All eyes are on MarShawn Lloyd as the Packers open preseason play Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, because this is finally a chance to see more than flashes and practice clips.
For nearly two years, the question around Lloyd has stayed the same: how good is he? He has NFL talent, but injuries have kept the sample size tiny.
Since being drafted in 2024, he has appeared in just one regular season game. A recurring hamstring injury wiped out his 2025 season, and other injuries have kept interrupting his development along the way.
That’s why this preseason opener matters. As Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated pointed out before the game, it’s one thing to wonder about Lloyd on a practice field. It’s another to find out when live contact is part of the deal.
The signs out of camp have been encouraging. Packers.com reported in July that Lloyd had avoided setbacks after working with a California sports specialist and had found the burst and one-cut explosiveness that made him intriguing to scouts in the first place.
He made another strong impression on Aug. 6, when Josh Jacobs was out of practice. Lloyd scored twice with the first-team offense, then got a talking-to after celebrating with a backflip. Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich has already said Lloyd will play in the preseason, and he made it clear that every healthy practice boosts his confidence that the running back has moved past the injury issues.
Now the Packers need the full picture. They want to see Lloyd catch the ball, pick up protection for Jordan Love, absorb contact and, above all, walk away healthy. If he can do that while showing the explosiveness Green Bay has seen in camp, he could end up as a surprisingly important piece on this roster.
The Packers-Steelers matchup also comes with other storylines, including seven players who need to stand out in the preseason opener and a look at whether rookie Brandon Cisse is already a lock to start at cornerback after two weeks of camp. There’s also the note that Brian Gutekunst said Green Bay didn’t plan on drafting Trey Smack, even though the general manager believed the 6th-round pick was going to come off the board early on Day 3.
And according to Sportico, the Packers are now valued at $8.59 billion, a 33% jump from the previous year.
In Other News...
Zaire Franklin Got A Fast Introduction To Lambeau Pressure
Zaire Franklin got his first real taste of Lambeau Fields atmosphere during the Packers annual Family Night on Aug. 7, and the veteran linebacker came away with exactly what Green Bay wanted from the showcase. Recently acquired from the Colts, Franklin stepped into an event built to feel like a game without actually counting as one, with music, entertainment and a fireworks show helping turn training camp into something closer to Sunday.
For Franklin, the night was less about a routine summer workout and more about getting a preview of the noise and intensity that will come with the season. He described the experience as energizing and said it helped him prepare for the crowd pressure he expects to face once the games start to matter, a useful early read for a player still settling into his new surroundings. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Suddenly Have A Tough Trade Decision In Their Secondary
The Packers cornerback room has quietly turned into one of the more crowded spots on the roster, and that kind of depth can create a harder conversation than a shortage ever would. With rookies Brandon Cisse and Domani Jackson adding to the group, Green Bay suddenly has enough young options that it does not need to keep every piece in place just because it can.
A 24-year-old corner whose play dipped last season is now the sort of player teams have to evaluate differently when a future contract timeline is in the background. For the Packers, the question is whether to keep betting on a bounce-back or use the chance to gather draft capital while opening more room for the younger defensive backs to grow. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Keep Getting Doubted In A Division Race That Feels Open
Even with the NFC North looking like one of the more interesting division races in the conference, the Packers are still getting slotted behind Detroit and Chicago in some preseason conversations. FS1s First Things First put Green Bay in the top half of the NFC, but not at the front of the pack, a familiar place for a franchise that has spent years hearing skepticism about whether its offseason choices have left it strong enough to keep pace.
For a team that has long been judged by a higher standard in the division, the lack of respect is hardly new. It does, however, add a little edge to a summer where the Packers can point to the noise around them and use it as motivation, especially with a division race that feels open enough for the conversation to matter well into the season. [Read more 🡒]