The Green Bay Packers enter the 2018 NFL season with outstanding depth at tight end. Free agent additions Jimmy Graham and Marcedes Lewis provide the Pack with an outstanding one-two punch at the top of the depth chart. Mike McCarthy also has quality players to choose from when selecting who to keep as the third tight end.
A year ago, the tight end position was a huge disappointment for the green and gold. The big free agent signee, Martellus Bennett was a bust on the field and never seemed to fit in the locker room. He was released after playing seven games and catching only 24 balls for less than 10 yards per catch and no touchdowns. Backups Lance Kendricks and Richard Rodgers combined for only 35 catches and didn’t provide any game-breaking potential. This helped limit the effectiveness of the Packers offense even before Aaron Rodgers went down with a broken collarbone. At the end of the season, Richard Rodgers was not re-signed, leaving Kendricks as the only experienced tight end on the roster.
New GM Brian Gutekunst knew he had to improve his club’s tight end position. The biggest free agent signing of the offseason was the acquisition of Jimmy Graham. The former Seahawks and Saints player is a five-time Pro Bowl selection and is fourth all-time among tight ends with 69 career touchdown catches.
Aaron Rodgers has noticed the problems Graham creates for defenses. “He’s a big target,” Rodgers told USA Today. “He catches the ball with his hands. We haven’t had a guy like that around here in a while. He uses his body really well, runs good routes, and he’s a matchup issue. We haven’t had the consistent matchup issue guy for a long time.”
Graham is particularly effective in the red zone. At 6’7”, he creates very difficult matchup problems for defenses once the Packers get close to scoring. CBS analyst and former Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo sees Graham as a major difference maker. “I think you’ll see them treat him as a single receiver. You’ll almost play a two-tight-end set, where one tight end will be in,” Romo explained. “You’re going to run the ball to the right and, if the safety is not there, they’re going to throw the ball to Jimmy Graham. If the safety is there, they’re just going to run the football. … It’s going to be real simple in the red zone. That’s a big deal.”
Packers fans got their first glimpse of what Graham can do in the second preseason game against Pittsburgh. He caught a touchdown pass from Rodgers in the first quarter of that game and did his first Lambeau Leap.
Even after adding Graham, Gutekunst knew he needed additional depth. One of Graham’s shortcomings is run blocking. So, the Packers inked veteran Marcedes Lewis who is considered one of the best run-blocking tight ends in the league.
Lewis spent all his first 12 NFL seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. While Lewis is no longer a deep threat, he has solid hands and can still contribute as a valuable possession receiver.
Head coach Mike McCarthy has liked what Lewis brings to the team. “He’s obviously a big man, but he’s powerful,” said McCarthy said in a post-practice news conference. “His ability to cut and anchor on a block and maintain the line of scrimmage has been impressive, and frankly we haven’t really had that here with a man of his size and his ability.”
McCarthy also sees Lewis as a leader in the locker room. “To have a guy like Marcedes with his track record, his credibility and his career performance, guys listen,” McCarthy told Packers.com. “I need that as a leader on the team. I need those guys to step up and help out in the leadership roles. It’s been great having those guys because they have really bought into what we’re doing and they’re pros.”
The battle for the third tight end spot is wide open. Kendricks remains on the roster and has looked better than he did last season so far in training camp. He’s a veteran and the coaching staff knows what to expect from him. He also may be a cap casualty as his $2.25 million cap hit (according to overthecap.com) is high for a third-string tight end.
The Packers have younger and less expensive alternatives available for depth. The leading candidates are Robert Tonyan and Emanuel Byrd.
Tonyan has stood out thus far. He’s played well in the preseason, catching three passes for 20 yards against Pittsburgh. That included an impressive touchdown catch from DeShone Kizer late in the second quarter that showed the former Indiana State star can win battles for contested balls.
Tonyan is a converted wide receiver who spent the final four weeks of the season on Green Bay’s practice squad. He can stretch the field and has good speed for a 6’5”, 237-pound tight end.
“This guy can really move and this guy has a nice frame and he has length and all those good attributes that we like to throw around,” offensive coordinator Joe Philbin told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal. “But he’s not backed down from the physical aspect of the game, and I think he’s made the most out of his opportunities.”
Byrd spent eight weeks on the practice squad before making his NFL debut against Detroit in the season finale where he caught two passes for 31 yards. He grabbed two passes against the Steelers for 27 yards including a 22-yard catch. Byrd has very good hands and catches nearly everything thrown his way.
The Packers have a lot of talent and depth at the tight end position heading into 2018. They will certainly have to let go a player or two who can make an NFL roster. If things work out as planned, the players they keep can really make a difference on the field once the season starts.
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