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With Dominique Dafney on the injured reserve list, the Green Bay Packers have snagged some tight-end reinforcements from another team.
The Packers announced on September 28 that they had signed second-year tight end Tyler Davis off of the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad, adding a fourth body to the position group behind Robert Tonyan Jr., Marcedes Lewis and Josiah Deguara. They also placed defensive lineman Tyler Lancaster on the reserve/COVID-19 list after he tested positive for the coronavirus.
Davis was a sixth-round pick for Jacksonville in 2020 and spent eight games of his rookie season on the Jaguar’s active roster; though, he was not targetted for any passes and played on just 4% of offensive snaps (40) as primarily a run and pass blocker. After the Jaguars waived him at the end of 2021 training camp, the Colts signed him to their practice squad on September 3 as a developmental talent.
The Packers did not need to clear a spot on their 53-man roster for Davis prior to signing him. Dafney’s placement on IR had already left them with just 52 players, while Lancaster’s positive test freed up another spot for their active unit. It remains to be seen, though, whether they will attempt to fill Lancaster’s spot or simply wait for him to clear COVID protocols, which vary depending on his vaccination status.
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Will Packers Get Contributions Out of Davis?
The Packers’ decision to sign Davis makes sense from a depth perspective. Without Dafney, they were down to just three options — plus Bronson Kaufusi on the practice squad — to round out the position group and needed a big body to help pick up his blocking responsibilities. Davis certainly looks the part of someone who can handle that at 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, but how often will the Packers actually look for him to contribute?
Davis had a modest amount of receiving production in college despite playing three different offensive positions. While he originally joined up with UConn as a quarterback, he switched to wide receiver after redshirting his first season before later converting to tight end. The multiple position changes did work out for him, though, as he went on to catch 47 passes for 500 yards and seven touchdowns over three seasons for the Huskies. He also added another 17 receptions, 147 yards and his eighth career touchdown as a graduate transfer for Georgia Tech in 2019, serving as one of their team captains.
The Packers, however, don’t really need more tight ends that can run routes. Between their large volume of wideouts and Tonyan’s reliable hands, Davis isn’t likely to get many, if any, targets from Aaron Rodgers in the passing game. They also have a versatile piece in Deguara that can pick up some of the backfield reps that Dafney — who moonlights as a fullback/H-back — left behind. Maybe there is underlying value in Davis’ positional versatility that the Packers aim to exploit, but it would be difficult to classify him as anything more than a second-string blocking tight end behind Lewis.
Lancaster’s Status Could Pave Way for UDFA
The Packers know more than the rest of us about how long it could take for Lancaster to return to the fold. If he is vaccinated, he will need to produce two negative tests at least 24 hours apart from each other and be asymptomatic before being eligible to return. If he is unvaccinated, the Packers will have to be more patient and keep him isolated for 10 days before assessing his symptoms and giving him an all-clear to get back on the field.
If it is the latter scenario and Lancaster is not available for Week 4’s game against Pittsburgh, the Packers will need a backup plan to account for his lost reps. They do have a roster space open for them to pursue someone, similar to how they acquired Davis off the Colts’ practice squad, but a more sensible answer could be the sixth defensive lineman on their roster: Jack Heflin.
Heflin earned a place on the Packers’ initial 53-man roster after putting on an impressive first camp with the team. He recorded nine tackles, six pressures, four hits and two hurries across 118 preseason snaps along with five stops in the run game, impressing the staff enough to make him the only undrafted rookie retained for their active roster. While they ruled him a healthy inactive in each of their first two games, he did get to play in Week 3’s win over San Francisco, albeit just four snaps exclusively on special teams. If Lancaster is out, it might be time for the Packers to really see what he can do as a rotational piece.
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