Defense was and always tends to be a big priority for the Green Bay Packers in the draft. In this current roster-building model, rookies have to play right away, and that's why linebacker Edgerrin Cooper and safety Evan Williams were allowed to be impactful enough to make the All-Rookie Team.

Another high-draft pick, though, also had the opportunity to play a significant amount of snaps—the most amongst the Packers rookie class— but wasn't as productive: second-round pick defensive back Javon Bullard.

This is our fourth installment of the 2024 Packers Rookie Report Card. We've already talked about the Cooper/Williams defensive combo, the offensive rookies who barely played, and the offensive linemen.

What he did

The Packers know how important it is to play their young pieces as soon as possible. It's the only realistic way to consistently get people outplaying their salaries.

"In the era of the salary cap, your young players have to play for you. The days of sitting for four years and then see what we got, I don't think you can do that anymore," general manager Brian Gutekunst said after the season. "These guys gotta go out there and play. It would be super hard to fill out a football team with veterans with the way the salary cap and the way the markets are these days. We've always been draft-and-develop and believe in that, the development of our players will always be a high priority for us."

Javon Bullard had to play from the get go. In Week 1 in Brazil, against the Philadelphia Eagles, he was a full-time safety alongside Xavier McKinney. Throughout the season, though, the ups and downs of a rookie season caught him, and it was a challenging year overall.

With Jaire Alexander hurt and Eric Stokes underperforming again, the Packers had to move Keisean Nixon to the boundary. Evan Williams' ascension as a safety allowed defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley to use Bullard as a nickel corner. Excluding the weeks Williams lost to injury and Bullard had to move back to safety, the slot became Bullard's real position.

The versatility made the second-round rookie a big piece of the defense. He played 72.18% of the defensive snaps in 2024, 81% of the snaps in the 15 games he played. Bullard was also a solid special teamer, playing 33.94% of the snaps.

The good and the bad

In terms of performance, Bullard wasn't as positive as he was in usage. The Packers trusted him, but one weak spot of his game was evident.

Be it as a safety or slot corner, a secondary player's main responsibility is coverage. And Bullard was not good at it. He allowed a 121.4 passer rating when targeted, 46 receptions in 55 targets (83.6%), with 483 total yards, including 237 yards after the catch, and three touchdowns. According to PFF, he had a 46.9 coverage grade.

Bullard was effective in run defense and tackling, making him a useful piece to play in the slot and work against outside rushing attempts. That included 66 tackles and 25 stops.

But if he will be the team's preferred starter at slot corner, the coverage has to get better. And fast.

"It's one of the benefits we have working here in Green Bay, because we're allowed to give guys time to really develop," Gutekunst added. "That's certainly something we will continue to do. I don't know if my mindset has changed in the draft, I do think since I first started that the salary cap has impacted it for sure."

Javon Bullard is a microcosm of what the Packers are and what they can be. He is young, talented, but flawed, and he needs to develop to get over the hump.

"I know we are young from a number perspective, but these guys have played a lot of football, and playoff football. From an experience perspective, I don't think we are young at all. That's an excuse I don't think we have any use for," Gutekunst mentioned. "I feel really good about our team, the experience we have."

Combining defense and special teams, Bullard was on the field for 936 plays as a rookie. The strengths and weaknesses were obvious. The Packers hope, though, that the experience allows him to be a better version of himself in 2025.

After all, Green Bay has a draft and develop philosophy. And the latter part is as important as the former.