Packers: Robert Tonyan over Aaron Ripkowski on 53-man roster

The Green Bay Packers should keep tight end Robert Tonyan on the 53-man roster over fullback Aaron Ripkowski.

With the regular season just on the horizon, one huge chore left to do for the Green Bay Packers is making the final roster cuts. With those decisions set to be made on Saturday, the Packers have some tough choices ahead of them.

One position that the Packers have had for years, and has played an important role in the Mike McCarthy offense is the fullback. Unfortunately in today’s NFL, that position is becoming extinct. As offenses spread out, more quick and versatile players are needed and in most cases the prototypical fullback isn’t necessary.

Coming into training camp, Green Bay knew it had three very good tight end options in Jimmy Graham, Marcedes Lewis and Lance Kendricks. But what most didn’t see coming was the emergence of the undrafted free agent from Indiana State, Robert Tonyan.

In camp and in the preseason, Tonyan has shown his ability as a pass catcher, blocker and ability in the open field. Through the four preseason games he was able to bring in eight catches for 61 yards with two touchdowns. He has shown great potential and has been nipping at the heels of third string tight end Lance Kendricks.

However, having a veteran third string tight end like Kendricks can be very valuable to have. He’s familiar with this Packers offense as well as the day-to-day life of playing in the NFL. If needed, it could be difficult to call on an undrafted rookie to make a big play but you also hate to lose a player like Tonyan.

From a football perspective the Packers need to cut fullbacks Aaron Ripkowski and Joe Kerridge. This will give them the freedom to carry four tight ends on the roster. Last year and in this preseason, McCarthy has shown that he will line up a tight end in the backfield at what would traditionally be the fullback position.

More than likely we won’t see Jimmy Graham line up in the backfield but Lewis, Kendricks and Tonyan easily could. They are all solid blockers and will be much quicker and have better hands than the fullbacks they’d be replacing. Having this kind of versatility from that position will allow the Packers to exploit mismatches defensively.

Early on, Tonyan most likely won’t be seeing the field on offense too much with three solid tight ends ahead of him. He will however be able to be a contributor on special teams and make an impact there.

If the Packers do cut him, I’m not confident he would be around to sign to the practice squad and there is a lot of potential there to just let walk away.

I’ll be the first to admit it would hurt my heart a little to not have a fullback in Green Bay. From William Henderson to John Kuhn, the fullback position has been an important one in Green Bay for over two decades.

But from a pure football perspective, it makes a lot more sense to take Robert Tonyan as a fourth tight end than to have a fullback on the roster.