Defensive tackle Nazir Stackhouse joined the Green Bay Packers last season as an undrafted free agent out of Georgia. Where else? General manager Brian Gutekunst loves his former Bulldogs.
For this one, though, his time in Green and Gold may be running out. While Stackhouse made last season's 53-man roster and appeared in 13 games, he'll face a far steeper climb in a fortified defensive-line rotation.
Rookie third-rounder Chris McClellan is the projected starting nose tackle. Warren Brinson, Stackhouse's former Georgia teammate, has the size to play the nose. He showed enough rookie flashes a year ago that the Packers remain intrigued.
As a former UDFA who played poorly in limited reps last season, Stackhouse will face an uphill battle just to keep his roster spot.
Packers have already set the clock ticking on Nazir Stackhouse
Stackhouse only logged 159 snaps in 2025, but he didn't give the Packers much. Pro Football Focus awarded him an overall grade of 43.5, including 44.5 against the run. Green Bay wasn't expecting anything in the pass rush, but poor performance in run defense isn't going to cut it for a nose tackle.
Despite losing Colby Wooden and the lack of a veteran starter, the depth chart is considerably more stable. McClellan is ahead of the pack by a mile. Brinson, although he also underwhelmed on the whole last season, has a year under his belt. The Packers saw enough talent there to make him a sixth-round pick. They won't give up on him so soon.
Karl Brooks isn't really big enough to line up in the middle, but he'll be competing for reps wherever he can get them. Backup Jonathan Ford won't turn heads, but he has more experience than Stackhouse and a bit more upside.
New defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon will introduce a 3-4 base scheme, thus making big bodies up front more valuable. Stackhouse's size, however, no longer gives him any unique advantage on the Packers' roster. Even Javon Hargrave has experience playing the nose, though Gannon is unlikely to deploy him there very often.
Given Stackhouse's lack of versatility as a pass rusher, the roster may simply run out of room to accommodate him. He could still move up the hierarchy due to injury or a strong training camp or preseason; in reality, he will probably see fewer reps as the Packers invest time and energy in developing McClellan, Brinson, and others.
As it stands now, Stackhouse is clinging to his roster spot by a mere thread.
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