Building The 53 - The Last 8 Roster Spots

Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson made some minor roster moves today^ so there are currently 90 players on the roster.  As I said last week there are 27 locks* and 18 players that will most likely* make The 53.

J.C. Tetter (T) is recovering from a broken foot and Jerel Worthy (DE/DT) is recovering from a torn ACL.  Both players, if healthy, are locks to make The 53 but since they are recovering from serious injuries they are are headed for the PUP list.  That leaves 43 guys vying for 8 roster spots.

Although the Packers usually keep a few undrafted rookie free agents, with very little training camp in the books, it is too hard to tell what players are going to emerge.  Thus the following 21 players currently look like long-shots to make The 53:

Quarterback: None
Running Back: Angelo Pease
Fullback: Jonathan Amosa
Wide Receiver: Kevin Dorsey, Alex Gillett, Omarius Jones, Tyrone Walker, and Myles White
Tight End: Jake Stoneburner
Offensive Tackle: Kevin Hughes
Offensive Guard: Lane Taylor
Center: Garth Gerhard and Patrick Lewis
Defensive End: None
Defensive Tackle: Gilbert Pena
Middle Linebacker: Jarvis Reed
Outside Linebacker: Andy Mulumba and Donte Savage
Cornerback: James Nixon, Loyce Means, and Brandon Smith
Safety: Chris Banjo and David Fulton

Sure one of the players above could make a legitimate run at a roster spot but going into training camp there are really 22 guys fighting for 8 roster spots:

Quarterback: B.J. Coleman and Graham Harrell
Running Back: DuJuan Harris and Alex Green

Fullback: None
Wide Receiver: Jarrett Boykin, Charles Johnson, and Sederrik Cunningham
Tight End: Matthew Mulligan and Brandon Bostick
Offensive Tackle: Derek Sherrod and Andrew Datko
Offensive Guard: None

Center: None

Defensive End/Defensive Tackle: Mike Neal, Johnny Jolly, and Jordan Miller
Middle Linebacker: Robert Francois and Sam Barrington
Outside Linebacker: Nate Palmer and Micah Johnson
Cornerback: None 
Safety: Sean Richardson and Chaz Powell

Specialist: Mason Crosby and Giorgio Tavecchio

Lots of things can change throughout the preseason but my current advice would be to keep Coleman, Green, Boykin, Sherrod, Neal, Jolly, Richardson, and Tavecchio.  Check back as the preseason plays out for my continued thoughts on Building The 53.


Footnote:
^ = Waived Ryan McMahon (S), signed Chris Banjo (S), and signed Omarius Hines (WR).