explore free agency instead.
If they were to make an outside addition — and I believe they can, even with their cap situation — of course, it likely isn’t going to be a big-name on an expensive contract–rather, it will be added depth on a veteran minimum deal, or something close to that.
While Over the Cap has the Green Bay Packers with $14.1 in available cap space, as ESPN’s Rob Demovsky would report, this incoming draft class will account for $12.8 million of that–which leaves Green Bay with very little wiggle room. However, there are a few cap creating moves still available to them, including an extension for Jaire Alexander and reworking Allen Lazards one-year restricted free agent contract with voided years–we saw them do the same thing in 2021 with Robert Tonyan.
In addition to long-snapper, a few other positions where a veteran presence could really benefit this team is in the secondary, at either cornerback or safety, or at edge rusher.
As I discussed in a recent article, as good as the starting safeties and cornerbacks are on this Green Bay Packers team, the depth behind them is filled with unknowns and very little to no NFL experience.
Meanwhile, at edge rusher, as good as Rashan Gary and Preston Smith were last season, this is a heavily rotated position, and when those two weren’t on the field in 2021, the lack of impact plays against both the run and the pass was very noticeable.
Hopefully, Kinsley Enagbare can provide an added pass-rush presence. Or hopefully, we see Jonathan Garvin and Tipa Galeai take a step forward in Year 2 of Joe Barry’s defense. Or maybe the return of Randy Ramsey provides a spark. But again, those are all unknowns. A veteran addition would provide some needed stability and at least alleviate these question marks a little bit.
One position that I don’t see the Green Bay Packers adding to, however, is receiver. I just think that the roster spots are already accounted for. Between Lazard, Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, and Sammy Watkins, plus the three draft picks, Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, and Somori Toure, that’s already seven receivers–and typically, Green Bay has kept six in the past.
So as you can see, Green Bay has a few ways that they can go about adding to this roster, whether that be signing one of the tryout candidates or venturing into free agency. The Packers also have a few positions that could still be added to as well. I don’t know when or how, but the Green Bay Packers will round out this roster and make another addition prior to training camp starting.