Paul Bretl | 5/6/2025
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Following rookie minicamp, the Packers announced that they released wide receiver Tulu Griffin, which opened up a roster spot that was presumably going to be filled by one of the tryout candidates from this past weekend.
That ended up being the case, and not surprisingly, it was Canadian quarterback Taylor Elgersma who was signed to the 90-man roster, according to Bill Huber.
“He’s got a very live arm. We could see that on tape,” said Matt LaFleur during rookie minicamp this past weekend.
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The reason that I say this doesn’t come as a surprise is because at a rookie camp practice that consisted of stretching and mostly half-speed individual positional drills, all eyes were locked on Elgersma.
Elgersma was the lone quarterback at Packers’ rookie minicamp. During warmups as he threw to members of the coaching staff, you could see the “live arm” that Elgersma possessed and LaFleur described a day earlier, particularly when he zipped one over the outstretched hands of one of his pass-catching targets.
As Elgersma went through footwork and movement drills, quarterbacks coach Sean Mannion, pass game specialists Connor Lewis, and senior offensive assistant Luke Getsy were all watching closely. And so was head coach Matt LaFleur.
Rather than overseeing the entire practice, LaFleur spent time watching Elgersma and chimed in with a coaching pointer and even demonstrated how he wanted to see the quarterback go through the drill.
“You’re just looking for traits at that point,” said LaFleur when asked what he’s looking for from a quarterback during a tryout. “Certainly I think just coming from where he’s coming from to this level, I think there’s going to be a big learning curve. But if there’s anybody that will attack it head on, Taylor will. And you that was so evident when he was here on the 30 visit just, and I know he’s been working really hard at it.”
Standing in the Don Hutson Center on Saturday morning, it would have been a pure guess at that time to say that Elgersma was going to be signed following his tryout, but the signs were there.
In addition to this modified practice, the Packers also held a workout solely for the tryout participants to get a better look at them. This extended weekend in Green Bay, however, was far from the first time that the Packers had seen Elgersma up close.
During the pre-draft process, the Packers had him in for an official 30 visit where they could meet one-on-one with him to go over film. In addition to that, Vrable was one of the coaches at the Senior Bowl, an All-Star event Elgersma participated in, and he also took part in the College Gridiron Showcase as well as the Tropical Bowl, where Packers’ scouts got more looks at him.
“Another guy that loves football, and then just watching him throw,” added LaFleur, “he’s got a live arm. So there’s a lot to like about him.”
In Elgersma’s most recent season playing for Wilfrid Laurier University in Ontario, Elgersma completed 74% of his throws for 4,011 yards with 34 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 229 more yards and six additional scores.
Elgersma would go on to win the Hec Crighton Award, which is the equivalent of the Heisman Trophy at the NCAA’s FBS level. This production, however, would come while playing under Canadian football rules with a bigger field and 12 players on each side of the ball. The Senior Bowl’s Jim Nagy would equate the level of competition to Division III football in the states.
But at 6-5, 227 pounds, and with a big arm, Elgersma possesses several traits that the Packers want to take a swing at developing and further unlocking.
Elgersma will now be the fourth quarterback on the Packers’ roster. In past seasons, LaFleur has mentioned that with four quarterbacks on the roster during training camp, it can be difficult to get everyone reps because there are only so many throws to go around. However, with Elgersma’s upside, that’s something the team is obviously willing to work around, and to a degree, is some added insight into what the team thinks of the young quarterback.
Continuously developing the quarterback position is something that GM Brian Gutekunst wants to prioritize, even if there is an established starter already on the roster. It’s just too important and valuable a position to become complacent with.
As we look ahead to the 2026 offseason, Malik Willis will be a free agent and there are a lot of unknowns around Sean Clifford, who struggled throughout last year’s training camp, sparking the trade for Willis in the first place. We don’t know what the Packers’ backup quarterback situation will look like a year from now, but any time there are uncertainties, giving yourself options is a good thing, and Elgersma provides that.
He will now spend training camp and the preseason developing his game, and also competing with Clifford for that third quarterback role on this Packers team.
Before signing with the Packers, Elgersma was headed to Buffalo for their rookie minicamp this past weekend, but Gutekunst wasn’t going to let him get that far. Had Elgersma entered the Bills’ facility, there was no guarantee he would have left as a free agent.