Forgotten Packers defensive player is ready to prove he belongs and could be a valuable piece for Green Bay's 2025 team
Ty'Ron Hopper barely played as a rookie. Selected in the third round of last year's draft, with the pick the Green Bay Packers acquired by trading cornerback Rasul Douglas to the Buffalo Bills, the off-ball linebacker was primarily a special teamer. But that doesn't mean he can't be more than that moving forward. Ty'Ron Hopper […]
Ty'Ron Hopper barely played as a rookie. Selected in the third round of last year's draft, with the pick the Green Bay Packers acquired by trading cornerback Rasul Douglas to the Buffalo Bills, the off-ball linebacker was primarily a special teamer. But that doesn't mean he can't be more than that moving forward.
Ty'Ron Hopper showed some intriguing skills in limited snaps
It's not always that rookies have immediate impact. In Hopper's case, getting on the field was harder because the Packers deservedly prioritized Edgerrin Cooper, another rookie who needed help in terms of roles and tasks. It wouldn't be viable, for the most part, to have both on the field at the same time. So the Packers leaned on veteran players like Quay Walker, Isaiah McDuffie, and even Eric Wilson over the third-rounder.
But he did play some defensive snaps down the road. His first action was against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, when he was on the field for seven plays.
Daire Carragher, who covers the Packers for Packer Report, posted a clip with some plays from that game. Hopper shows good skills and activity as a run stopper.
That, according to PFF, was Hopper's best game of the season—amongst the three where he had defensive snaps. After that, the rookie also had three snaps against the Seattle Seahawks and eight versus the New Orleans Saints, mostly in garbage time.
Even though Hopper sees blitzing as his best trait, which seems like a trend for the Packers after also drafting Edgerrin Cooper, the third-rounder thinks he can be an all-around backer.
"I feel like I can do everything to be honest," Hopper told Go Long's Tyler Dunne. "I feel like I can cover. Man. Zone. Shit, whatever it is."
Added value
Even though Hopper didn't have much space as a defensive player, the rookie added value to the team as a special teamer. He played a total of 215 special teams plays, which was 48.64%. He was just behind Eric Wilson, Lukas Van Ness, Arron Mosby, and Zayne Anderson on ST snaps. Hopper had 68 snaps in kick return, 93 in kickoff coverage, and 54 in punt return.
The game by game sample size is small, but he finished the season with four tackles and one missed tackle on those plays.
A to Z Sports Draft profile
Since Ty'Ron Hopper played so little, it's still valuable to remember what he was as a prospect coming out of Missouri. On the consensus big board, Hopper was perceived as a late fifth-rounder (173rd overall), which indicates the Packers reached.
Strengths
- Good feel for attacking the playside half of blocks & contorting his upper body
- Showed the ability to engage blocks with active hands & leverage his gap
- Played an advanced coverage role that will translate to the NFL
- Quick to break on underneath routes from zone coverage
- 1st step explosiveness to win early leverage
Weaknesses
- Average size & athletic traits
- Below average contact balance & lower-half strength to withstand centered blocks
- Has to grab at the jersey to keep up with vertical/seam routes
- Poor success rate as a tackler
- Lacks stopping power to stand up ball carriers at the sticks
- Rigid changing directions & resetting his pursuit angle
- Lacks pursuit speed to beat NFL athletes to the edge
From: James Foster
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