Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur has raised the possibility of creating multiple cornerback groups and hasn’t ruled out the idea of drafting Jordan Morgan as a backup in the event of injuries to Rasheed Walker or Zach Tom.
When asked if Keisean Nixon was certain to be the starting defensive end, LaFleur said, “It’s all competition,” before mentioning the idea of other roster-based groups.
“We’ll let it play out,” LaFleur said Tuesday. “It’s going to be competitive all season long. We’re trying to field our best players. There’s nothing that says you can’t have multiple groups. A lot of teams will do that. A lot of different bodies. Some teams will have a ‘Big Nickel,’ where they’ll have more of a safety body, versus their regular nickel, however that works out.”
The obvious candidate to play in the bigger nickel packages is rookie safety Javon Bullard, who has plenty of experience playing in the slot and has the versatility to play near the line of scrimmage. Bullard is competing for the starting safety spot, but it’s possible the Packers could experiment with playing Bullard in the slot and rookie Evan Williams alongside Xavier McKinney at safety.
“What you can see is the physicality he plays with, he has great instincts and the versatility, whether he’s a linebacker or a linebacker, he’s a guy who can play both positions,” LaFleur said.
LaFleur said Bullard “did a lot of great things” in his NFL debut against the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.
Some teams exploit safeties as linebackers in “Big Nickel” packages, which could be another way to get Williams or rookie Kitana Oladapo on the field.
On offense, Morgan — the team’s first-round pick — returned to practice Tuesday. He’s getting reps mostly at right guard, where the Packers believe he’s best positioned to start right away. But LaFleur hasn’t ruled out the idea of giving Morgan more reps at linebacker to prepare him for when the Packers might need him on the outside.
“Potentially,” LaFleur said. “We’ll see.”
Right now, Andre Dillard, Caleb Jones, Kadeem Telfort and Travis Glover are playing at offensive point guard behind the two starters.
Morgan, the 25th overall pick, has played left quarterback for three straight seasons in Arizona. He could significantly escalate his value — even as a rookie — if he can play right guard and provide depth as an offensive playmaker. But it would be challenging to blame the Packers if they focused Morgan on one position as he moves on to the NFL.
