The Green Bay Packers and GM Brian Gutekunst raised some eyebrows when they picked North Carolina State offensive tackle Anthony Belton in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft. The biggest question was why Gutekunst picked Belton over players like cornerback Trey Amos, who could contribute right away.
With Belton forced into the starting lineup following the injury sustained by right tackle Zach Tom, fans who thought the move was a bit irregular saw even more fuel poured on that fire after a particularly poor sequence that took some points off the board.
Belton, who was picked No. 54 overall, negated a beautiful Jordan Love touchdown throw to Jayden Reed (which led to Reed getting hurt) due to a penalty. Right after that, Amos, who was selected after him at No. 61 overall, broke up a Love underthrow on fourth down that led to a turnover on downs.
Packers rookie Anthony Belton struggles while Trey Amos stars
Amos looks like a perfect fit in a Washington secondary that desperately needed an injection of young talent after getting roasted in the NFC Championship game, as the physical Ole Miss made his presence felt. Even after picking up a shoulder injury, Amos' PBU validated his status as a starter.
Not only did Belton negate a Reed touchdown with his penalty, but he didn't even get a chance to redeem himself. Belton was not on the field for Green Bay in their second series, as Darian Kinnard came in to replace the former Wolfpack star. Kinnard helped lead the team on an 86-yard touchdown drive. Belton came back in on the third series, but Green Bay went three-and-out.
While the Packers do eventually expect Belton to become a star on this offensive line in due time, it is painfully obvious that he is not ready to handle any sort of extended snaps at the NFL level right now. Moving him over to right tackle is certainly not going to expedite his development.
While the Packers put Belton on the bench for a practice squad player who has bounced across a bunch of different teams in the last few years, Washington seems to have landed a player who is going to be a member of their secondary for a very long time in Amos. Gutekunst had better hope Belton fixes his issues fairly quickly.