The Green Bay Packers’ roster was formally changed last week, when organized team activities (OTAs) began. This is especially important for the team’s front seven, as they shift from a 3-4 to a 4-3 defense this season. However, based on how the organization has structured their roster, don’t expect major personnel changes.
Many people wondered if 3-4 outside linebackers like Preston Smith would be able to play Sam (strongside) linebacker in the 4-3. He, like every other 3-4 outside linebacker on the 2023 roster, was listed as a defensive lineman when the Packers updated their roster this week.
For the most part, suppose that the three defensive ends and nose tackles will be 4-3 defensive tackles, the three outside linebackers will be 4-3 defensive ends, and the three inside linebackers will be 4-3 linebackers. That is essentially the message coming out of Green Bay right now.
Packers front seven defensive linemen (EDGE, 10) include Desline Alexandre, Keshawn Banks, Brenton Cox Jr., Kingsley Enagbare, Rashan Gary, Deandre Johnson, Arron Mosby, Kenneth Odumegwu, Preston Smith, and Lukas Van Ness.
Defensive Linemen (iDL, 6): Karl Brooks, Kenny Clark, Jonathan Ford, T.J. Slaton, Colby Wooden, Devonte Wyatt
Linebackers (5): Isaiah McDuffie, Quay Walker, Kristian Welch, Eric Wilson, and Christian Young.
The only exception to this rule is Arron Mosby, a practice squad linebacker who was classified as a 3-4 inside linebacker last season. Mosby is more of a special teams ace than a defender, but he has played numerous positions during his college and NFL career. According to the roster change, he will now play in the 4-3 defensive end position.
It’s also worth noting that Christian Young, another roster bubble player, will be a linebacker under new defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley. Young played both linebacker and safety in college, raising worries about how he’d fit into the new scheme.
Because the Packers only mention defensive lineman, not defensive tackles or defensive ends, a few questions remain unresolved. Nobody anticipated Lukas Van Ness to kick inside full-time in the foreseeable future, but Colby Wooden, who dropped down the depth chart swiftly after being the first player off the bench to start the season in 2023, is still only listed at 273 pounds.
Is Wooden a player Green Bay would consider for a 4-3 defensive end position? That remains to be determined, at least in public. Nonetheless, the edge room now has more bodies than any other position on the roster. Wooden’s move to defensive end would result in the Packers having 11 men at end and only 5 at tackle.
The Packers currently have 72 players on their roster, with 11 picks in next week’s draft. That implies that if Green Bay makes all of those selections, there will only be eight roster spaces available for undrafted free agents, including Kenneth Odumegwu’s roster exemption as an international pathways player.
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