When the Green Bay Packers drafted cornerback Eric Stokes in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, they expected the former Georgia star to challenge for a starting position by the second half of his rookie year. The original plan was that Stokes would likely be in the nickel or dime packages early and as he learned the defense, adjusted to the NFL game and improved his technique, he would eventually take over for Kevin King as the second cornerback opposite Pro Bowler Jaire Alexander.

Fast forward to the six week mark of Stokes’ rookie season and those plans changed. Injuries to King and Alexander forced the Packers to thrust Stokes into the lineup and give him significant playing time sooner than they originally wished. But despite some expected rookie mistakes, Stokes has been equal to the task.

Through six games, Stokes has been on the field for 82 percent of the Packers defensive snaps while starting four games. He’s been credited with 21 total tackles, has broken up seven passes and recorded his first career NFL interception which came against Ben Roethlisberger of the Steelers.

With two experienced corners usually lining up opposite Stokes, opposing quarterbacks have not hesitated to test the rookie. He has been targeted 36 times through six games which is tied for nineth in the entire league according to Pro Football Focus.

According to Pro-Football-Reference.com, opposing quarterbacks have completed just 55.6 percent of the passes they’ve thrown to receivers covered by Stokes and their quarterback rating is only 70.7.

The development of Stokes has been something the coaching staff has watched since he arrived in Green Bay after being selected in the draft in April. The scouting report on Stokes indicated he had elite speed but needed to work on his technique and his ball skills to live up to his first round billing.

Throughout training camp, Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams, two of the best players in the league at their respective positions, decided to test Stokes on a regular basis. Stokes could have felt picked on, but instead, he viewed it as an opportunity to improve by going up against two elite athletes in practice each day.

“Every day, I know for a fact that he’s going to make me better somehow, some way,” Stokes said.

Adams was impressed by the way Stokes responded. “I like what I see from him,” Adams said during training camp. “He’s the closest thing to Jaire [Alexander] as far as mentality and ability, from what I’ve seen so far. The kid is fast as hell. He can get beat and recover kind of like how Sam Shields would do.”

In the season opener, Stokes saw only eight defensive snaps as both King and Alexander were healthy. In Week 2, that number went up to 44 snaps. Since injuries have hit the secondary, Stokes has been thrust into a full-time starting role a bit sooner than most people had expected. He has done a solid job overall.

Head coach Matt LaFleur has been impressed by Stokes’ progress. “He is a guy that is just wired the right way,” LaFleur said after the win over Pittsburgh. “He comes to work with the right attitude, with the right mentality, and I think he’ll continue to get better and better and better the more we progress through this thing. I just love what he’s all about as a person. I think he’s got a really great skill set to complement that and we’re fortunate to have that guy on our football team. Certainly, we were getting thin there in the secondary toward the end of the game. It was cool to see some of those young guys get out there and make some plays.”

Stokes’ speed allows him to make up for some of the mistakes he makes. If a receiver gets a step on him, he can often catch up, especially when the ball is in the air. He also doesn’t have to give receivers as much of a cushion because of his speed, but if he does, he can bait quarterbacks into trying to throw to an “open” receiver who can be quickly covered by Stokes.

At times, Stokes still does get beat by double moves or has the occasional lapse in his assignments, but he continues to learn and improve.

The Packers are confident about their future at cornerback. Long term, they hope that Stokes and Alexander give them an elite pair of staters at this vital position. As Stokes continues to learn and develop, he gives the organization faith that this high draft pick was one that was well spent.