The Green Bay Packers had their first training camp practice on July 23rd and are at Lambeau Field getting valuable reps before the season rolls around.
Isaiah Simmons joined the Packers on a one-year deal and has already caught the attention of his teammate Josh Jacobs.
Green Bay has seen some major changes in the secondary, as they released Jaire Alexander and signed Nate Hobbs in free agency. He's slated to step into one of the starting spots on the outside, but Carrington Valentine is making a case to nab one of the starting CB spots.
Christian Watson hoping for quicker return from ACL surgery, more takeaways from Packers training camp https://t.co/Pnjbs04PuM
— Packers News (@PGPackersNews) July 25, 2025
Carrington Valentine Is Making Plays in Packers Training Camp
Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette wrote up some notes on Friday's practice and Valentine is someone who has made plays.
Dougherty wrote, "Carrington Valentine will have a tough time getting on the field ahead of starting outside cornerbacks Nate Hobbs and Keisean Nixon, but he’s shown a nose for the ball early in training camp that suggests he’ll force his way onto the field in at least some defensive packages. Valentine, a third-year pro, has two interceptions in the first three practices of camp. That includes one of Malik Willis in the third practice when Valentine didn’t bite on a double-move by receiver Julian Hicks. After Hicks slipped on his second move, Valentine was in position to make the easy interception on Willis’ anticipation throw downfield. "
He added, "Valentine nearly had a second interception on Willis later in practice while covering first-round pick Matthew Golden, but Willis’ high throw just skipped off the leaping Valentine’s hands...If the starters in the secondary are healthy, Valentine’s best shot for playing time probably will be in the nickel defense. Safety Javon Bullard has been working as the No. 1 nickel cornerback so far in camp, but there’s a good chance defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley will be willing to use two different nickel packages depending on down-and-distance."
Valentine came into the league as a seventh-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft. In 32 games (19 starts), he has supplied 76 total tackles, 14 pass deflections, and two interceptions. During the 2024 season, he had a 70.3 overall grade (45th among 222 graded cornerbacks) and a 74.4 coverage grade (27th among 222 graded cornerbacks) per PFF.
Like Dougherty pointed out, Javon Bullard played a ton in the slot last season and could be in line to log some snaps there again in 2025, but Valentine's play throughout the first week of camp shows he's pushing for playing time. Especially since Bullard had a 46.9 coverage grade (141st among 171 graded corners) on PFF last season.
If he continues to create turnovers in Green Bay's practice, it'll be difficult to keep him on the sideline. With Hobbs locking down one boundary spot and Keisean Nixon likely taking another CB spot, Valentine can wiggle his way into the starting lineup.