The Green Bay Packers still have some uncertainty about their offensive line, but Rasheed Walker is getting attention as a potential breakout player for the 2024 season.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport shared a few underrated players ready for breakout seasons. The list included some divisional rivals like Jared Goff and Jaquan Brisker. However, Davenport also gave Walker some love.
“…[Walker’s] performance improved significantly as the season went on,” Davenport wrote. “Now, Walker begins the season as the clear starter for a Packers team with hopes of a deep playoff run and as the top player for an offensive line Dallas Robinson of Pro Football Network ranked fifth in the NFL.”
While he’s a controversial player, Walker is getting at least one major show of support in the months leading up to training camp.
Rasheed Walker’s Journey to a Starting Left Tackle
Expectations were not high for Walker in the NFL. However, he’s now gained significant experience as a starting left tackle for the Packers.
Walker was a high school All-American and 4-star recruit in 2018. His offers included the likes of Ohio State, Notre Dame, Michigan, and Georgia. However, Walker chose to play for Penn State.
Although he never became a star, Walker carved out a solid four-year career for the Nittany Lions. His career was capped off with back-to-back third-team All-Big Ten selections before going pro.
Despite declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft, Walker had to wait much longer than he would have liked to hear his name called. The Packers finally selected him with the 249th pick in the seventh round.
That draft position lowered expectations for Walker in the NFL. However, he finally got his chance in 2023 when David Bakhtiari was unable to play beyond Week 1. Although he struggled early on, Pro Football Focus started to rate him consistently higher as the season progressed.
Even though he was one of the last picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, Walker has now had at least one season as a starting left tackle, and he’s aiming to have an even bigger impact in 2024.
Competition at Left Tackle
Walker may have enhanced his game during the 2023 season. However, he’s not guaranteed his starting spot heading into training camp.
The Packers drafted Jordan Morgan in the first round this year. A three-year starter for Arizona, Morgan comes into the league with a strong athletic profile and excellent movement skills despite being slightly undersized at the tackle position.
Green Bay’s coaching staff could move Morgan inside to guard. However, the team has already stated that they’ll let the first-round pick start out his NFL career by playing left tackle heading into training camp. Morgan even took time to respond to critics who think he won’t be able to play on the blind side at the NFL level.
The Packers are known for getting their best five linemen on the field. That could mean Walker switches to right tackle. However, fans won’t know more about the situation until the coaching staff can get a full picture of the situation during training camp.
