The Green Bay Packers have already put in work on boosting the depth on the offensive line. On Sunday, the team traded a seventh-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Darian Kinnard. Still, there’s room for more work to be done.
After all, the night is still young for the final 53-man roster to be finalized, and the Packers are one of several teams watching the waiver wire with great interest to see which reserve lineman becomes available.
The day before the cut deadline, the Packers got some news that could help them shore up the offensive line depth and take a shot at the Detroit Lions all in one go.
Stealing Dan Skipper from Lions would be a double victory for Packers
The Lions informed offensive lineman Dan Skipper that he was released on Monday. Skipper has spent almost all of his seven-year career with Detroit, where he grew as a fan favorite for his efforts as an extra offensive lineman in heavy sets, and even as a pass-catcher. He has two catches for 13 yards and a touchdown in the past two seasons.
Skipper has started just 11 games in his career, and all of them have come in the past three seasons. Before Dan Campbell took over in Detroit, he was a constant on the Lions’ practice squad.
Suffice to say, Skipper is not a player you want playing long-term on the offensive line, but he does provide solid depth, and he’s certainly been a versatile option to be creative with in the offense. At the very least, keeping him out of the hands of Dan Campbell in Detroit - or even Ben Johnson in Chicago - is a chess move the Packers should certainly consider.
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Skipper is just 30 years old and has played behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL for several seasons. Coupled with him being an ingredient in the secret sauce Campbell brought to Detroit, Green Bay could stand to benefit in many more ways than one by picking up the once-division rival.
However, one aspect that might kill the idea is that while the Packers need offensive line depth, they are already sitting with eight offensive linemen locked into the 53-man roster. No matter how the battle shakes out at left tackle, Green Bay will have two young depth pieces at tackle, where Skipper primarily plays. He has played some guard, but that’s where the addition of Kinnard gets in the way.
But every advantage over your division rivals is precious, and just knowing that Campbell and Johnson don’t have Skipper as a secret weapon on offense is certainly an advantage worth entertaining.