We've turned the page on the 2024 NFL Preseason, and the next time we see the Packers take the field, it'll really count. We had plenty of interesting storylines to follow, with the kicking and backup quarterback competitions taking the spotlight. But at a not-so-distant third, the rotation of linebackers certainly deserved some notice. Throughout the three week period, questions abound about when we would see 2nd Rounder Edgerrin Cooper, as well as just how good the 3rd Round Pick and 2024 Gems Selection Ty'Ron Hopper really was.

Let me remind you, this is uncharted territory folks, this is the first time GM Brian Gutekunst has selected a Gem (and hopefully not the last, I gotta job to keep too). And now that he has, did the Packers "get it right"?

If you need to refresh your memory, you can read about my endorsement of Hopper in Part V of Joseph's Gems 2024.

For part one of Reassessing, you can find that here.

Analysis

I'm still making my notes, but in the two weeks of seeing Hopper in action, I was pleased to see him "pop" off the tape. Even when I was watching another player, Ty'Ron would find his way onto the screen, and into my gaze. For a 4-3 LB, that's exactly what I want to see. If you ask me, it seemed like it was an open competition between Hopper and fellow linebacker Ralen Goforth on who could get the most action in the fray. 

I need a larger sample size, and apparently Haf does too, as he has yet to win the starting job and is currently #2 behind Isaiah McDuffie. Let's not hit the panic button yet though. McDuffie is the veteran and he was also coached by Haf at Boston College so there's probably a trust factor there that Hopper is going to have to earn before he gets out there. For what it's worth, Cooper is also #2 behind Eric Wilson. It will be interesting to see who starts to chip away at the two starters' snap counts first. 

From a purely statistical perspective, Hopper is only credited with missing two tackles all preseason through his 89 snaps. Whether it's Haf or Hopper just getting better on his own, or both. I said it back then, and I'll say it again, the missed tackles are not the problem some of you might think it is. During a typical game, an NFL offense will run on average 47-54 snaps. So if Ty'Ron is only missing 1 tackle a game, I can certainly live with that. Once he's out with the starters I imagine he'll go for multiple-game streaks without missing any at all.

What I really wanted to see, but didn't see from Hopper is his ability to rush the passer. Per PFF, Hopper had only two pass rush snaps, despite being on the strong side of the defense. I'm not necessarily "bummed" about it, but I just wanted to see how he handles NFL offensive tackles on the edge. His primary usage was against the pass, which did leave something to be desired, but I'm going to temper that evaluation because it's the preseason, and teams tend to draw up some real vanilla stuff. I won't get too concerned until mid-season.

Expectations

Hard to really say if he's held up in just the preseason, but Hopper registered 11 tackles with 6 stops - a new stat by PFF that constitutes a failure by the offense. While he had an overall grade by those experts at 50.4, I'm going to throw an asterisk at that since NOBODY looked good playing at Denver, where Hopper himself graded out at 42.3. But once the homecookin' was on at Lambeau, Hopper had a respectable defensive grade of 64.5, which falls within expectations of a rookie 3rd Rounder (at least it does for me). It's hard to really take a guess at what Hopper will do once out there for an extended period of time, but if he can hover around 60-69 for several weeks per PFF, we should start to see his snap count grow before taking over completely.

Comparisons

I'm going to keep this short...for now. But I encourage you to let me know in the comments about your favorite team that's not the Packers and these developing storylines. We're going to compare the four LBs taken before and after Hopper. Since I didn't take the time out during the preseason, I will simply compare their depth chart positions for now.

Before Hopper, 92nd Overall

Edgerrin Cooper, 45th Overall - Packers #2 WOLB (4-3)

Junior Colson, 69th Overall - Chargers #5 ILB (3-4 Hybrid)

Trevin Wallace, 72nd Overall - Panthers #3 ILB (3-4)

Marist Liufau, 87th Overall - Cowboys #1 WOLB (4-3)

After Hopper, 92nd Overall

Adisa Issac, 93rd Overall - Ravens #3 SOLB  (3-4)

Payton Wilson, 98th Overall - Steelers #3 ILB (3-4)

Cedric Gray, 106th Overall - Titans #5 ILB (3-4 Hybrid)

Tyrice Knight, 118th Overall - Seahawks #2 ILB (4-3 Hybrid)

I'll keep my eye out for the above names, but outside of Liufau, who's playing on a Cowboys defense that's depleted after Dan Quinn's departure, a lot of these LBs seem relegated to reserve roles in 2024. I could be wrong, but outside of Cooper, Hopper, and maybe Trevin Wallace I don't see the rest of this group locking down a starting gig as a rookie. I could be wrong, as it's super early at this point.

Conclusion

And with it being early, Hopper just needs to earn the trust of his teammates, as well as his coaches. Gutekunst believes he's the future, and so does your favorite Gemologist. With hard work and dedication on and off the field paired with staying healthy, this Gem will start to sparkle sooner rather than later. Stay tuned for Part III of Reassesing as we evaluate Hopper's first real NFL snaps in Week 5.

#GPG