Big roster holes for Packers to fill at safety and tight end in 2023
By Paul Bretl
Pretty much every position on this Green Bay Packers team has underwhelmed to varying degrees this season, but two, in particular, safety and tight end, stand out more so than the rest.
Now, why do these two stand out, you might ask? Well, not only have the players at these positions struggled, but there has been little to no planning ahead done by Brian Gutekunst in regards to the future of these positions beyond 2022. There aren’t any other positions on the roster that don’t have at least one core player under contract in 2023.
Darnell Savage, who has had issues as a tackler and always seems to be around when there are coverage breakdowns, is playing 2023 on a fifth-year option and is then a free agent in 2024. The only other safety under contract after 2022 is current seventh-round rookie Tariq Carpenter.
Tight end is somewhat similar, with Josiah Deguara, more of an H-back, who plays about 15 snaps per game, being the only player at this position under contract next season.
Although many focus on what immediate upgrades can be made through the draft, ultimately, the NFL draft is about planning ahead—which is why I thought for sure that the Packers would spend an early-round selection or two on either a safety, a tight end, or both. However, the Packers chose not to, and outside of taking Carpenter with one of their final picks in the seventh round, Green Bay didn’t really address these needs at all this past offseason.
There are, of course, players at each of these positions that the Packers could try to re-sign in the upcoming offseason, including Rudy Ford, Adrian Amos, Dallin Leavitt, and Johnathan Abram at safety, along with Robert Tonyan and Tyler Davis at tight end.
Amos may end up out of the Packers’ price range as a free agent, but even he is having a down season after being incredibly reliable during his first three seasons in Green Bay. Tonyan has been a steady presence in the passing game as always, but the Packers need more juice at this position, with him averaging just 8.3 yards per catch, which is why I imagine they were reportedly interested in Darren Waller at the trade deadline.
I would guess that the Packers prioritize bringing Ford back, given the way he flies around the field, along with his sound tackling and special teams contributions. Davis at tight end seems like another player who will be back, considering how highly touted he was by Matt LaFleur and Brian Gutekunst over the summer. Leavitt is another core special teams player who could make his way back as well.
The Packers are going to round out their roster at these positions, there is no question about that, and it will likely include a few familiar faces. But in terms of providing more playmaking and, in the case of the safety position, more reliability, that is where the issues may lie.
As I already alluded to, there isn’t going to be much money spent in free agency this offseason. Currently, the Packers are projected to have just $4.4 million in available cap space in 2023, and that is with the big increase from the new TV deal.
In all likelihood, Green Bay will finally have to spend early-round picks on both of these positions and then rely somewhat heavily on rookies to play a number of meaningful snaps. This could become problematic, specifically at tight end, where very rarely do rookies make any sort of significant impact, given the complexity of the position. Not to mention that spending early picks on a safety and a tight end potentially takes away from using those selections on more premier positions, such as an edge rusher or offensive tackle—two other needs the Packers will have.
This is a Packers team with a number of issues this season, and as we look for ways that they can improve in 2023, barring a rookie coming in and making a major impact — which most of the time doesn’t happen — it’s difficult to see how the tight end and safety positions get a whole lot better. Truthfully, these are needs that should have been tackled at least a year ago, if not sooner.