The Green Bay Packers have resumed OTAs this week as the team gathers to continue preparations for the 2025 NFL season. While the Packers are set with two of their three spots at linebacker, the third starter remains up for grabs. We know Quay Walker and Edgerrin Cooper will start if they’re healthy, but there are three primary candidates for the remaining starting linebacker position. So, who will win the third linebacker spot for the Green Bay Packers this season?
Who Will Win the Battle for the Third Linebacker Spot for the Green Bay Packers? Number One: Isaiah McDuffie
The incumbent starter is veteran Isaiah McDuffie. The former Boston College star started all 17 games for the Packers last season and finished second on the team with 97 total tackles including three tackles for loss.
McDuffie gives the Packers an experienced and intelligent football player. He lacks ideal size and athleticism for the job.
McDuffie plays the run well, but his lack of speed often makes him a liability in coverage. Opposing quarterbacks completed 80.8 percent of their passes when throwing to receivers covered by McDuffie last season according to pro-football-reference.com and they had a quarterback rating of 118.5.
McDuffie provides leadership and experience but lacks the ideal athleticism that the coaching staff would prefer in the starting lineup. He also contributes on special teams.
Number Two: Ty’Ron Hopper
The Packers selected Ty’Ron Hopper in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Like most rookies, Hopper had to adjust to life in the NFL.
He played in all 17 games last season, but only played 18 snaps on defense, an average of roughly one snap per game.
Hopper has the athleticism the Packers coaching staff is looking for. The former Missouri star ran a 4.68 40-yard dash prior to the draft last season. However, during the season, he struggled to learn his assignments on defense and to read NFL offenses.
If Hopper can take a step forward in his second pro season, he could win the starting job opposite Walker and Cooper. That would provide the team with three very fast and athletic linebackers. That could give defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley the ability to keep offenses guessing which player will drop back into coverage, who may be blitzing and who may be lining up in which spot.
Who Will Win the Battle for the Third Linebacker Spot for the Green Bay Packers? Number Three: Isaiah Simmons
The Packers signed Isaiah Simmons as a free agent after the 2025 NFL Draft. Simmons gives the Packers an intriguing candidate with elite athletic skills, but he has never quite lived up to his pre-draft potential.
The Arizona Cardinals selected Simmons with the eighth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, Simmons has never found a permanent position in the NFL.
He can play both safety and off-ball linebacker but appears to be the jack of all trades but master of none. In his first five seasons in the league, he started more than half the games in a season just twice. He spent the last two seasons with the New York Giants and started just five games while playing all 34 contests. Simmons played just 17 percent of the Giants defensive snaps last season.
Hafley may be able to utilize Simmons in blitz packages and in specific situations where he can utilize his athleticism to maximum advantage. He did, for example, record a career-high four sacks from his inside linebacker position for the Cardinals in 2022.
Can the Packers help Simmons realize his potential? He’s likely never going to be a star in the NFL, but he could become a useful role player for the team and play a larger role this season than he did in New York.
The battle for the third starter will be an interesting one and it may continue until or even beyond Week 1 against the Lions.
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