Financially, re-signing Sean Rhyan remains the Green Bay Packers' biggest "splash" of the offseason. The team effectively named Rhyan next year's starting center by virtue of a three-year, $33 million deal that makes him one of the highest-paid players at the position.
The Packers did give themselves an out in 2027, structuring the contract so they could move on from Rhyan after one season with a reduced dead cap hit. All in all, the deal includes only $11 million in guaranteed money.
Still, that's a sizable commitment, one that understandably drew criticism as an overinvestment. Zoltan Buday of Pro Football Focus called the signing his "least favorite move" of the Packers' offseason thus far.
While securing the deal was a home run for Rhyan, he will face considerable pressure to live up to it. Looking around the roster, there may not be a teammate with more to prove next season.
Sean Rhyan must pay Packers back for their bold offseason commitment
Buday cites Rhyan's lack of reps at center and his poor grades there last season, particularly in pass protection, as reasons to dislike handing the erstwhile guard a lucrative contract. True, it's a bold maneuver.
Rhyan had not spent any real time at his new position before 2025, when he switched to center after Elgton Jenkins got hurt. Per PFF, he graded out as the league's worst pass-blocking center with a regular-season score of 38.5. Above-average run blocking boosted his overall grade to 59, but that still ranked only 31st out of 40 qualified centers.
In the Packers' eyes, however, the former third-round pick made strides as the year progressed, stepping up in an unstable situation on an injured, inconsistent offensive line. He'll have to build on that momentum next season in a full-time role.
Rhyan would already have something to prove in 2026 given his limited experience and overall subpar play. But according to Spotrac, only seven centers have a higher annual salary. That hikes the stakes substantially.
Of course, he's not the only Packers offensive lineman with skeptics to silence. Aaron Banks was awful last season. Yet, for salary cap concerns, he just had his contract restructured to award him additional guaranteed money. He can't let Green Bay down.
Anthony Belton struggled mightily as a rookie, but Green Bay has seemingly penciled him in as the starting right guard. He has a lot on his plate and a mountain of doubt to move.
Unlike Rhyan, however, he is playing on a cheap rookie contract. Dismal as Banks was in 2025, he has a track record as a capable NFL starter. The biggest question for him is one of health. If he can stay off the injury report, he should be poised for a bounce-back season.
Neither of the above considerations applies to Rhyan. The Packers are counting on him to grow into his role, and clearly they believe he will. It's up to Rhyan to prove them right.