Which Retired Packers Would Make the Biggest Impact?

The biggest news coming out of Week 14 in the NFL isn’t the fact that the Chiefs and Ravens are in danger of missing the playoffs. It’s not who’s sitting in the number-one seeds in each conference. It’s the news that the Indianapolis Colts, who find themselves in dire straits at the most important position in football, are signing 44-year-old retired quarterback Philip Rivers. The Colts signed Rivers — who has been retired for five years — to their practice squad as the replacement for injured starter Daniel Jones, who tore his Achilles tendon this past Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars. With a barren cupboard at the position, they are putting their playoff hopes on the arm of a player who last stepped on the field in January of 2021.

It got me thinking: if the Packers found themselves in that position, are there any retired former Packers out there who could step in and help out in a pinch if they suffered a major injury and didn’t want to settle for an unproven player in the middle of a major playoff push? Three players came right to mind.

P.S. No, Brett Favre is not listed. Besides the fact that he is 56 years old, he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and I wanted this list to be somewhat realistic.

Micah Hyde

The one that got away. The former Packers draft pick really started to come into his own when the Packers inexcusably let him walk in free agency at the end of the 2016 season. Once he signed with Buffalo, he would go on to earn two All-Pro selections (in 2017, his first season away from Green Bay, and in 2021) and a Pro Bowl to go along with it. One of the better ball-hawking safeties in the NFL while in Orchard Park, Hyde has 24 career interceptions and could probably step in and help the secondary pick off a few errant throws. A great punt returner in his time in Green Bay, maybe he could relieve Romeo Doubs of his punt-return duties — and maybe he has one more touchdown return left in those legs.

Seeing how he just retired last year and is still only 34 years old, Hyde could probably play with just a few weeks of practice under his belt. Interestingly enough, Hyde retired after the 2023 season and didn’t sign with the Bills until December 4th of the 2024 season, onto their practice squad for a playoff push, but didn’t get into a game. If anything happened to the Packers’ backend of their secondary, maybe Micah wants to come home and finish where it all started.

Bryan Bulaga

I felt like David Bakhtiari would be a basic answer, so I went another route. Plus, his knee is so shot he probably couldn’t make it on the field anyway. While considering players for this article, I was amazed to learn Bulaga is still only 36 years old. You could have told me he was 42 and I would have believed it. But alas, the former right tackle last played in 2021 for the Los Angeles Chargers but didn’t technically retire until November of 2023. The 36 year old wouldn't even be the oldest offensive lineman in the league with Trent Williams still playing. 

Upon leaving Green Bay after a stellar 10-year career that included an appearance on the PFWA All-Rookie Team and a Super Bowl championship in 2010, Bulaga signed a three-year deal with the Chargers in 2020. After injuries limited him to just 10 games with the Bolts, he was released and wouldn’t sign with another team again.

The fact that he didn’t retire until two years ago, and stayed unretired for two years post his last game, tells me he might have been holding out hope for one last run with a contender. Enter Green Bay. After all the poor offensive-line play the Packers have endured this season, would anyone feel comfortable with their current options on a run to the Super Bowl should the Packers suffer an injury to their right tackle? Darian Kinnard and Jordan Morgan would be the leaders in the clubhouse, and neither has lit the world on fire. Plus, Bulaga has appeared in 13 career playoff games, including the Super Bowl. Maybe he would be able to shake off some rust and give it a go for the last handful of games.

Za’Darius Smith

OK, maybe this one is cheating a little bit, seeing how Smith actually played games for the Eagles this season and just retired in October — but he is still technically retired and he literally made the most sense. The former Packer had his best seasons as a pro as a member of the Green and Gold back in 2019 and 2020. In those seasons he totaled 13.5 and 12.5 sacks respectively and was named to back-to-back Pro Bowls and earned an All-Pro nod in 2020. He was legitimately one of the best pass rushers in all of football and remains a top-three free-agent pickup by general manager Brian Gutekunst, along with Josh Jacobs and Xavier McKinney.

Since leaving Green Bay, Z has traveled around a bit and played for the Vikings, Browns, Lions, and Eagles, and hasn’t nearly been the same player, but he has at least been able to stay on the field. He played 16 games in 2022 and 2023, and all 17 in 2024 split between Cleveland and Detroit. Still just 33 years old, I bet he could step in and provide a pass-rush spark opposite Micah Parsons that could be a difference-maker. While he didnt end his time in Green Bay on the best of terms, he’s never played with anyone on the other side of him at the level of Parsons and that could be enough to suck it up and eat some crow. Plus, his ability to line up inside and out would open a whole bunch of creative doors for Jeff Hafley. Let’s be honest: if we swapped the recent version of Rashan Gary out for Smith, would anyone really notice a difference?