The Green Bay Packers are entering an exciting, yet unknown era and their two rookie tight ends, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft, are a big part of said excitement.

Both players bring what the Packers haven't had in a while: athletic, versatile traits that allow them to line up all over the formation. Matt LaFleur will also be able to use them in both the rushing attack and passing attack, as well. That in itself will only further the Packers' versatility on offense.

But, no one is going to hand Musgrave and Kraft a starting job – they're going to have to earn it. Fortunately for Kraft, training camp is where he can shine. Especially when basing it off what he said earlier in the year.

"I've always said to every coach that's ever had me that I'm a better player when the pads come on," Kraft told reporters during OTAs.

We'll see if that gives him the advantage he needs. But until then, let's take a look at the rookie duo's primary competition heading into training camp.

Packers Players Trying to Hold Off Musgrave and Kraft

Josiah Deguara

Deguara is easily the most experienced -and most ingrained- tight end on the Packers roster. 

He's typically been TE3 since the Packers drafted him in the 2020 NFL Draft. But, this year provides him an opportunity to break in and become an important part of the offense. 

As we all know, the tight end position is very hard to acclimate to early-on. Plenty of successful college players hit a wall during their first couple of years in the league and there's a good chance both Musgrave and Kraft will hit said wall.

That obviously gives Deguara a chance to impress the coaching staff and show how much he's developed as he enters his fourth year in the NFL. As a former third-round pick entering the final year of his rookie deal, this could be his last shot to carve out a role in Green Bay, so he has to make sure he hits the ground running once camp kicks off next week.

Deguara adds special teams value, so something drastic will have to happen for him to miss out on the final 53-man roster. In terms of opportunity, the ceiling has never been higher.

Tyler Davis

Davis has two years of experience in LaFleur’s offense, but he’s been more of a special teams player. He’s played at least 64% of the Packers special teams snaps in both years, with a career-high 81% in 2022. 

The Packers should run a lot more two tight end sets in 2023, which increases the odds of four TEs making the final roster. That bodes well for Davis since his impact comes directly on teams. 

Still, he'll need to show development in his offensive game if he doesn't want to lose a lot of sleep leading up to final cuts.

---

Two more names are involved in Austin Allen and Camren McDonald, but the former is an exclusive rights free agent that signed a futures contract in January and the latter is an undrafted rookie, so their hills are easily the hardest to climb. That doesn't mean they are SOL, but, the deck is certainly stacked and they're going to need some lucky breaks if they want to earn a job.

Overall, there's no guarantee how this battle plays out and it's primarily because of the difficulty level that comes with mastering the tight end position in the NFL. 

Sure, there leading candidates, but we will really get a good grasp on the true leaders once the pads come on.

Packers sign last two picks from their 2023 NFL Draft class

The Packers offseason is officially over as rookies report to training camp on July 21.

Featured image via Wm. Glasheen USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin