During Sunday’s practice, Green Bay Packers safety and starting slot defender Javon Bullard dropped out with an apparent foot injury. Going into Monday, we did not know the severity of the injury until the after practice locker room availability.
While he wore a boot while being sidelined on Monday, Bullard claimed that he has a bone bruise, with the biggest symptom being swelling, and that the team is just being precautionary. He told the press after practice, with the boot off, that “If we had a game
tomorrow, I’d play.”
So there’s some (relatively) good news, especially after Bullard’s preferred backup in the slot, Johnathan Baldwin, was waived with an injury designation yesterday to make room for the team adding two new receivers.
Beyond the Bullard news, here’s what you need to know from practice today.
Injuries
Both Edgerrin Cooper (foot) and Zaire Franklin (excused travel) returned to practice today after the starting linebackers weren’t participants in camp on Sunday. Tight end Luke Musgrave (neck), edge defender Micah Parsons (knee), defensive lineman Jordon Riley (Achilles) and long snapper Matt Orzech (calf) remain on the PUP list. Orzech should be the next man off the PUP list, based on how the Packers’ decision-makers have talked about that group of players’ injuries.
The non-participants in practice, beyond the PUP list, were Bullard, running back Josh Jacobs (groin), receiver Matthew Golden (toe), receiver Jayden Reed (foot), tight end Josh Whyle (neck), cornerback Domani Jackson (undisclosed) and cornerback Carrington Valentine (hamstring). The only new injury added to the list was Bullard’s.
Offense
On offense, the Packers continue to play around with their offensive line, as Jager Burton and Jacob Monk have been “starting” guards on the team (with Aaron Banks still sitting out team drills) since Zach Bako-Bewele returned to the lineup at right tackle. Previously, Anthony Belton was a pretty consistent starting right guard throughout the spring and summer.
Head coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst have both praised the mentality that Monk brings to the interior line, even though Monk didn’t look great in Green Bay’s Family Night practice at Lambeau Field on Friday. At this point, though, it seems we’ve reached full-blown camp battle status for the right guard position. Keep an eye on it throughout the preseason, as that’s really the one spot open on the Packers’ depth chart on that side of the ball.
Even Donovan Jennings is getting in the mix at the right guard spot. Belton also apparently had an elbow injury in practice today, as he visited a trainer and returned with a brace on his left arm.
Yesterday, it was Bo Melton and Christian Watson starting on offense while Savion Williams had his best day of camp. Today, it was Williams and Isaiah Neyor as the team’s “starting” receivers while Melton made the two biggest plays during team periods. It’s nice that the backups are stepping up while Golden and Reed are rehabbing.
Defense
The cornerback competition for the final couple of spots on the team is starting to turn up, as Kamal Hadden returned to team drills for the first time this camp. Hadden played in 10 games last regular season and was actually poised to replace Valentine on non-obvious passing downs before an injury ended his 2025 campaign.
Meanwhile, the player who has benefited the most from Hadden and Jackson being sidelined has been Jaylin Simpson, who was mostly a practice squadder for the 2025 Packers. He had been working with the second-team unit this camp and ended practice today with a 99-yard pick-six of fourth-string quarterback Kyron Drones.
On the starting level, Keisean Nixon, Brandon Cisse and Benjamin St-Juste continue to split reps. Early on in camp, the Packers had a clear pecking order of Nixon, Valentine, Cisse and St-Juste, but it seems like they’re opening up reps with the first-team unit more as we progress closer to the preseason.
For what it’s worth, Bullard’s replacement in the slot today was safety Kitan Oladapo, which was expected. Oladapo was the team’s third slot option in 2025 behind Bullard and Nate Hobbs, who was a cap casualty this offseason.
Defensive lineman Javon Hargrave, who was recently activated off the PUP list, remains out of team drills at this point in time. The “starting” defensive line today (without Hargrave) was Devonte Wyatt (who also just recently returned to team drills), Karl Brooks and Warren Brinson.
Special Teams
This is very niche, but one of the bigger questions the Packers have to answer this season is how they’re going to replace Lukas Van Ness on special teams (if at all) as he steps into a full-time starting role on defense. With the loss of safety Zayne Anderson in free agency, linebacker Nick Niemann has stepped up as the personal protector on the punt team. Generally, the “offensive line” of the punt team is made up of linebacker/edge rusher bodies, a role that Van Ness has played throughout the duration of his rookie contract.
On Family Night, the Packers’ top punt team “offensive line” was made up of Barryn Sorrell, Arron Mosby, Isaiah McDuffie and Ty’Ron Hopper. Those players have all played those positions before, so that was sort of expected, but the big question is whether or not Mosby’s special teams ability warrants a spot on the 53-man roster when the season begins. As a vested veteran, Mosby’s entire 2026 season’s worth of game checks would become fully guaranteed if he’s on the roster in Week 1.
If Mosby doesn’t make the team, it would make sense for Van Ness to be his replacement, as long as the Packers can stomach running both of their starting edge defenders 40 yards before starting defensive drives (until Parsons returns to the lineup). Green Bay’s other edge defenders, the only other backup options for the Mosby/Van Ness position — assuming that the team rosters only five off-ball linebackers, are likely to be Brenton Cox Jr., Dani Dennis-Sutton and Collin Oliver. We haven’t seen either Dennis-Sutton or Oliver play the “line” spot on punt team yet, and Cox has famously struggled on special teams during his time with the Packers.
