Chris McClellan walks into Packers camp with a chance most third-round picks don’t get: a real shot to claim a starting job before the season even settles in.
That opportunity exists because Green Bay sees something in the rookie out of Missouri, enough to trade up and grab him at No. 77 overall. But it’s also there because the Packers are thin in the one area McClellan is built to help most. The defensive line has a run-stopping problem, and it only got more obvious after Colby Wooden was shipped out in the trade for linebacker Zaire Franklin from the Indianapolis Colts.
That move left a gap in front of the defense that hasn’t gotten nearly enough attention. For Packers fans, McClellan now becomes the measuring stick. Can he cover for Wooden’s exit, or will that absence show up every Sunday?
Wooden wasn’t a star and never looked like a Pro Bowl type, but he did handle a job Green Bay valued: holding up against the run. That role matters even more now, especially after the team already felt the sting of losing long-time nose tackle Kenny Clark in last August’s blockbuster.
McClellan is the player expected to help steady that spot. He’ll have support from Devonte Wyatt and Javon Hargrave on either side, and those two are the better pass-rushing pieces in the front. McClellan can add some juice there too - he put up six sacks at Missouri last season - but his first job is much more basic.
He has the size to do it. McClellan checked in at 313 pounds at the combine, and that may not even have been his playing weight.
Pro Football Focus listed him 10 pounds heavier in his final college season. Either way, he brings more bulk than Wooden did, and that alone gives Green Bay a different look at nose tackle.
There’s also a pass-rush upside here that Wooden never really provided across his three Packers seasons. Still, that’s not the headline. Green Bay needs someone who can slow down the ground game, especially after getting pushed around a year ago.
That need is even more pressing in the NFC North, where both the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears bring lively rushing attacks. With Wooden gone, spending real draft capital on a legitimate nose tackle made sense.
So the question for McClellan is simple. If he can replace Wooden’s work as the team’s run stopper, his rookie season will matter in a big way. The coaching staff already likes what it has seen, and while he hasn’t even reached his first training camp, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he ends up giving the Packers more than just a stopgap solution.
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