The Packers Have an Offensive Line Problem

The Packers have an offensive line problem, and it’s one that needs to be addressed before we get too far into the season.

Earlier this offseason, I wrote about how Green Bay’s offensive line could ultimately determine how successful this team will be in 2026. Based on everything we’ve seen and heard throughout training camp and the preseason, I feel even stronger about that now.

For all of the things Brian Gutekunst has done well in building this roster, one area where the Packers have struggled over the past few seasons is sustaining consistent offensive line play while also developing quality depth behind their starters. Green Bay has invested plenty of money and draft capital into fixing the problem, but those investments haven’t necessarily translated into stability.

That’s especially concerning this season.

Keeping Jordan Love upright and healthy will arguably be more important than ever. The Packers have legitimate Super Bowl aspirations, but none of that matters if Love is constantly under pressure or the offense can’t consistently control the line of scrimmage.

The Packers don’t necessarily need five All-Pros up front. They do, however, need five players they can trust.

Right now, I’m not sure they have that.

Aaron Bank-rupts the Packers

News out of Green Bay this week is that Aaron Banks could remain sidelined and potentially even begin the season on the PUP list.

That’s not exactly what you want to hear about your prized free-agent acquisition from two years ago—especially after Green Bay restructured his contract in a way that makes moving on from him this year or next year much more difficult without taking a significant cap hit.

I was never a huge fan of the Banks signing to begin with.

Reports surrounding his original free-agent deal suggested that Green Bay had to do some convincing to get him to sign, and ultimately had to pay a premium to bring him to Wisconsin. There’s nothing inherently wrong with overpaying in free agency. That’s usually the nature of the market. But if you’re going to do it, you need that player to become a difference-maker.

Banks simply hasn’t been that.

Even during his time with San Francisco, Banks was never considered an elite offensive lineman. At his best, he was a solid starting guard, but his overall production generally put him somewhere closer to the middle or bottom half of starters at the position.

Now the Packers are potentially entering another season without him available, while still carrying the financial commitment that came with signing him.

That’s a problem.

Anthony Belton

If Green Bay isn’t spending significant money on offensive linemen who haven’t lived up to expectations, they’re using premium draft capital on players who can’t seem to find a permanent position.

Anthony Belton is the latest example.

Belton now finds himself in somewhat of no man’s land after losing ground at right guard to both Jager Burton and Jacob Monk. For a player Green Bay invested heavily in, it’s concerning that we’re still trying to figure out exactly where he belongs along the offensive line.

In my opinion, playing Belton at right guard never made much sense in the first place.

We’re talking about a 6-foot-7, roughly 340-pound offensive lineman who spent the majority of his football career playing tackle. Green Bay drafted a massive, athletic tackle and almost immediately started trying to turn him into something he wasn’t.

Versatility along the offensive line is great. The Packers have built their offensive line philosophy around it for years. But there’s also something to be said about putting players in positions where they’re most comfortable and allowing them to develop.

At some point, moving players around constantly stops looking like versatility and starts looking like you don’t know where they fit.

Belton deserves an opportunity at tackle before the Packers decide what exactly they have in him.

Z-Bak

Luckily, not everything along the offensive line is a question mark.

The Packers can confidently pencil Zach Bako-Bewele in at right tackle, while Sean Rhyan appears to have settled into the starting center position. Having those two spots established at least gives Green Bay something to build around.

Jordan Morgan has also seemingly taken control of the left tackle job and looked solid in limited action during the preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

That’s encouraging.

Morgan was drafted in the first round with the expectation that he could eventually become Green Bay’s long-term answer at left tackle. After spending the early part of his career bouncing around the offensive line, allowing him to settle into one position could finally give the Packers an opportunity to see the player they originally envisioned.

The problem is everything happening between Morgan and Tom.

What Green Bay does at the two guard positions will be one of the most important competitions to watch as we head into the second week of the preseason. At this point, it’s arguably the biggest question remaining on the offensive side of the football.

Green Bay’s Best Starting Five

Jordan Morgan was always drafted with the idea that he could eventually become the Packers’ starting left tackle. But if Green Bay is truly committed to getting its best five offensive linemen on the field, I think they need to at least experiment with a different combination before the regular season begins.

I’d like to see Anthony Belton get an opportunity at left tackle.

It’s a position he’s far more familiar with, and it allows the Packers to see whether his struggles have been more about the player or the position they’ve asked him to play.

While Aaron Banks figures out when—or if—he can return, Green Bay could slide Morgan inside to left guard. Morgan already has experience playing guard, and pairing him next to Belton would at least give the Packers some familiarity and athleticism on the left side of the line.

At right guard, Jager Burton makes a lot of sense.

Burton has an opportunity to establish himself there now, and his long-term outlook could eventually include a move to center. Guard-to-center is a much more natural transition than some of the position changes Green Bay has experimented with over the past few seasons.

A starting five of Anthony Belton, Jordan Morgan, Sean Rhyan, Jager Burton and Zach Tom might not be what Green Bay envisioned entering the offseason, but at this point, finding the best combination matters more than sticking to the original plan.

And if the answer isn’t currently on the roster, Gutekunst needs to start looking elsewhere.

It’s Not Too Late to Add Help

One veteran I think makes a lot of sense is James Daniels.

Daniels is only 28 years old and, when healthy, has shown that he can be one of the better guards in football. Injuries have obviously complicated his career over the past couple of seasons, including another season cut short last year, but his track record prior to those injuries makes him exactly the type of player Green Bay should be considering.

There’s certainly risk involved. You don’t want to address an injury problem by adding another player with injury concerns.

But there’s also a difference between adding someone to be the foundation of your offensive line and bringing in an experienced veteran to provide competition and depth.

Green Bay desperately needs the latter.

Even if Daniels—or another veteran guard—doesn’t immediately walk into the starting lineup, the Packers need another proven option. Right now, one injury could force Green Bay to reshuffle multiple positions across the offensive line, and we’ve already seen how disruptive that can be.

For a team with Super Bowl expectations, that’s not enough depth.

The Packers Need to Act

Whatever the Packers ultimately decide to do, they need to make that decision soon.

If Green Bay is going to add another offensive lineman, doing it before the regular season gives that player time to learn the offense, build chemistry with the players around him and establish some continuity before the games actually count.

The Packers have invested too much into this roster to allow the offensive line to become the reason they fall short.

Jordan Love is entering a season where expectations couldn’t be much higher. The Packers have weapons around him, a defense built around Micah Parsons and a roster that should be competing deep into January. This isn’t a rebuilding team that can afford to spend half a season figuring out whether its offensive line works.

The Super Bowl window is open right now.

There are simply too many questions along the offensive line for a team with those expectations. Aaron Banks’ health remains uncertain. Anthony Belton doesn’t appear to have a defined position. The guard spots are unsettled, and the depth behind the starting five is concerning.

Maybe the answer is already on the roster. Maybe Belton looks completely different at tackle. Maybe Burton takes the right guard job and never gives it back. Maybe Banks returns and finally becomes the player Green Bay thought it was signing.

But “maybe” is doing a lot of work there.

If the Packers get through the remainder of the preseason and those questions still haven’t been answered, Brian Gutekunst has to make a move.

Allowing the offensive line to be the weakness that holds this team back would be malpractice.