What to Know: Packers host TE Josh Whyle on pre-draft visit
By Paul Bretl
The Green Bay Packers are hosting Cincinnati tight end Josh Whyle on a pre-draft visit, according to Bill Huber of SI. As part of the pre-draft process, each NFL team is permitted 30 official in-person pre-draft visits.
Whyle stands 6’6″, weighs 248 pounds, and posted a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 8.94. Brian Gutekunst has drafted two tight ends during his tenure as GM — Jace Sternberger and Josiah Deguara — and neither posted a RAS over 8.0.
During his career at Cincinnati, Whyle was able to impact the Bearcat offense as both a pass-catcher and a receiver. He was a steady presence in the passing game, catching 80 of his 123 career targets at 11.9 yards per catch with 14 touchdowns. Over 40% of his total snaps would come lined up in the slot.
In 2022, Whyle hauled in 32 passes on 51 targets at 10.2 yards per catch with three touchdowns. As a run-blocker, he ranked 16th in PFF’s run-blocking grade in 2022 and 15th in 2021.
In what is a very deep tight end class, Whyle is PFF”s 10th-ranked tight end overall. For more on what he could offer the Packers, here is what Lance Zierlein of NFL.com wrote:
"“Smooth, athletic pass-catcher with the competitiveness to battle for playing time in the league. Whyle is an average route runner who is forced to tap the brakes when facing physical coverage, but he has the tools to uncover as a pro. He possesses the jump-ball prowess to mismatch defensive backs near the goal line and can be a nice safety blanket on pitch-and-catch throws underneath. He needs to keep adding play strength to match the rigors of the position and is better suited as a move blocker than tenacious in-line blocker near the line of scrimmage. Whyle appears to be a middle-round prospect for teams seeking an F tight end or H-back with starting upside.”"
It’s not a surprise that the Packers are having Whyle in for a visit. He’s been a reliable pass-catcher, a steady blocker, and can be moved around the formation, all important elements to playing tight end in Matt LaFleur’s offense—not to mention that he has 433 career special teams snaps as well.
The addition of Whyle would give the Packers some needed unpredictability back at the position. As I wrote in greater detail here, with Robert Tonyan being the only consistent pass-catching threat in 2022 while Deguara and Marcedes Lewis were mostly used as blockers, those defined roles took away some of the unknown that the LaFleur offense can present defenses.
When a player with Whyle’s skill set is added to the mix, it will help LaFleur achieve that illusion of complexity we often hear him discuss. In short, this means running similar plays from a number of formations along with like plays that have different outcomes. In order to run an offense that emphasizes this, versatility is a must and it can help keep defenses off-balance and guessing.
Given the current state of the Packers’ tight end room, with just four players on the roster and Deguara being the only one with any sort of offensive experience, along with the talent in this tight end class, I fully expect Green Bay to make at least two selections at the position. Whyle is very much in play as a mid-round pick for the team.