The Green Bay Packers enter Sunday’s matchup against the New York Jets hoping to snap an early slump and avoid their longest losing streak in more than three decades.
After a disappointing showing against the Minnesota Vikings, in which the defense allowed 25 points and the offense contributed two more scores via a pick-six and a fumble on consecutive drives, the Packers need a bounce-back performance.
Complicating that effort is the likely absence of veteran nose tackle Javon Hargrave.
Hargrave, a two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle signed in free agency, has been listed as doubtful with a concussion, via Tom Silverstein of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The designation means rookie Chris McClellan and Anthony Campbell are expected to see increased snaps.
Hargrave’s presence in the middle of the line has been a cornerstone of Green Bay’s interior run defense, and his absence will test the depth of a unit that already looked vulnerable in Week 1.
Additional injuries further thin the front. Fellow defensive tackle Warren Brinson is out, while edge rusher Lukas Van Ness remains questionable after limited practice participation.
On the offensive line, starters Zach Tom and Aaron Banks—Banks missed the season opener with a knee injury—are also questionable.
Free-agent addition Benjamin St. Juste, who played only one defensive snap last week, is questionable with a hamstring issue.
In Hargrave’s expected absence, several players stand ready to absorb extra work. McClellan already logged 28 snaps, or 43 percent of the defensive snaps, against Minnesota. Campbell, inactive in Week 1, could make his season debut. The most natural replacement at nose tackle, however, may be Jonathan Ford.
Originally a seventh-round pick by Green Bay in 2022, Ford returned to the team last December after a stint with the Chicago Bears. Listed as Hargrave’s backup, the 6-foot-5, 338-pound lineman played 28 snaps in the opener and is built to occupy blockers in the middle.
Whoever steps in, the Packers’ defensive line must raise its level of play. Stopping Breece Hall and containing an improving Jets offensive line will be difficult without Hargrave’s experience and disruption.
Green Bay’s season remains young, but another loss would extend a skid not seen since the 1990-91 campaigns.
How the interior holds up without its veteran anchor could determine whether the Packers begin to right the ship or continue searching for answers.
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