6 Takeaways from Packers 2nd week of training camp practices
By Paul Bretl
La’Darius Hamilton stands out at edge rusher where the Packers have playing time available
After Rashan Gary and Preston Smith at the edge rusher depth chart, there are at least three roster spots available, two of which will see a decent amount of playing time as rotational members of this unit.
For some context, Gary and Smith both played about 69% of the defensive snaps a season ago–leaving about one-third of the snaps to other members of this position group.
Early on, it looked like Tipa Galeai was one of those favorites as he took the bulk of his snaps with the second-team defense. But as Justis Mosqueda of Acme Packing Co. would point out, he was often with the third team during Family Night.
We’ve also seen Jonathan Garvin and Kingsley Enagbare getting reps with the second team, along with Randy Ramsey prior to his injury. However, the one constant among all of this movement has been La’Darius Hamilton–firmly planted with the second team defense each practice.
A former undrafted rookie in 2020, it was early last season when the Packers signed Hamilton off of the Tampa Bay practice squad and onto their 53-man roster. He played just 64 snaps last season and logged three pressures.
Hamilton is the clear front-runner for playing time in that rotational role, and whether or not that changes or regardless of who joins him, the Packers need more from their edge rusher depth in 2022 than what they got a season ago, where impact plays were far and few between.