The Green Bay Packers have had mixed results this season, largely due to inconsistent play from the offense and continued struggles from Jordan Morgan and the offensive line. As poorly as Morgan and the offense have played at times, he has at least been on the field, unlike 2024 third-round pick Ty'Ron Hopper.
The second-year linebacker was taken 91st overall in the 2024 draft, seven spots ahead of fellow LB Payton Wilson, who went 98th overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers. While Wilson continues to see playing time for the Steelers, Hopper has barely appeared at all. TitletownTalks noted that Packers fans are all for drafting and developing players, but Round 3 picks are supposed to help their team instead of sitting and watching for two years. That is certainly a fair point, especially for a team that has whiffed on some of its draft picks in recent years.
Ty'Ron Hopper Still Not Breaking Through for Packers
For comparison, Wilson has logged 162 total tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, three fumble recoveries, two interceptions, and four passes defended in his two seasons so far. Hopper, on the other hand, has 16 tackles, all in the same number of games. According to Pro Football Focus, Wilson only ranks 50th out of 81 qualified LBs with an overall grade of 58, but has the 12th-most tackles (60) and ranks 40th in snap count (501).
Hopper does not have enough snaps to qualify for any accurate grades, with only 20 for the season. PFF shows an above-average overall grade of 72.6, but with his snap count so much lower than Wilson's, it is difficult to fully grasp what he can actually contribute to the defense when he is hardly on the field at all.
Although Green Bay has had some positive performances from Carrington Valentine and Javon Bullard on defense, cornerback Nate Hobbs has failed to deliver on his four-year, $48 million deal and has dealt with numerous injuries. Defensive end Devonte Wyatt has also seen his performance dip since returning from injury in Week 8. Although Hopper does not play either position, Green Bay could easily get him more involved, especially as someone who could be an extra body against the run or even drop back into coverage and assist a secondary that has been pretty solid.
With key games down the stretch against the Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears (twice), and Baltimore Ravens, three teams ranked inside the top seven in rush yards per game and not afraid to open up the downfield passing game either, the Packers will continue to be tested the rest of the way. Green Bay's LB group has been solid with Quay Walker (84) and Edgerrin Cooper (74) leading the team in tackles, but that should honestly give the Packers even more incentive to get Hopper some more playing time to see how he stacks up against a talented group.
Developing players is perfectly understandable, but when you use high-end draft capital on a prospect, the idea is that the player being drafted can help the team improve in their area of expertise. While Wilson continues to perform well for the Steelers and play a key role on their middling defense, Hopper has barely even played, raising a huge red flag for future draftees who are selected in the third round and beyond.