Ten-time Pro Bowl tackle Joe Thomas understands what it takes to win at the NFL level. The Green Bay Packers will hope he's right with his assessment of Jordan Morgan.
Morgan has faced an up-and-down start to his NFL career with the Packers, in part due to playing various positions along the offensive line. Following Rasheed Walker's departure in free agency, Morgan will finally get an extended run at left tackle, his most natural position and where he played exclusively in college.
Thomas visited a Packers practice this week, and he came away impressed by what he saw from Morgan.
"Jordan Morgan, he's a great athlete. He's got exceptional footwork, he's powerful," Thomas told ESPN Wisconsin. "I was sitting there waiting to give him a bunch of tips about things that I thought he could do a better job of. We watched film that morning, and I said, 'Honestly, buddy, there are a couple of little things I'd do differently if it was me, but that's more specific to how I played, and it's not like it's better or worse than what you're doing.'"
"Overall, I really was impressed with how he moved, the fastidiousness with which he approached his craft. Everything I saw on the field was just impressive with where he placed his hands. Now, it was on a bag, granted, but I thought that he was just doing a really good job with that footwork, that technique, that hand placement, just the focus he was playing with."
Joe Thomas delivers high praise to Packers' new left tackle Jordan Morgan
Thomas is right that he can't draw any grand conclusions from a practice session against bags, but it's not nothing, either. The Pro Football Hall of Famer liked what he saw in Morgan's fundamentals, and it's notable that he praised his footwork.
That's always been one of Morgan's strengths, and something that should bode well for his full-time pivot to left tackle. General manager Brian Gutekunst pointed it out shortly after the Packers drafted him in 2024, noting that Morgan had "left tackle feet."
The issue is that we've barely seen him play at left tackle. Now, Morgan gets that opportunity.
Another positive sign is how well he performed at right tackle late last season. Morgan had seen extended time at guard, where his play became far more inconsistent, but he looked at home on the right side. Morgan filled in for Zach Tom at right tackle for three of the Packers' final four games, and he also played 51 snaps at left tackle in the Week 18 loss to Minnesota.
It wasn't perfect, but from a PFF pass-blocking perspective, Morgan had two of his top three performances of the season during that stretch. He also stepped up as a run-blocker, posting his second-, third-, and sixth-best PFF grades of the year after moving to tackle.
Gutekunst is banking on Morgan providing the solution at left tackle. He didn't add competition via the draft.
If Morgan fails at left tackle, the Packers will either need to reshuffle their starting five and experiment with Anthony Belton, or they could call on Darian Kinnard off the bench. That's about it. They desperately need Morgan to step up to the challenge.
Despite his inconsistent play across two seasons, the Packers put their 2024 first-round pick in a tough position. They had him play multiple positions, primarily the two guard spots, where he is less experienced.
Morgan became a first-round pick due to his left tackle play in Arizona. That's what the Packers need to see in 2026.
Only time will tell whether he can reach that level, but Thomas' praise offers some early encouragement.
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