While everyone in the NFL community is focused on the 2025 NFL draft and its available draft pool, I’m focused on a player the Packers selected in the 2024 NFL draft that got off to a rocky start as a professional. Jacob monk  remains a relatively unknown player heading into Year 2 in Green Bay. The Packers drafted the 23-year-old guard/center out of Duke University with the 163rd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft (5th round). His rookie season in Green Bay was extremely underwhelming, as he did not log a single snap on offense and saw action strictly on special teams, where he played 43 snaps. Despite the lack of action in 2024, he has the opportunity to become an important depth piece along the offensive line in 2025—and perhaps more beyond that.

He had a respectable and productive collegiate career as a versatile chess piece on the offensive line. During his five seasons as a Blue Devil, Monk started 58 of the 59 games he appeared in. His primary position was right guard, where he started 34 games, but he also logged 12 starts at center and another 12 at right tackle. A team captain as a senior, he was named to the All-ACC team three different times. Experience, leadership, and versatility—these are all traits the Packers value in their prospects, so it’s not surprising they targeted him in the 2024 draft.

The Packers liked him enough to trade up five spots to secure him. They gave up the No. 219 overall pick in the 6th round to Buffalo along with their 5th-rounder at No. 168 to get Monk at No. 163—clearly seeing value in his blend of versatility and athleticism.

So what should we make of the fact that he couldn’t see the field as a rookie? Even when Elgton Jenkins left the Packers’ Wild Card loss against the Eagles, it was Travis Glover—a tackle—they brought in and moved inside to guard. When Glover struggled, the Packers made a change, but still not to Monk. Instead, it was another converted tackle, Kadeem Telfort, who got the nod. In fact, after being active for the first 11 weeks of the season, Monk ended up a healthy scratch for the final six weeks plus the playoffs—a troubling trend in the wrong direction.

It’s not a good sign that he couldn’t get on the field as a rookie. I don’t want to assume too much, but the fact he went from being active each week to a healthy scratch—while two converted tackles were trusted ahead of him—leads me to believe he was struggling behind the scenes. Whether it was in practice, film study, or the other duties of a professional backup trying to earn playing time, something wasn’t clicking. Backups need to prepare like starters, as they can be called into action at a moment’s notice. If they don’t, there’s almost zero chance they’ll play.

Looking at Monk’s history in college, there is a precedent for starting slow and improving with time. As a freshman at right tackle, he allowed seven sacks in 12 games. However, once he was moved inside for the remainder of his college career, he allowed just five total sacks over four seasons. In his junior and senior years, Pro Football Focus charged him with just one sack allowed in 661 pass-blocking snaps. Those are outstanding numbers, and if he follows a similar trajectory in the NFL, then the remaining three years of his rookie deal could look very different from the first.

I’m going into Monk’s second year similarly to how I viewed Sean Rhyan’s. Rhyan was selected in the 3rd round of the 2022 draft and was expected to compete for a starting job—but instead had a completely lost rookie season, just like Monk. After showing up out of shape and looking overmatched, Rhyan played just one special teams snap in one game in 2022. His season ended with a suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. Outside of being outright released, it’s hard to have a worse rookie year than Rhyan did. But if he can overcome that and develop into an above-average NFL starter, then one would have to think Monk has a chance to do the same.

Year 2 might be Jacob Monk’s career make-or-break season. If he continues to struggle and can’t get on the field, it might be time to worry about a wasted pick. But if he can follow the Sean Rhyan sophomore path, he has an opportunity to be the first one off the bench at center and in the mix at guard with a strong summer. With three starters along the offensive line heading into contract years—Rasheed Walker, Zach Tom, and the aforementioned Sean Rhyan—Jacob Monk has a real chance to be a starter in 2026 with a strong showing in 2025.