The Green Bay Packers have signed undrafted rookie running back Damon Bankston to the practice squad, filling an open spot and adding another layer of depth to a backfield already in flux.
Bankston, a 5-foot-10, roughly 190-pound back out of New Mexico, worked out in Green Bay on Tuesday after being released by the New York Giants at final cuts. He had been a pre-draft visitor with the Packers before the 2026 NFL Draft, then signed with New York as an undrafted free agent.
The Packers did not need a corresponding roster move to add him. He joins veteran Pierre Strong Jr. as the second running back on the practice squad.
Green Bay’s 53-man roster currently lists MarShawn Lloyd, Chris Brooks, and Kaleb Johnson at the position, with Josh Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list.
What makes the signing interesting is the burst Bankston showed in college.
After transferring from FCS Weber State, he spent his lone FBS season with the Lobos in 2025 and immediately became a big-play threat. In 13 games he rushed 114 times for 635 yards (5.6 yards per carry) and five touchdowns, while catching 31 passes for 397 yards and three more scores. He also returned 12 kickoffs for 434 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 36.2 yards per return.
All told, he finished with 10 touchdowns and more than 1,400 all-purpose yards.
The explosiveness showed up in chunks. He produced a run of at least 20 yards in three different games and a reception of at least 20 yards in four games. One of his signature moments came against UCLA, when he rushed for 154 yards at 10.3 yards per carry and added a receiving score.
At UNLV, he hauled in five catches for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Scouts also liked the athletic testing: a 4.43-second 40-yard dash, a 10-foot-3 broad jump, and 21 bench-press reps. Those traits — acceleration through the hole, natural hands out of the backfield, and return ability — fit the kind of complementary piece Green Bay often develops on the practice squad.
Bankston’s preseason with the Giants was modest (21 carries for 73 yards), but his best outing came in the finale against the Jets: 11 carries for 62 yards.
For a Packers team that may need extra bodies early while Jacobs is unavailable, the addition is a low-risk look at a player who already had a relationship with the building.
Whether he sticks as a developmental runner, a return option, or a short-term insurance policy, Bankston’s college tape is defined by one thing: when he found space, he was gone.
Be the first to comment