Getty Head coach Matt LaFleur of the Green Bay Packers looks on during the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Lambeau Field on October 03, 2021 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
For the second time in less than two months, the Green Bay Packers are giving a roster tryout to a rookie with the potential to be a two-way player in the NFL.
According to the NFL’s transaction list, the Packers hosted former Air Force product George Silvanic for a workout on October 5 after previously trying him out toward the end of training camp. Silvanic had originally signed as an undrafted free agent with the Los Angeles Rams in early May and spent several months with the team before getting waived on August 16.
The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Silvanic switched positions a handful of times during his years with the Air Force Falcons, starting at tight end before seeing playing time as both an offensive and defensive lineman. It could be Silvanic’s positional versatility that makes him appealing to the Packers in the first place, especially with injuries impacting their lines on both sides of the ball.
The Packers currently have two openings on their 53-man roster with one expectedly waiting for defensive lineman Tyler Lancaster once he is activated off the reserve/COVID-19 list. If the Packers were interested in signing Silvanic, though, it would most likely be for a practice-squad role given his inexperience at the NFL level.
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Packers Like Developing Players Who Changed Positions
For the purpose of his NFL workout and overall roster status (based on his time with the Rams), Silvanic is classified as a defensive tackle, and it would make plenty of sense for the Packers to want him for that position alone. R.J. McIntosh, a 2018 fifth-round pick for the New York Giants, is the only defensive lineman on their practice squad at the moment while two of their five on the active roster (not counting Lancaster) are rookies. At the very least, it would be sensible for them to stash another on their practice squad to try developing for the future — as they have done successfully in the past with guys like Allen Lazard, Robert Tonyan and Yosh Nijman.
And yet, it would also make sense if the Packers like Silvanic for other reasons.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst hasn’t shied away from players with multi-positional value since taking over the job in January 2018. He drafted 287-pound tight end James Looney in the seventh round of his first NFL draft and toyed around with playing him at defensive lineman. He acquired former Baltimore Ravens defensive end Bronson Kaufusi and pulled the opposite maneuver, converting him to tight end and adding him to the practice squad after he showed promise in this summer’s training camp. And, of course, he drafted Elgton Jenkins in the second round of 2019 to gift Matt LaFleur’s lineup with someone who can play — and play well — at every position on their offensive line.
That’s not to say Silvanic could reach a Pro Bowl level as Jenkins has, but it goes to show the Packers have a pattern of investing in players capable of doing multiple things for their team, even if they are long-shot developmental pieces.