An Important Couple of Months Ahead for Packers LB Ty Summers

After failing to invest heavily into the linebacker unit for a number of years — whether that be through free agency or the draft — the Green Bay Packers double-dipped at the position this offseason–turning what was once a consistent weakness on this team into a strength.

First, the Packers would sign De’Vondre Campbell to a five-year contract worth $50 million. They would then spend the 22nd overall pick on Quay Walker from Georgia. With the ability that both Campbell and Walker have to play the run as well as the pass, it will allow Green Bay to stay in their base nickel defense more often–which will make it more challenging for offenses to decipher what’s taking place.

The trickle-down effect of the Packers bringing back Campbell and adding Walker is that making the 53-man roster has now become more difficult for Ty Summers, a 2019 seventh-round pick.

Since joining the Packers, Summers has seen minimal snaps on defense–just 29 this past season and 232 altogether. He is better equipped to play the run, but has really struggled in coverage, and truthfully, overall.

Summers was likely never going to see many defensive snaps in 2022, but that became even more evident with Campbell and Walker now in the mix.

However, Summers has made the 53-man roster in each of his three seasons, and special teams is the reason why. Coming out of TCU, he tested incredibly well, posting a 9.7 RAS, including a 4.51-second 40-time, along with very good scores in the vertical and broad jumps as well as the 3-cone.

In each season, Summers has finished top-4 on the Packers in special teams snaps and within the top-5 in each of those years in tackles as well. For what it’s worth, he was also second on the team in 2020 by PFF’s grading system ($$).

Typically the experience that Summers has plays a factor when it comes to roster building — and I’m sure it still will to some degree — but for a Green Bay Packers team that, for the most part, for a decade-plus has been bad on special teams, including an abysmal 2021 performance, I’m going to guess that it plays a smaller role this summer.

For starters, there is a new coordinator in town evaluating everyone for the first time, and Rich Bisaccia will be bringing a new scheme and teaching techniques with him as well–all of which levels the playing field and puts less of an emphasis on experience.

Oftentimes around the NFL — or really any sport for that matter — we will see that when a team or a unit really struggles, roster turnover comes with it. This is something that has already taken place in Green Bay, with the top three players in terms of special teams snaps from 2021 all playing elsewhere this season.

In addition to Campbell and Walker being roster locks, I would put Krys Barnes in that group as well. He brings experience, and could still have a smaller role against the run; he is playing on an inexpensive contract, and Barnes, in particular, is someone that I could see thriving on special teams under Bisaccia.

Isaiah McDuffie finished seventh on the team in special teams snaps last season, and considering that he is entering Year 2 while Summers is entering Year 4, I’d guess that when it comes to earning a roster spot, McDuffie has the advantage in that regard.

Then there is Ray Wilborn, who was on the practice squad a season ago and has no NFL snaps. Along with UDFAs Caliph Brice and Ellis Brooks, who was an experienced special teams player at Penn State.

Another important factor in all of this is, how many linebackers do the Green Bay Packers keep on the roster? While they kept five a season ago, in 2019 and 2020 under Matt LaFleur, they would keep just four–which likely doesn’t help Summers either.

So as you can see and as the title suggests, this is a very important summer for Summers–no pun intended. His path to making this roster as it always has been, is going to be on special teams, and during training camp and the preseason, he is really going to have to make sure he stands out.