Packers have made baffling choice by playing struggling pieces over promising talent for no clear reason at a key position

The Green Bay Packers have five off-ball linebackers on the 53-man roster. Let's take rookie Ty'Ron Hopper out of the equation for this exercise, since he hasn't played any defensive snaps yet. Of the other four, two have played really well, and two have played poorly.

Guess what, the two who are not playing at a good level are the two with the highest number of defensive snaps in 2024. It's hard to understand, but that's exactly what has happened.

In terms of snaps, Quay Walker has by far been the most utilized piece. Even missing a game because of injury, he has played 80.99% of the defensive snaps — 90% of the snaps in the games he played. He has the play-calling green dot. The second in terms of defensive snaps is Isaiah McDuffie, with 68.84%.

But the two best players are well below that. Edgerrin Cooper, named the NFC defensive player of week 8 for his performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars and who made Dane Brugler's midseason All-Rookie Team, has played 41.9% of the snaps. Veteran Eric Wilson has been on the field for 40.49% of the defensive plays.

Performance

The Packers probably trust Quay Walker based on his draft status and his knowledge of the system. However, his playing level is simply not good enough. He has the worst PFF grade (47.7) of the four, including by far the worst coverage grade (42.9), but also the worst run defense grade (56.2).

Isaiah McDuffie has allowed the worst passer rating when targeted (117.6) among the four, and he also has the worst missed tackle rate (16.1%).

It's not to say that Eric Wilson and Edgerrin Cooper have been perfect — they have not, since Cooper allows a 101.0 passer rating when targeted and Wilson is not an overly athletic option.

But Cooper has generated five pressures in only 25 pass rush snaps. He has 2.5 sacks, only behind Devonte Wyatt (3) on the team and tied to Rashan Gary and Preston Smith. The rookie also has two passes defended, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and five tackles for loss.

Eric Wilson has three pressures in only 12 pass rush snaps, two sacks, and is the best among the four in passer rating allowed when targeted (83.8), including an interception on Indianapolis Colts' quarterback Anthony Richardson.

Packers linebackers by PFF grade:

• Eric Wilson 78.4
• Edgerrin Cooper 69.6
• Isaiah McDuffie 57.1
• Quay Walker 47.7

Wilson and Cooper are also the two most disruptive linebackers. I mean, not only on the Packers, but in the entire NFL. They are simply perfect fits to what Jeff Hafley has successfully done. Without much production from the edge rushers this season, Hafley has leaned into blitzes to create pressure. Wilson and Cooper are the ones doing it.