The Green Bay Packers suffered the most disappointing loss of the season at the hands of the Panthers on Sunday. In a matchup that they were favored by 13.5 points before the game, the Packers delivered their worst performance of the season and fell to 5-2-1 for the 2025 campaign. Even though there were plenty of underwhelming performances, none caused Packers fans to shake their heads more furiously than Nate Hobbs'.
After his demotion in Week 8, which saw him play four defensive snaps in total, Hobbs had a larger role against the Panthers. This was teased by defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley in the week leading up to the game, who heaped praise on the Packers' four-year, $48 million offseason acquisition. Hafley had said that Hobbs would continue to play more and refused the categorization of "benching".
Nate Hobbs Continues to Be an Issue for the Packers
Week 9 proved that to be the case. Hobbs played 19 defensive snaps and struggled once again. His Pro Football Focus defensive grade of 39.9 was the second-worst, and his 40.1 coverage grade was the worst of the team.
This follows a disturbing trend for the Packers. The coaching staff seems to insist on playing Hobbs and getting something out of him, even though he has shown time and again that he lags behind the rest of the defense. While it's understandable that the organization doesn't want to give up on a major offseason acquisition so quickly, repeating the same mistake over and over paints the Packers as an unserious organization.
The Packers are Super Bowl contenders, and they play in the toughest division in football. They can't afford to consistently put a player who is hurting the team out there in the hopes that he turns things around. This is especially true for Hobbs, who has struggled as an outside cornerback throughout his career and feels more comfortable in the slot. Yet, the Packers insist on playing him on the outside, even though Carrington Valentine has been better every time he has been out there.
Valentine played 62 defensive snaps against the Steelers in Hobbs' expense. The third-year player was solid, and the Packers' secondary played well. Yet, he lost snaps to Hobbs this week for some inexplicable reason. Valentine on the outside and Javon Bullard in the slot have been working well for the Packers all season. It is difficult to understand Hafley and Matt LaFleur's insistence that Hobbs has to get involved. Whether this frustrating trend continues to be the case in the crucial Week 10 clash against the Eagles remains to be seen.