The Green Bay Packers are heading into 2026 with plenty of optimism, but one part of the roster stands out for all the wrong reasons.
After a brutal finish to the 2025 season, Green Bay is trying to reset and chase a much stronger year. The Packers lost their final five games, a stretch that ended with a wild-card round defeat to the rival Chicago Bears and left a sour taste on the season.
Even with that collapse, there’s still real belief around this team. Green Bay wants to get back into true Super Bowl contention, and the roster has enough talent elsewhere to support that goal. The problem is up front, where the offensive line could become the weak spot that drags everything down.
ESPN NFL analyst Mike Clay ranked Green Bay’s offensive line No. 24 in the league entering the season, a shaky spot for a group that carries so much weight for a team with big ambitions. Clay’s scale also showed just one Packers lineman graded above a 5.0, while Denver Broncos tackle Garett Bolles sat as the highest-rated player in the league.
For Green Bay, right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele drew the top mark on the unit at 7.9. After him came left tackle Jordan Morgan at 4.9, left guard Aaron Banks at 4.6, center Ryan Rhyan at 4.3 and Anthony Belton at 3.9, which was the lowest grade on the line.
That group is also dealing with injuries heading into Week 1, making the situation even more complicated for Matt LaFleur. The Packers coach isn’t pretending otherwise, but he still sounds determined to work through it.
"It's hard to build continuity if you don't have five guys out there, but it is what it is," LaFleur said. "We're not the only team faced with those circumstances, and you've got to try and make the best of it."
Green Bay opens the season against NFC North rival Minnesota, giving the Packers an immediate chance to show whether this line can hold up when the games start counting.
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Packers Practice Squad Move Hints At A Bigger Offensive Plan
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For a team continuing to shape both its roster and its scheme, the addition is more than simple depth. Green Bay has been piecing together personnel that makes sense for what it wants to do on offense, and Bankstons fit in that system is hard to miss. Whether the move is mostly about competition, development, or something bigger in the playbook, it adds another clue about the direction the Packers are heading. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Rookie Trust Will Be Tested Right Away Against The Vikings
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J. Michael Sturdivant is part of that picture after making the initial 53-man roster as an undrafted rookie wide receiver, but his immediate role against Minnesota is expected to be limited. Even so, his presence on the roster underscores how much the Packers are leaning on unproven talent right out of the gate, with the opener offering an early look at which rookies are ready when the stakes rise. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Have An Early Opportunity Fans Couldn't Count On Last Year
The Packers are heading into 2026 with something they did not always have a year ago: a healthier roster and a better chance to settle in before the schedule tightens. Most of the group has been on the field in practice ahead of Week 1, with Warren Brinson and Micah Parsons among the few exceptions as Parsons continues his recovery from injury. That alone gives Green Bay a different kind of runway entering the season, especially compared with the constant juggling act of the previous year.
The early slate also looks more forgiving than what this team has had to navigate in other seasons, and that matters for a club trying to build momentum quickly. When the offense under Matt LaFleur and Jordan Love has had its core available, it has shown a steadier level of play, which is part of why there is some quiet confidence around this group. If the Packers can take advantage of this opening stretch, they could spend a lot less time surviving and a lot more time proving they belong in the conversation. [Read more 🡒]