3 Packers starters who will be benched by October and why

The Green Bay Packers came into the season with some of the highest expectations in the entire league. They were heavily favored to win 10 or more games, compete for the NFC Championship and eventually maybe even the Super Bowl.

Now, they're 0-1 and their franchise QB is nursing a knee injury. Every game played without Jordan Love is going to be quite an uphill battle for the Packers to climb. They very well could be a winless or one-win team when Love returns to the lineup.

With that in mind, the other 21 starting spots on offense and defense will be under intense scrutiny. Green Bay has position battles taking place all over the field.

Which three starters could find themselves benched in the coming weeks?

3. OG Sean Rhyan

The first player that could find himself benched is probably the easiest pick of the litter. It's the current starting offensive guard, Sean Rhyan. Rhyan is a third-round pick from the 2022 draft, but he just hasn't been as good as Green Bay anticipated and it's really showing.

Week 1 was a disaster for Rhyan. He was the lowest-graded offensive lineman on the Packers according to PFF and the eye test didn't support him either. He has experience at guard, but the Packers won't continue to play him if his production doesn't improve.

Green Bay opted to pick offensive lineman Jordan Mason out of Arizona with their top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Coming into the season, the Packers likely didn't feel Mason was fit to start right away at guard, but with the way that Rhyan played in the opener, Matt LaFleur may have no other choice than to start Mason in the coming weeks.

If Jordan Love misses significant time and Malik Willis is under center for the Packers, Green Bay's offensive line has to keep Willis upright. If he's constantly under pressure, he's sure to fail and the Packers are sure to lose a lot of games.

2. LB Isaiah McDuffie

Before I get into this one, I want to make it clear that this has less to do with Isaiah McDuffie and his abilities and more to do with Edgerrin Cooper and his potential.

Right now, McDuffie is starting over the 2024 second-round pick, Edgerrin Cooper. Cooper is raw and inexperienced while McDuffies comes with more experience than the young rookie, obviously. McDuffie didn't look bad in the opener against the Eagles. He made a few plays and was constantly around the ball.

One of the big flaws in his Week 1 performance was his lack of run support. McDuffie was continuously bullied in the run game.

Cooper brings a level of speed, quickness and overall potential that McDuffie just doesn't have. With the NFL so focused on speed and motion at this point in time, the Packers could use Cooper's speed to neutralize all the extra speed on offense in today's game.

Cooper looked excellent in the opportunities that he received against the Eagles. The eye test from Week 1 tells me that Cooper should get the nod over McDuffie. Given the difference in experience, Cooper will need to outplay him consistently for a few weeks before he gets elevated on the depth chart.

1. NT T.J. Slaton

One of the biggest stories around the Packers team this offseason was the development of nose tackle, TJ Slaton. Slaton is a huge athlete who has unreal athleticism and speed for his incredible size. He has shown improvements from year to year, but he's now entering the final season of his rookie deal and Packers fans were eager to see what kind of performance he would show against the stout Eagles run.

While he made a few good plays, and that's typically his M.O., he was overall a "meh" performer in the opening game. Slaton is good for a few incredible plays a game that leaves you wondering, "How in the world did he make that play?" But when he was not making those plays, he was getting bullied by the double teams from the Eagles' offensive line.

This can be seen further when you look at Saquon Barkley's stats, where most of his runs came between the tackles.

Not saying that Slaton is bad, but if he takes a step back this year, the Packers could be forced to rotate him in with somebody else. I don't feel like he's at risk of being fully benched, but the Packers are going to need to shut down the run in the coming weeks. If Slaton can't hold down the middle like he has in previous years, Green Bay will find somebody who can.