Jon Runyan Looks to be Next Long-Tenured Green Bay Packers Guard

Jon Runyan was a sixth-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in 2020 and played 161 snaps during his first season, most of which came in mop-up duty–although there were three games where he was on the field for at least 30 snaps.

Entering Year 2, Runyan was among several players competing for each of the starting guard positions; however, he was rather quickly eliminated from the competition during the summer.

But a concussion sustained by Lucas Patrick in Week 1 would provide Runyan with an opportunity to start at left guard in Week 2–and it was a role that he never let go of.

"“Sometimes you write guys off and you don’t think they can play [based on the preseason], and then they get in the regular season and they play really well. Jon Runyan is one of those guys,” Aaron Rodgers said via SI. “When you look at some of the preseason film and you’re wondering how he’s going to do, and he’s played really good the last couple weeks. There’s a lot to be said for a person’s ability in the moment to rise to the necessary level to compete at a high level.”"

Jon Runyan now appears to be the next long-tenured Green Bay Packers’ guard

As the season went on, Runyan’s play continued to get better as he found that consistency and became a reliable member of this offensive line, frequently displaying a combination of brute strength and quick feet while excelling in pass protection.

He finished the season allowing just two regular season sacks, according to PFF ($$), and 20 pressures. However, over the Packers’ final five games, Runyan would surrender no sacks and just three pressures.

By PFF’s pass-blocking efficiency metric, Runyan ranked tied for ninth out of all guards last season, and for what it’s worth, his pass-blocking grade finished 20th out of 88 eligible guards—although he didn’t rank all that well as a run-blocker, which can be more difficult to quantify.

While Runyan is entering his third season, last year was the first where he saw significant playing time, and for many successful NFL players, they oftentimes make a big jump between Years 1 and 2–meaning we very well could see an even better version of Runyan in 2022.

With the additions of Zach Tom and Sean Rhyan in the draft, along with Cole Van Lanen entering his second NFL season, there will be plenty of competition along the Green Bay Packers offensive line this season, including a roster spot or two up for grabs heading into Week 1.

But for Runyan, while just last summer he was fighting for playing time and lost that battle initially, this year he seems pretty well locked into that starting left guard role–and not only for the 2022 season, but he appears very capable of holding that position down for several years to come.