Packers’ experienced free agent addition could bring far more value than expected at first

Javon Hargrave is still a capable defensive tackle.

Wendell Ferreira — NFL News Writer
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Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (97) tackles Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) in the second half at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (97) tackles Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) in the second half at U.S. Bank Stadium. Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Don’t get me wrong, Javon Hargrave is not at his prime anymore. He’s long removed from the Pittsburgh Steelers days, when he could rush the passer and defend the run at a high level at the same time — and his run defense has lacked over the past several years.

However, while his addition to the Green Bay Packers in free agency is not a definitive or long-term solution to the interior of the defensive line, he brings a lot to a group that barely needs competent play. And it’s not only as a designated interior rusher.

Higher-level piece

Hargrave might not be a star player anymore, but he adds elements that the defensive line group simply didn’t have since losing TJ Slaton in free agency and trading Kenny Clark to the Dallas Cowboys last year — even as a run defender.

In 2025 for the Minnesota Vikings, Hargrave had a 57.3 PFF run defense grade. That’s not necessarily great, but every interior defensive lineman on the Packers last season got below 50.

PFF run defense grades among Packers’ IDL

  • Quinton Bohanna 46.8
  • Colby Wooden 46.2
  • Nazir Stackhouse 44.5
  • Jonathan Ford 43.0
  • Karl Brooks 40.6
  • Devonte Wyatt 38.7
  • Warren Brinson 36.5
  • Jordon Riley 33.3

PFF’s grades are not gospel, but they are directionally right for a broader understanding of the unit. To make the need even bigger, Bohanna was released and Wooden got traded to the Indianapolis Colts for linebacker Zaire Franklin.

As a pass rusher, Hargrave’s grade was 70.0, right below Wyatt’s 71.4 and above everyone else on the Packers’ interior.

“He’s a good player, so he gets a lot of attention,” Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores said during last season. “And I think as a whole, defensively when we see that, how do we use that to our advantage? Who can we maybe sneak through, if there’s a lot of attention being paid to him, to make them pay attention to somebody else. Essentially, that’s the process we go through.”

The Packers gave Hargrave a two-year, $23 million contract — the $11 million signing bonus is the only guaranteed part, so it’s essentially a team option in Year 2. At 33, Hargrave brings inherent risk, but his floor is something the Packers had to somehow add — and it makes sense to get that from a player who wouldn’t affect the compensatory pick formula.

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