The Green Bay Packers are rocking an insane 15 offensive linemen across their active and practice squad rosters right now. That’s 21 percent of their entire team, and they’re doing it to try and get their unit right after three straight brutal performances to kick off the season. Talk about going all-in! This isn’t some minor tweak; this is a full-blown roster strategy shift, making them the most OL-heavy squad in the entire NFL.
Green Bay’s OL Hoard Is Wild
Let’s be real, putting 15 guys just on the offensive line is unheard of. As of Wednesday, September 30th, the Packers are the *only* team in the league with 11 offensive linemen on their 53-man roster. No kidding. Ten other teams have 10, 16 teams have 9, and five teams roll with 8. When you factor in the 17-man practice squad, bringing the total roster spots to 70, the Packers are still way out in front with 15 linemen. The Baltimore Ravens are next up with 14, and the Pittsburgh Steelers are on the complete opposite end of the spectrum with a lean 10 OL spots across their entire 70-man roster.
The average NFL team is dedicating nine 53-man roster spots to the offensive line, which the Packers are beating by two. Including the practice squad, the average is 12, and Green Bay is crushing that by three. They’re “oversigned” on both their active roster *and* their practice squad. It shows how badly they want to fix this unit. They just signed Kevin Zeitler and Laken Tomlinson to the 53-man roster this week, and added Mekhi Becton Sr. to the practice squad, while letting Cordell Volson go. They are straight up throwing everything they have at this problem.
Salvaging The Season With Depth
So why the massive commitment? It’s all about giving the coaching staff options to figure out how to salvage the season, according to the source. Their offensive line has been rough for three straight games, and they gotta make it happen if they want to get things turned around.
They’ve got Jordan Morgan as their preferred starting left tackle, and Aaron Banks is presumably their go-to left guard when he’s healthy. Sean Rhyan is their preferred starting center, and Matt LaFleur already said Kevin Zeitler will be the starting right guard once he’s caught up on the system. Anthony Belton is their preferred starting right tackle. That’s the ideal lineup.
But with Banks out, Laken Tomlinson worked as the starting left guard in practice on Wednesday. And with Zeitler not yet caught up, Donovan Jennings stepped in as the starting right guard. It’s clear they’re looking for answers and not messing around. They’ve also got a stack of backup interior guys like Jacob Monk and Jager Burton, and tackles like John Williams and Travis Glover (who can also play right guard). Then there’s the practice squad depth with Mekhi Becton Jr., Dalton Cooper, Dillon Wade, and Josh Gesky. This team is clearly saying, “We’ve got problems, and we’re bringing in all the bodies to fix them.”
The Packers are trying to pull their season out of a tailspin by loading up on offensive line talent. Whether this wild roster strategy actually pays off and gets them back on track is going to be the biggest story to watch over the next few weeks. They’ve got the numbers, now they need the results.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Acme Packing Company.
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