After an underwhelming second season with Jordan Love at the helm, fans and media had big expectations for the Green Bay Packers’ offseason. Team leaders like Josh Jacobs publicly advocated for more household names, particularly a bona fide No. 1 receiver.

However, general manager Brian Gutekunst was far less active in free agency than in 2024, adding expensive guard Aaron Banks and veteran cornerback Nate Hobbs. He and the front office opted to round out their developing young core primarily through the draft, a place where the Packers have been predictably unpredictable.

Despite being mocked to land media darlings like T.J. Watt, Tee Higgins, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave, and Cooper DeJean over the years, Gutekunst has stuck to premium positions and a “best player available approach.” That has led the Packers to select Love, Lukas Van Ness, Kevin King, and Jordan Morgan.

In front of a raucous Lambeau crowd, outgoing president Mark Murphy announced the team’s first Day 1 receiver pick since 2002 in Matthew Golden. By all accounts, Golden has been a standout throughout training camp and is poised to make an immediate impact. However, while DeJean is scoring pick-sixes in the Super Bowl as a rookie, many have appropriately questioned what’s going on with the young talent that the Packers prioritized instead.

Van Ness has been on the field a lot, and the team is hoping and expecting a strong third-year leap from him. But that question really starts with Jordan Morgan.

Morgan’s rookie year was plagued by inconsistency on the field and, more significantly, inconsistency in staying on the field.

The Packers have enjoyed drafting versatile linemen and moving them around as circumstances necessitate. Elgton Jenkins and Zach Tom have largely kept them afloat in that regard and have since been rewarded with substantial second contracts. By contrast, Morgan has spent time at guard and tackle, and it has clouded his long-term role as a young player. The additions of Banks and second-round tackle Anthony Belton only added to that lack of clarity, and, given his early struggles, threatened to leave Morgan as the odd man out when the season arrived.

When the Packers drafted Morgan, the player who was most immediately threatened was Rasheed Walker. Gutekunst has been clear, through his words and actions, that he believes you can never have enough offensive linemen. Watching the operation completely unravel in Philadelphia when Jenkins went down was obvious fuel to fortify that depth heading into 2025.

Walker, a 2022 seventh-round pick, has been a remarkable protector of Love’s blindside. While he has not enjoyed the same praise and future outlook as Jenkins and Tom, he has been no slouch and easily staved off Morgan in 2024. Moving forward, however, the team’s investment in Walker is incredibly marginal. Given Morgan’s draft capital, he should have the edge when he shows that he’s ready.

That brings us to the disastrous preseason opener at Lambeau. It doesn’t mean a whole lot, but it doesn’t bode well to be so heavily outmatched up and down the roster. There was a lot of doom and gloom, but the positives were few and far between. Isaiah Simmons turned in some disastrous coverage snaps, the first team offense couldn’t move the ball, the receiving room was plagued by drops once again, and, to top it all off, Love had to get a quick little surgery on his thumb.

Some players took advantage of their opportunities, like South Dakota State running back Amar Johnson, who turned in 67 yards and Green Bay’s only house call of the night on just seven carries. In Walker’s absence, Morgan has quietly shined. He made the most of his opportunities protecting Love, and he could very well seize one of the most important positions on the field in the coming weeks if he continues to show promise.

On Friday, he told ESPN that “all the coaches tell me I look confident out there, and I feel confident, so it adds up.”

Walker returned to practice in joint practice with Indianapolis on Thursday, but Morgan got the start. The pair rotated at left tackle, confirming suspicions that this has turned into a bona fide competition. With limited commitment to Walker post-2025 and hopes that Morgan can continue to flash his long-term upside, the Arizona product should absolutely have the inside track.

Gutekunst has proven himself as a strong GM several years into his tenure, but his bets on raw prospects like Van Ness and Morgan have drawn the ire of a fanbase that is ready to win now. With both of them having strong summers, a couple of massive puzzle pieces have the potential to fall into place this fall.