Paul Bretl | 5/1/2025
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Even with the unknowns swirling at the cornerback position this offseason, the Packers didn’t address that unit in the NFL draft until the seventh-round when they selected Tulane’s Micah Robinson.
“I don’t really go in there with like those kind of priorities,” said Brian Gutekunst about not adding a cornerback until late in the draft. “We build our board and we try to stay true to our evaluations. Other than that, we let the board come to us. Every draft class is a little bit different, so it wasn’t something we were going to chase.”
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While cornerback was considered a top priority by the outside world, it’s not as if the Packers haven’t added to the cornerback position this offseason. In free agency, the team did sign Nate Hobbs to a four-year, $48 million deal, adding another experienced and versatile presence to the secondary.
And whether you agree, disagree, or are indifferent, for a year now, as Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur have answered questions about the Packers’ cornerback position, internally, Green Bay has remained bullish about this unit.
“I think he played really, really well,” Gutekunst said after the season of Keisean Nixon’s play. “I think he really fit what Jeff (Hafley) was trying to do. First of all, he’s an outstanding competitor. I didn’t blink when we asked him to do that, but I just think his athleticism and his ability … with his eyes and his ability to tackle served us well out there. For me, he may not have the length that some of those guys on the outside have, but his awareness and ball skills make up for that.”
Keisean Nixon last season allowed a completion rate of 66% on 86 targets and held opponents to just 9.3 yards per catch with six pass breakups and an interception. Among cornerbacks who played at least 375 coverage snaps, only seven had a lower yards-per-catch allowed than Nixon.
Valentine, meanwhile, took control of the CB2 role over the second half of the season and came away with two interceptions in the final four games, along with holding pass-catchers to under 11.0 yards per catch in five of the final six games last season.
“I feel like when you go and watch the tape and look at it throughout the course of the season, I think our style of play just continued to improve, and I thithink at the end of the season we were playing some really good football,” Matt LaFleur said of the Packers’ defense. “You could argue we played one of our better games defensively in that playoff game vs. Philly. Just got put in some bad situations via turnovers throughout the course of the game.”
Even though the Packers navigated uncertainty at the cornerback position last season when they were without Jaire Alexander, this unit often was able to keep opponents in check. For the season, the Packers’ 6.4 yards per pass attempt allowed was the 10th lowest in the NFL. The passer rating for opposing quarterbacks was the 11th lowest as well.
In the instances where we did see opponents have success against the Packers’ secondary, such as in the Minnesota and Detroit games in the second half of the season, a lackluster pass rush contributed to those results. Most secondaries are going to have issues if asked to routinely defend for three or four seconds.
Perhaps also contributing to Green Bay’s confidence in this unit is the return of Jaire Alexander. It was reported after the draft by ESPN’s Rob Demovsky that a return for the 2025 season remains possible. Obviously, this room takes on a very different complexion with Alexander in the mix.
Although some unknowns at this position remain, what also cannot be overlooked is one advantage that the Packers’ secondary as a whole has, and that is versatility, an element that is then maximized within Jeff Hafley’s defensive scheme.
The Packers believe Hobbs can play inside and out, just as Nixon can. At safety, we saw Javon Bullard play both free safety and in the nickel, which Green Bay believes Evan Williams can do as well, and then Xavier McKinney fills a do-it-all role from the safety spot.
Versatility is obviously a crucial element for a few reasons. One of which is that injuries happen. However, when that occurs, the ability to move your starters around to fill different roles hopefully minimizes the absence of the player who is sidelined.
But in addition to that important aspect, a versatile defense can put a lot on the plate for an opposing offense. From a preparation standpoint, there’s a lot to watch and be ready for throughout the week when the defense is putting a variety of looks on tape.
Then pre-snap, quarterbacks won’t as easily get a beat on what’s coming based solely on where defenders are lined up because it’s either a different look or where players are aligned could change once the ball is snapped.
“You start having these different packages of people so you can get guys in different roles so you can create some mismatches,” Hafley said last season. “So you take advantage of situations. So you put yourself in better position to have success.”
All of this isn’t to say that there isn’t room for growth. While overall, the Packers’ cornerback room in 2024 was very good at limiting big plays, quarterbacks were efficient when targeting both Nixon and Valentine. Even when only surrendering 10 yards per catch–which is good for a boundary cornerback–if you’re giving up three receptions on every four targets, that’s a lot of first downs for the offense, which in turn keeps them on the field.
In addition to that, beyond McKinney’s interceptions at safety, there wasn’t much ball production with Green Bay ranking 31st in pass deflections. There also happens to be quite a bit of inexperience on the roster at this position as well, once you get past Alexander, Hobbs, Valentine, and Nixon on the depth chart.
Having said all of that, at just about every position, there are always likely to be some sort of question marks. But at the top of the cornerback depth chart, the Packers like the tape, past production, and Hafley’s ability to maximize the skill sets they have.
“We feel pretty good about our group right now,” Gutekunst added. “The guys that we have in that room, they’ve got some pelts on the wall, so to speak, as far as what they’ve been able to do in the National Football League. So, we’ll kind of see how that goes.”