The Packers are heading into training camp with a pile of uncertainty up front, but they at least got one major break before the first practice even starts: Zach Tom is not on the PUP list.
That matters because Green Bay is already opening camp without several key starters, including Micah Parsons, Tucker Kraft, Javon Hargrave, and Aaron Banks. The team placed five players on the PUP list, and Parsons is expected to join them. Tom, though, avoided that group entirely.
For the Packers, that’s the kind of update they needed badly. Tom missed the final four games last season, and Green Bay lost all four. He was dealing with a partially torn patellar tendon, an injury that required a long recovery, but the early indication is that he’s ready to roll.
The real confirmation will come when players and coaches speak to reporters this week, but not landing on PUP is a strong sign. It points toward Tom being on track for Week 1, which is exactly where the Packers need him.
That’s especially true after the way last season went for the offensive line. Injuries forced Matt LaFleur to keep shuffling the unit, and the line never really settled. Getting Tom back at right tackle gives Green Bay a legitimate anchor at one spot, even if the rest of the group still has plenty to prove.
There’s no shortage of questions around him. Can Jordan Morgan handle left tackle?
Will Aaron Banks bounce back? Did the Packers make the right move bringing back Sean Rhyan after he made only seven starts at center?
Can Anthony Belton take a step after a rough rookie year?
Tom is the exception to all that noise. According to Pro Football Focus, he gave up zero sacks and just one quarterback hit on 351 pass-block snaps last season. That came after he already dealt with a torn oblique in Week 1 and later played through a back injury, yet it still ended up being the best season of his career.
PFF also ranked the top 32 tackles in the league ahead of the new season, and Tom checked in at No. 10. That put him ahead of players like the Minnesota Vikings’ two-time Pro Bowler Brian O’Neill and the Chicago Bears’ ascending star Darnell Wright, who earned second-team All-Pro honors last season.
So while Green Bay’s offensive line remains a mess of unanswered questions, Tom is not one of them. He overcame the injuries, played at a high level, and now the Packers are counting on him to do it again this fall.
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