Hello and welcome to the very first installment of Ask Maggie: Your Packers Mailbag! I really appreciate all the engagement this week as we get this series off the ground. Feel free to keep asking your questions in the comments and on social media. I’ll respond to those as I see them, but the best way to make sure I don’t miss your question is by emailing [email protected]. Emails, of course, will stay confidential and I’ll just publish whatever name you sign off with. Now let’s get into the questions! 

“Hi Maggie- Looking forward to your new Mailbag column. My question is about Malik Willis' expiring contract situation in 2026. I'd love to keep him in GB, he's the best backup in the league right now. But realistically, he deserves a shot at a starting QB elsewhere, since Love is The Man in GB. Is there any way GB can extract more than just a Compensatory Draft Pick if he goes leaves via Free Agency? Maybe 'Sign and Trade'? What are the options?” - Joe

Malik Willis is going to make some money, and he certainly deserves the opportunity to start elsewhere. But it’s also going to depend on what situation Willis can find for himself in free agency. Things obviously didn’t work out with the coaching staff in Tennessee, so you have to think he’s looking for the right fit and not necessarily just a bigger contract (although money talks, so that certainly will matter). If he doesn’t like his options, maybe he does consider sticking around Green Bay, if the Packers are willing to pay him. That’s going to be hard to do, though, given the contract Jordan Love already has. Think about it this way. Spotrac estimates his current contract value at around $10.5 million per year. For context, Romeo Doubs’ market value is $12 million and Quay Walker sits just shy of $10 million. How much are you willing to pay Willis to stick around as QB2? We’ve obviously seen the value of having a reliable QB2. Willis has always kept the Packers in a position to win football games in Love’s absence. But would you rather have Willis, who you’re hoping doesn’t have to play, instead of a starting inside linebacker? Maybe the answer is yes. I don’t think sign and trade is really an option here. Even without a first round pick, the Packers are looking at eight picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, including two estimated seventh round compensatory picks for Josh Myers and Eric Wilson. If Willis starts somewhere and plays well, the Packers may be looking at a fourth-round compensatory pick similar to what the Steelers are projected to get for Justin Fields. That might be enough for them to cut their losses and give LaFleur a shot to develop another backup QB (maybe Desmond Ridder?). There are going to be a lot of free agent QBs this offseason that’ll cost significantly less than Willis. Trey Lance. Zach Wilson. Kenny Pickett. Just to name a few recognizable options. I feel like that doesn’t really answer your question in its entirety, but I guess I just don’t see there being a realistic way to keep Willis on the roster unless he decides to stick around on his own, and I don’t see them going through the hassle of signing and trading with their cap situation, either. 

“Maggie, I have a question: Knowing that the Packers will, more than likely, lose Malik Willis this off-season, what are the odds that Gutekunst will use the Packers first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft to select a Quarterback?” - DTowleJr

I would be shocked. Truly shocked. And I get the importance of a backup QB. The Packers haven’t had excellent backups since Matt Flynn. I was at many Brett Hundley games during the 2017 season. But with all of the cheap backups I listed above, and all of this team’s more-pressing needs on the roster, that would be a tough draft pick for me to rationalize. Do I think a QB could be selected with one of Green Bay’s six (estimated) Day 3 picks? Definitely. But not with the first pick of this year’s draft. Personally, I’d rather suffer through a few Desmond Ridder games with an elite nose tackle stuffing the run or a cornerback jumping routes for an interception than deal with a highly drafted backup QB prospect throwing dimes while the defense gives up 200 yards on the ground. The supporting cast on offense is incredible. Christian Watson. A healthy Tucker Kraft. Jayden Reed. Josh Jacobs. Year 2 Matthew Golden. If the o-line improves (spend your first pick there, honestly), just about any upright body would have a shot at making that offense go for a few games without Love. But without a stout run defender or a physical cornerback, none of that would matter. 

“Hi, I have noticed a few teams using a fullback for some pretty effective run blocking. Who on the roster could fill that role?” - Tom 

We are so back. Love a good fullback dialogue. On the 53 the answer is Josh Whyle. It’s also kind of funny that he wears #81 and played for Cincinnati in college, because so did Josiah Deguara. But yeah, it’s Whyle. He’s already been doing a bit of that lining up in the backfield in an H-back role, and he’s a stronger blocker than Luke Musgrave as far as the tight end room is concerned. But another name to keep an eye on is Messiah Swinson who’s on the practice squad. I could see him getting a call up to the active roster for Saturday night, largely in a blocking capacity. It sounds like it’s going to be windy (no duh, Maggie, they don’t call it the Windless City), so this turning into a ground and pound game will require some significant blocking efforts from the tight ends. 

“Who do you think made the biggest impact (in a good way) for the back-ups against the Viqueens? One (1) offensive player and one (1) defensive player. Hard for me to find an offensive player, but I liked a few defensive players which played a good role in holding the Purple People Eaters to minimal points. Do you foresee any of them being worthy of getting more playing time in the postseason?” - David

Daviddd. Vikings! We don’t use being a woman as an insult ‘round here (you literally wrote this question to a woman). Anyway, on offense, I’ll give the nod to Jacob Monk. I thought he had a tough preseason and wasn’t sure he’d even make the 53-man roster out of camp. Going on IR kind of answered that question for us. But him being back in the fold, I thought he played pretty well. The Vikings front isn’t the same as, say, the Eagles, but Monk held his own and was one of the brighter spots along the offensive line. Elgton Jenkins is obviously recovering from a significant injury and Sean Rhyan is a free agent. Monk didn’t lock up the starting center job for 2026 or anything, but it would certainly be nice to see him play like the backup lineman Green Bay drafted him to be. He’s the only “true” center on the roster. On defense, there’s really about four guys who I’d want to highlight, but you told me to pick one. I’ll pick Kitan Oladapo here because we have another question about Barryn Sorrell, and he’ll get his flowers there. Oladapo was my draft crush in 2024, so I was happy to see him getting an extended look in Minnesota. He played 99% of defensive snaps and 96% of special teams snaps. He had five total tackles and one pass defensed that should have been an interception, but that seems to be a theme for Green Bay’s secondary this season. With Zayne Anderson and Nate Hobbs now on IR, Oladapo figures to be the next man up for the secondary, either deep or potentially in the slot. Javon Bullard sounds like he’ll be good to go for Saturday night, but if for any reason he drops out, Oladapo proved he can be a serviceable replacement. He’s been a core special teamer all season already playing 48% of teams snaps, but that number will also likely increase with Anderson’s absence. 

“Glad to see you are back. Who will come out of the shadows to be the star of the Saturday night victory? Will 99 make an impact?” - Bill 

It’s hard not to root for Sorrell, right? Especially after being in Green Bay for the draft and getting to do his introductory presser live at Lambeau Field. He looked like he belonged on the field against Minnesota’s starting o-line. Eight tackles, a pair of third-down stops, a sack. He was doing it all. Effort has been an issue for Rashan Gary all season, and he hasn’t registered a sack in over two months. I think you absolutely include Sorrell in the rotation on Saturday night. And honestly, with how much Caleb Williams likes to roll out, Green Bay would benefit from having some fresh legs in pursuit. Who comes out of the shadows to be a star? I want to say Xavier McKinney, but I don’t really think he’d be coming out of any shadows. If you need one person to provide a spark for the defense, he’s due for a pick, right? Like one of these times he has to catch one? I’ll say Romeo Doubs on offense. Here’s hoping he replicates his playoff game against the Cowboys to put the onside kick fumble to bed. 

“Do you think we need to reload/rebuild the RB room after a subpar season from Jacobs and the failed M. loyd experiment??” - Condoriano

For me, personally, it’s hard to call this season subpar for Jacobs. I get the sentiment and the frustration after last season’s 16 total touchdowns and 1,671 scrimmage yards, but Jacobs played in 15 games this year versus 17, and he played behind a worse offensive line with a knee injury. He still had 1,211 scrimmage yards and 14 total TDs. Look at it this way. This year’s Packers rank seventh in rushing attempts (492), but 15th in yards (2,037) and 24th in yards per attempt (4.1). Last year’s team ranked fifth in attempts (526), fifth in yards (2,496), and sixth in yards per attempt (4.7). That says a lot about the unit’s lack of efficiency this season versus last season. Nobody is more frustrated about Lloyd’s situation than Lloyd himself, but you have to think at this point he’s fighting for a roster spot come training camp. Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks are both restricted free agents, so they likely will stick around in Green Bay unless the Packers don’t want them back. But I would certainly expect the team to invest a Day 3 pick or two on running backs in this year’s draft to round out the room and bring in some competition for those depth spots. 

“Hi Maggie! Thanks for doing this! My question: If we’re assigning beers, would a DB that just gave up a deep pass be a “Smoked Porter”?” - Jim

Nice! Vince Lombardi would be a Helles. As in, “what the Helles going on out there?!” 

Thanks for all of your questions! See you next week!