Entering the 2024 season, the Green Bay Packers seem to be piloting a pretty strong ship. Yet with every ship, there are a couple of holes that need patching. If the Packers can address and develop these three key areas of weakness, their football team can emerge as a powerhouse in the NFC. If not, it might sink their entire season.
Youth leads the way
After being the youngest team to ever make the playoffs last season, the Packers enter the year just slightly older than last. The Packers are still a young team, though, which is both a blessing and a curse.
On the positive side, it means most key pieces will be around for multiple years and just now entering their prime. Thus leading to the beginning of another era of dominant Packers football. However, the lack of significant veteran leadership does lead to teams faltering out in the postseason.
The mantra of the lights being too bright might come to shine for the Packers this season. And, it could hold them back from being a true contender in the NFC. Experience leads to more trust in other players to be able to accomplish their required responsibilities for the team to stay afloat. Over the next few years, this Packers core should continue to develop together.
Where’s the Alpha?
The biggest question mark on the Packers football team is the receiving room. Most of the threats on the roster are better seen as complementary options on most other squads, with no clear apparent WR1.
Christian Watson has the high explosive weeks but is very much a boom or bust receiver (see Mike Williams or Gabe Davis comparison). Meanwhile, Romeo Doubs has had his moments to emerge but has also dealt with some injury concerns. Finally, Jayden Reed has shown flashes but nothing concrete.
The wide receivers are all talented, but the lack of a truly elite player may come back to hurt the Packers. The bright side is each of those options are still young (all three are under 25 years old) so they have time to develop into alpha dogs.
Who’s the CB2?
The final weakness for the Packers is also their worst one. Who exactly will play cornerbacks outside of Jaire Alexander?
The Packers defense ranked 20th overall last season (Per PFF), but that had more to do with their run defense. Their secondary struggled in the playoffs, allowing the most passing yards per game (316 yards per game) in the entire playoffs.
Alexander is an elite talent that can lock down any receiver he faces off against. The problem is the other side of the field doesn’t inspire much confidence. The corner depth on the team is young, but also lacking.
Eric Stokes missed time last season with a hamstring injury, and we don’t know if he will return to form this year. Meanwhile, Carrington Valentine is only 22 years old, but is also dealing with some hamstring injuries. Corey Ballentine could be a good depth piece, but may not be consistent enough to be a threat alongside Alexander.
The addition of Xavier McKinney at safety should add value to the pass coverage unit and will allow a safety blanket for these other corners. However, the lack of a true complementary pieces might come back to bite the Packers in 2024 in competitive games.
Most of the weaknesses on the Packers can only be addressed by playing the games, so hopefully Green Bay is ready to play. With that said, development has to start somewhere. So while these issues are a problem now, if addressed and handled appropriately, it could lead the Packers into becoming a dominant force in the NFC North.
Randy Vuxta
Randy Vuxta (@RandallVuxta) is a beat writer covering sports picks and dynasty/redraft content for The League Winners with a little over a decade playing fantasy football. Before joining the staff, he studied Journalism and Sports Business management and created The Randy Report, a YouTube channel dedicated to covering all things sports. When he’s not watching game film or the latest Marvel release, he can be found on Twitch streaming everything from Spider-Man to NBA2K. Randy looks to not only win every league he joins, but help others achieve that goal as well.