6 important takeaways from Packers initial 53-man roster

Another milestone date has come and gone as the NFL regular season approaches.

For players, it can be one of the toughest days of the NFL calendar, as lifelong dreams are about to be realized or crushed. After an entire offseason of practices, training camp, and three preseason games, the Green Bay Packers have narrowed their roster down to the initial 53-man squad.

Many of the moves made sense. Some may end up being wrong, and others just left Packers fans scratching their heads and wondering what is next.

What did we learn from the Packers 53-man roster?

The no-brainers

An unfortunate reality of sports is that some players simply won't make the team, whether due to talent gaps or, in some cases, just purely a numbers game. This group includes several players, like Ellis Merriweather, Julian Hicks, Dimitri Stanley, Henry Pearson, Royce Newman, and Caleb Jones.

The Packers are coming off a run to the NFC Divisional Round and have eyes on a Super Bowl. These guys just didn't do enough to crack through Green Bay's loaded roster. Of this group, a decent amount may end up back on the practice squad.

Merriweather is a player to watch. He showed plenty of burst and versatility in the preseason. Unfortunately, he is playing in a loaded running back room headlined by Josh Jacobs and MarShawn Lloyd.

Tough break for Samori Toure

Samori Toure was one of the first names reported to be released on cutdown day. Toure was a seventh-round pick by the Packers in 2022 and somewhat of an afterthought in the draft class with Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs.

Toure caught a touchdown from Aaron Rodgers, his lone regular season score. After Green Bay moved on from Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, Toure again made his way onto the 2023 53-man squad. He ended up as one of the odd men out as the Packers have revitalized the receiver position. Toure has NFL talent but will have to catch on somewhere else. The Packers' wide receiver room is just too loaded.

Ugly competitions

"The same boiling water that softens the potato hardens the egg."

That speaks to how people react to challenges. Pretty philosophical for a sports blog, isn't it? Unfortunately for the Packers, they were left with some lumpy potatoes after competitions at backup quarterback and kicker left fans, pundits, and the team searching for answers.

The Packers had a quarterback competition won by no one, as Michael Pratt and Sean Clifford both ended up being released. Pratt was likely to be a project and may still latch onto a practice squad, whether it be in Green Bay or elsewhere.

Clifford had a pretty decent preseason last year, enough so that some Packers fans were clamoring for him to start in place of Jordan Love. After being handed the reins of the Packers starting offense while Love and his agent worked on a contract extension, Clifford floundered in practice and the preseason opportunities he had.

The Packers traded for Titans cut candidate Malik Willis. Willis takes the No. 2 job, with Clifford and Pratt released.

At kicker, moves could still be made. The Packers made the splash decision to release 2023 draft pick Anders Carlson. This move was shocking—not based on merit, as Carlson had a rough 2023 and was not significantly better in the preseason—but because the "competition" wasn't definitively won by Greg Joseph.

Many assumed if Joseph didn't blow Carlson out of the water, the Packers would keep their draft pick instead of the journeyman. Joseph, a seasoned NFL vet, was pretty much dead even with Carlson through camp but was perfect in the Packers' preseason finale against Baltimore. Carlson missed a glorified extra point at 32 yards in the fourth quarter of that game.

That miss may have sealed Carlson's fate but leaves Packers fans wondering what's next.

What's next for AJ Dillon?

Emanuel Wilson forced the Packers' hand with another great preseason. He deservedly made the roster. Perhaps more surprisingly, MarShawn Lloyd made the 53-man roster and didn't land on injured reserve.

Jonathan Ford received the new designation that allows a player to be placed on injured reserve and designated to return before roster cuts. AJ Dillon was placed on season-ending IR. Green Bay had the option to outright release him but opted to keep him in the facility, as he works with doctors on another stinger, the same injury that ended his 2023 campaign. It remains to be seen how severe his injury is and what it means to his Packers career.

Cuts that Packers may regret

While cuts often happen due to talent gaps, they can also occur due to depth, whether at that position, as in the case of Ellis Merriweather seen above, or at other spots. One such situation is the Packers electing to keep both Brenton Cox Jr. and Arron Mosby at defensive end.

In turn, they were forced to move on from linebacker Kristian Welch. Welch endeared himself to Packers fans when he signed, living out many Wisconsin native's dreams by signing with the hometown team. The Iola, WI, native was a beast in the preseason, leading the team in tackles, logging a fumble recovery, and making two interceptions.

The Packers made surprising moves in the secondary, releasing cornerbacks Robert Rochell and rookie Kalen King. Rochell was a key special teams player last season. He had a good camp and was held out of the preseason finale, leading many to speculate that he was potentially a roster lock. King did play the finale and seemingly helped his case throughout the game with five tackles.

The team shockingly released safety Anthony Johnson, instead opting to keep Zayne Anderson. Early in camp, Johnson played alongside Xavier McKinney as one of the starting safeties in the Packers defense. Rookies Javon Bullard and Evan Williams eventually played so well that they warranted the majority of the snaps at the position. Anderson is another special teams ace for the Packers, appearing in 10 games last season.

Johnson will be just fine. He was one of the standouts throughout camp. If he clears waivers, Green Bay should place him on the practice squad immediately.

Tradition in trouble

One final takeaway is that a "tradition" is in danger of ending. For the last 19 seasons, Green Bay has entered Week 1 with at least one undrafted rookie on the roster.

The Packers had nine such players in camp and ended up waiving them all, speaking to the team's incredible depth. There is a chance that something will change in the upcoming days, but if not, this remarkable run will end.

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