The Green Bay Packers enter 2026 with several projected starters sitting on short leashes. The roster features bridge options and short-term solutions that may not survive the first half of the season. General manager Brian Gutekunst’s offseason investments in the draft and free agency created legitimate competition at multiple positions, and the depth chart could look dramatically different by November.

So, let’s discuss the four players most likely to lose their starting jobs before Thanksgiving.

Sean Rhyan, center

Rhyan extended his contract this offseason, signing a three-year deal with the Packers right before hitting free agency. He took over as the starting center last season after Elgton Jenkins suffered an injury, and he’s projected to open 2026 in that same role. But the Packers also drafted Jager Burton in the fifth round, and Burton has been a pleasant surprise during Green Bay’s offseason program.

The situation gets more layered because Rhyan isn’t the only starter with competition. Guards Aaron Banks and Anthony Belton will also need to play well to secure their spots. Burton spent time at right guard during OTAs and then moved to left guard during mandatory minicamp, showing the kind of versatility that could earn him a starting role at multiple positions along the interior.

That flexibility could allow Burton to enter the starting lineup at guard rather than center. But because the Packers made bigger investments in Banks and Belton, Rhyan appears to be the most vulnerable starter on the offensive line. A strong training camp from Burton could accelerate the timeline.

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Barryn Sorrell, edge defender

This is the most obvious name on the list. Sorrell will only start early in the season because Micah Parsons is recovering from the ACL injury he suffered in December. There will be competition for the second starting spot alongside Lukas Van Ness, but Sorrell has been the starter throughout the offseason program and is expected to hold that role in September.

Sorrell was a fourth-round pick last year and barely played as a rookie, though he performed well in a meaningless Week 18 game against the Minnesota Vikings. Hopefully for the Packers, Parsons will already be back by Thanksgiving. That doesn’t mean Sorrell won’t be a useful piece throughout the season, but he’ll return to a rotational role with Parsons and Van Ness starting, presuming health at the position.

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Karl Brooks, defensive tackle

Brooks is a bit different because he’s only a starter when the Packers play base defense. Green Bay is expected to open with Devonte Wyatt and Javon Hargrave as its interior defensive linemen in nickel packages. When the Packers go to base, Brooks enters as the third defensive lineman in the rotation.

But the Packers traded up in the third round to select Chris McClellan, and the rookie has played a lot with the first-team defense throughout the offseason program. McClellan can generate pressure like Brooks, but unlike the veteran, he’s much better in run defense. That versatility to play both the run and rush the passer could allow McClellan to surpass Brooks on the depth chart relatively quickly.

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Cornerback combination: Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine

Right now, the Packers’ projected starters at cornerback are Nixon and Valentine. At least one of them could lose the job before Thanksgiving because Green Bay invested heavily in the position throughout the offseason. The Packers signed Benjamin St-Juste in free agency and then drafted Brandon Cisse in the second round and Domani Jackson in the sixth.

Cisse and St-Juste are both candidates to win starting jobs during the season. St-Juste has faced some injury issues throughout his career and specifically during the Packers’ offseason program. Cisse, meanwhile, is raw but extremely talented. The Packers trust him, and if he can translate that talent to the field, Green Bay may hand him a starting role as the season progresses.

There’s a scenario where both Nixon and Valentine lose their jobs by Thanksgiving, but that would mean a completely overhauled cornerback room. Based on how the position performed last season as a clear weak link for the roster, the Packers may welcome that kind of change. If Cisse and St-Juste can bring better results, it won’t be unreasonable to imagine both current starters on the outside watching from the bench by November.