The Green Bay Packers‘ training camp will look much different in 2023. For the first time since 2008, Aaron Rodgers isn’t entering the summer as the Packers’ starting quarterback. With Rodgers in New York, Jordan Love will get his first taste of action as Green Bay’s man under center.

While most of the attention will be focused on Love’s progression, Green Bay also has several depth chart questions to answer during training camp. Which Packers battles will be worth watching this summer?

Top Green Bay Packers Training Camp Battles To Watch

Safety | Rudy Ford vs. Tarvarius Moore vs. Jonathan Owens

Safety is, without question, the weakest section of Green Bay’s defense heading into 2023. Darnell Savage Jr., who was briefly benched at the end of last season, is essentially guaranteed a starting role next year simply because the Packers have no other options.

Savage spent time in the slot in 2022, but that’s not a role he’s expected to play next season. Instead, All-Pro returner Keisean Nixon will handle nickel duties after playing 290 defensive snaps a year ago.

Nixon, whom head coach Matt LaFleur called “really impactful,” will line up in between Jaire Alexander and Rasul Douglas while fellow corner Eric Stokes recovers from a Lisfranc injury.

At one point, Adrian Amos looked like a candidate to return to the Packers after spending the past four seasons in Green Bay. But Amos signed with the Jets earlier this month after Chuck Clark suffered a knee injury, further limiting the Packers’ options.

Savage will be in the starting lineup, and Green Bay has three realistic candidates to play alongside him in the back end. Rudy Ford saw action when Savage was benched last season and ultimately started six games, but his performance was relatively underwhelming. He’s probably best as the special teams ace he’s been throughout his career, but Ford would likely start if the season began today.

Meanwhile, Tarvarius Moore started eight games for the 49ers as recently as 2020, but he ruptured his Achilles in 2021 and played fewer than 100 defensive snaps in San Francisco last year.

Jonathan Owens started all 17 games for the Texans last year, but Pro Football Focus graded him as the third-worst safety in the NFL (one spot ahead of Savage).

While there’s still time for the Packers to consider a free agent safety like John Johnson III or Duron Harmon, Green Bay’s current plan for the position appears to be a hope and a prayer.

Tight End | Luke Musgrave vs. Tucker Kraft

After losing Robert Tonyan to the Bears in free agency, the Packers felt that tight end was enough of a need to double down in the draft. Green Bay used one of their second-round picks to add Oregon State’s Luke Musgrave before selecting South Dakota State’s Tucker Kraft in the third.

Josiah Deguara is still on the Packers’ roster, but he’s more of a fullback/tight end hybrid who earned just 15 targets and played only a quarter of Green Bay’s offensive snaps in 2022. And while the Packers could still re-sign aged wonder Marcedes Lewis as their blocking tight end, Musgrave and Kraft will compete to become the club’s top receiving-oriented TEs.

Both Musgrave and Kraft may see ample playing time during their rookie seasons. Green Bay used 12 personnel (two tight ends) on 37% of their plays last year, the third-highest rate in the NFL. Two-TE formations give offenses flexibility to attack defenses based on how many defensive backs are on the field, and answers become even more apparent when the TEs are capable as both receivers and blockers.

“They’re both all-around tight ends that can kind of do everything,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said of Musgrave and Kraft. “They’re not pigeonholed into only being able to be a receiving tight end or a blocking tight end. They can do it all.

“They both have very good size, very good speed, so I’m excited. I do think most of their best football is ahead of them for different reasons, but I think they will complement each other, and they’ll be a good fit for our room that we already have.”

Musgrave’s draft billing will likely give him the edge to begin the season as a starter. But Kraft should have the opportunity to distance himself from Deguara during training camp and become a regular part of Green Bay’s tight end rotation.

Right Tackle | Yosh Nijman vs. Zach Tom

The Packers pride themselves on drafting and developing offensive linemen capable of playing multiple positions, but that can sometimes leave players without a defined role.

Yosh Nijman played left tackle in place of David Bakhtiari at the beginning of the 2022 season but moved to the right side when Bakhtiari returned, while rookie Zach Tom spent time at every position but center during his first NFL campaign.

Green Bay’s offensive line looks relatively solidified, with Bakhtiari, Elgton Jenkins, Josh Myers, and Jon Runyan Jr. projected to start from left to right. But right tackle remains an open question, and both Nijman and Tom could lay claim to the No. 1 spot on the depth chart.

Nijman was outstanding at left tackle at the beginning of the year but seemed to struggle when forced to move to right tackle, a position he’d never played in the NFL. He was eventually benched in favor of Tom, who allowed just 12 pressures and committed only one penalty during his rookie season.

Both Nijman and Tom saw first-team reps at right tackle during minicamp, while Tom also spent time at right guard. If Nijman can settle in at right tackle, the Packers might prefer to hold Tom as a super-sub who could step in at right guard or even center if Runyan or Myers struggles in 2023.

But if Tom performs as well during training camp as he did last year, it might be difficult for Green Bay to keep him off the field.