Packers draft steal quietly becomes even more valuable after an intriguing early training camp development
Fourth-round rookie Dani Dennis-Sutton is also getting reps as a situational interior rusher, and that’s truly important for defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon.
The Green Bay Packers found an overlooked piece in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, and rookie edge defender Dani Dennis-Sutton is already giving a glimpse of his talent early in training camp.
The Penn State product was widely viewed as a second- or third-round prospect, making his selection by general manager Brian Gutekunst a significant value pick.
Now, after the first few days of camp, Dennis-Sutton’s versatility along the defensive line is adding another layer to what the Packers coaching staff can do with him.
Why Dennis-Sutton’s value keeps growing
Dennis-Sutton was already a welcome addition because of the depth situation at edge defender. The Packers won’t have Micah Parsons for the first month of the season, as the star pass rusher is expected to start the year on the PUP list because of his torn ACL. That absence created uncertainty about how Green Bay would generate pressure early in the year.
The rookie’s high floor as a pass rusher gave the Packers some insurance. But what has emerged in training camp goes beyond that.
Dennis-Sutton has flashed the ability to slide inside and play defensive tackle in passing situations, a usage that barely existed during his college career. At Penn State, he logged fewer than 20 snaps at interior defensive lineman across nearly 2,000 total college snaps. He was essentially an edge-only player throughout his time with the Nittany Lions.
The NFL version of his role could look different. Defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon is a creative play-designer and play-caller, and the Packers plan to take advantage of that creativity along the front. Green Bay can deploy three edge defenders on the field simultaneously, with one of them sliding inside to create mismatches. The Packers experimented with similar looks last season under Jeff Hafley, moving Parsons around the formation and even lining him up over the center. This year, the wrinkles will look different with a new coordinator and a different personnel mix.
Packers’ edge defender depth without Parsons
While Parsons recovers, the Packers are expected to start Lukas Van Ness and Barryn Sorrell at edge defender, with rotational options including Collin Oliver, Brenton Cox, Arron Mosby, and Dennis-Sutton. Van Ness has experience playing defensive tackle from his college career and his first NFL seasons, so he was the natural candidate to move inside when needed. Dennis-Sutton now gives the coaching staff another weapon to deploy along the interior in sub-packages.
The ability to line up both inside and outside increases his overall value to the defense, and it increases his chances of being on the field, particularly on passing downs.
The Packers are already pleased with what they’ve seen from Dennis-Sutton through the early portion of camp. The selection was strong from a process standpoint at the time of the draft, given the gap between his perceived draft range and where Green Bay actually took him. The fact that he’s now adding interior versatility to his profile only reinforces the value of the pick.
