Former first-round pick has been a huge disappointment for the Packers to start the season
When Quay Walker was the first of two first-round picks for the Green Bay Packers in 2022, much of the discussion was around positional value. After all, even if Walker ended up being a good player, it would be hard to justify a first-round pick on a player whose position is one of the least […]
When Quay Walker was the first of two first-round picks for the Green Bay Packers in 2022, much of the discussion was around positional value. After all, even if Walker ended up being a good player, it would be hard to justify a first-round pick on a player whose position is one of the least valuable in today's NFL.
You can think whatever you want about this topic, because based on how bad Walker has played to start the season, the positional value discussion doesn't even matter. Over the first two weeks of his third season in the league, Walker has been more of what he had been, and it's getting hard to justify a starting spot.
Andy Herman, who covers the Packers for Pack A Day Podcast and Packer Report, grades every player on every play. Based on his evaluation, Walker is the worst of the four Packers off-ball linebackers with a significant number of defensive snaps, behind Eric Wilson, Isaiah McDuffie, and rookie Edgerrin Cooper. By PFF, Walker is slightly ahead of McDuffie, but still behind Wilson and Cooper by a large amount.
Wilson is a veteran depth piece and mostly a special teamer, but he's been good playing a limited number of snaps. On Sunday, he picked Anthony Richardson once and had some good plays against the run. He is the second highest-graded off-ball linebacker in football, just behind Fred Warner, while Walker is 85th. Cooper played well in Brazil against the Philadelphia Eagles, but despite the coaching staff saying he deserves more snaps, he got fewer in week 2 — even fewer than fellow rookie Ty'Ron Hopper.
PFF grades and rankings among LBs
- Eric Wilson 95.3 (2nd)
- Edgerrin Cooper 77.3 (16th)
- Quay Walker 48.3 (85th)
- Isaiah McDuffie 946.6 (95th)
Lack of improvement
When Walker was drafted, he was mostly perceived as a developmental player. It was another one of these Packers' projects, getting a physical outlier to develop them within the structure of the franchise.
However, Quay Walker is in his third season in the NFL, the second to last of his rookie deal, and it's hard to see any improvements. His 48.3 PFF grade is the worst of his NFL career so far. Also the worst of his career are his coverage grade (52.3) and by a significant margin his tackling grade (37.1).
Some fans on social media suggested Quay Walker could move to edge rusher, but his pass rush grade (56.4) is also his worst in the league.
On Sunday, Walker dropped an easy interception who would've ended the game.
"Quay is sick about it," head coach Matt LaFleur said on Monday about the play. "There's no doubt about it. He's beating himself up pretty good about it."
Through two weeks, Quay Walker missed 18.2% of the tackles he tried, an awful number compared to the 6.6 rate he had in 2023.
Position
A big issue for Quay Walker has been his role within the defense. Throughout his career, he has been better as an instinctive player. When he has to think too much, problems start.
Without De'Vondre Campbell, there was an expectation that the Packers would add another middle linebacker. But that didn't happen. Green Bay selected Edgerrin Cooper in the second and Ty'Ron Hopper in the third, and they are mostly weak-side linebackers just like Walker.
The inexistence of a real middle linebacker on the roster forced the Packers to use Walker there, a role that includes the green dot to receive defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley's calls and passing them to his teammates.
Perhaps, putting Walker again in the position that fits what he does well is a last possible try to take something out of him. Maybe it won't be enough, but the situation as it stands is just putting the entire defense in an unfavorable position.
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