Paul Bretl | 11/7/2024
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Can the Packers cornerback room hold up over the second half of the season and help Green Bay be that contending team that internally they believe they are?
If there was a position or two at Tuesday’s trade deadline where it made sense for the Packers to make an addition, cornerback may have been at the top of that list, along with a pass rusher. However, as is often the case, Brian Gutekunst wouldn’t make any acquisitions.
In part, the trade market was limited and never quite took shape. As Gutekunst said on Tuesday afternoon, it was “very quiet” leading up to the deadline and it remained that way the day of. The only cornerbacks who were traded were Marshon Lattimore and Tre’Davious White.
My interpretation is that with Washington sending multiple mid-round picks to New Orleans for Lattimore, along with him being 28 years old and coming with a hefty cap hit in 2025, that equation was never going to add up and result in the Packers making a move. And with Green Bay being confident in their depth at cornerback, I’m not sure that they saw White as an upgrade over the depth that they already have.
“I think a lot of the moves you saw today were reactions to injuries and things like that where you’re missing things,” said Gutekunst of the trade deadline. “But yeah, no, I really like our group. Obviously we do a lot of work prior to the season to try to make sure that we’re a deep team that can sustain an entire season and if we have injuries that we don’t have to go outside of the building to fulfil that and I feel we’ve done that and I feel really good about our football team. I like our depth.”
The Packers have been bullish about their cornerback depth since the offseason. It’s why, even though there were question marks around this unit prior to the draft, Green Bay didn’t make an addition at that position until the seventh-round, even though they had the opportunity to do so earlier. Since then, whether it be Matt LaFleur or Gutekunst, both have continued to voice their confidence in that group.
On the year, the 6.6 yards per pass attempt allowed by the Green Bay defense ranks 18th in the NFL and 23rd in pass deflections. In terms of explosive pass plays, the Packers have surrendered the seventh-most through nine games and have the sixth-highest explosive pass play rate as well.
Naturally, when Jaire Alexander is on the field, this group performs much better. Alexander has surrendered a completion rate of just 56 percent this season with two interceptions, seven pass deflections, and a passer rating when targeted of just 79.9. However, Alexander has now missed three games this season due to injury and is coming off a 2023 season in which he’s appeared in only seven games.
Opposite of Alexander is Keisean Nixon, who has supplanted both Eric Stokes and Carrington Valentine on the depth chart, despite being the team’s nickel cornerback last season. Defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley then moved safety Javon Bullard down to the nickel.
“Those guys have done a great job this year,” said Gutekunst of Bullard and Nixon. “Bull, for a rookie, he’s just done an excellent job when he’s put in the nickel. The ability for him to play safety and nickel and what’s put on that guy for a young player to do what he’s done is really exciting what he’s done already, where he’s about to go. So that’s been good for us.
“Again, Keisean hasn’t played a ton of outside corner for us and he was kind of put in that position and I think he’s done a really good job for us. He’s got excellent instincts, he can take the ball away. So yeah, I’m really happy with him out there as well.”
Without Alexander in the mix, the Packers then have to rely on Stokes and Valentine. When Stokes has been on the field he’s been picked on. Despite his playing time taking a significant hit as the season’s gone on, he’s second on the team in targets, only one behind Nixon. According to PFF’s metrics, Stokes is allowing a completion rate of 68 percent and has no ball production this season.
Yet even with Stokes’ seemingly obvious struggles, Valentine hasn’t been able to see the field defensively when the Packers are healthy. If we count Bullard as a cornerback, Valentine appears to be the fifth option on the depth chart right now, although the team says they remain confident in him.
“I know he can handle it,” said Hafley of Valentine. “I have total confidence in him. I know you’ll start to see more and more of him. I think he’s practicing extremely well, I think there’s great competition in that room right now and depending on who plays, what packages we decide to go with, what personnel groupings they send on the field.
“Like last week, we saw again, there’s two weeks in a row we saw a lot of big people. So there’s less DBs on the field but I’m very confident in him and I’m excited as this season progresses to see what he can do and I’m confident. He’s got great energy, he’s competitive, he’ll tackle, so I have total confidence in him.”
An improved pass rush can go a long way in helping the Packers’ secondary, providing them with less time in coverage, along with pressure disrupting the overall timing and rhythm of the play. Having Xavier McKinney on the back end has also been an important safety net for that unit as well.
Whether or not the confidence that the Packers have in their cornerback room and overall depth is misplaced remains to be seen and we won’t truly have that answer until we see how the rest of the season plays out. It’s not as if the cornerback group has been bad this season, but I think the real question is, are the Packers good enough there to be a true contender?
“I really do like our depth,” added Gutekunst. “We’ve got to continue to come together as a football team and play better football at times, but we’re 6-3, I think we’re in a good spot, I’m excited about the second half of the season and to see how these guys grow together.”