The Other Guys: Ty'Ron Hopper
By Kalani Jones
As we have entered the long dredges of the offseason, I’ve decided to devote my weekly CHTV articles to exploring a very specific sub-genre of the Green Bay Packers: the underachievers. Maybe that’s a bit too harsh. The potential-laden? The need-to-step-uppers? Or, to borrow the title of one of my favorite comedies: The Other Guys.
Last week I touched on the prospects of Marshawn Lloyd, what role on the team he’d really fit into and how the presence of Chris Brooks impacts him. At that point I didn’t know that he’d be the first of this series, but he’s really the 1A prototype for this kind of player.
Ty’Ron Hopper is certainly another.
His selection in round three of the 2024 draft (the same round Lloyd was taken, coincidentally) might live in infamy for being the prototypical “Packers reach”.The consensus board had Hopper listed as the 190th overall prospect, a sixth rounder. Both Dane Brugler and Lance Zierlien had him as a fifth round prospect. Hearing his name called on day two was a shock to many, especially as the Packers had already drafted a linebacker earlier that day (Edgerrin Cooper in round two), and had taken Quay Walker in the first only two drafts earlier.
Now, I’m not usually a big proponent of “a prospect’s range is where draft analysts say it is”. I find the consensus board (not to re-ignite those wars again) to be an excellent tool. But I also think it’s important to understand that a prospect’s true range is where an NFL team is willing to take them, for better or worse. Hopper was taken in the third round, so that’s where his range began.
Where did the discrepancy come from? Let’s take a look at Hopper the prospect, before we get into Hopper the player.
Pre-draft, Hopper was considered to be a versatile linebacker prospect, with high-speed pursuit skills and solid coverage ability. He earned a 7.42 RAS in the pre-draft process, though he was certainly a bit undersized at 6’1” 231 lbs, which led to concerns about his ability to play effectively against NFL run blocking. He would struggle to get off of blocks in college, and had an abysmal missed tackle rate in his final year of college: 22.7%. There’s also a huge jump to make when comparing linebacker play in the NFL to the college level, especially in the SEC where Hopper hailed from. In college, a huge portion of a linebacker’s responsibility is to QB spy, obviously less so in the pros.
And that was the real challenge: how worth it is completely re-making a linebacker’s tackling fundamentals at the NFL level? It would mean a complete redshirt season for Hopper during his rookie season, and that is exactly what happened.
Hopper played just 18 snaps in 2024, and didn’t see the field at all until week 12. He did suffer an ankle injury during the week 16 contest against the Saints, which would end up being the last game he played that season, even as the team battled numerous linebacker injuries late that year.
2025 started in an extremely promising fashion for Hopper, who played and played well in the 2025 preseason. I even had the chance to do a film deep dive on his week three standout performance against the eventual Super Bowl champion Seahawks. I noted in the conclusion of that film breakdown that Hopper has made obvious strides towards becoming a true NFL linebacker, and I really do believe that he has. The question is, when you start so far behind, where does a huge leap really leave you compared to your peers?
2025 was a more productive year to be sure for Hopper, who played 133 snaps across twelve total games. He finished the year with eleven tackles, two pressures, and three receptions allowed, and of note in Hopper’s particular case, a 15% missed tackle rate. He played a full game’s worth of snaps in the week 18 matchup with Minnesota, but finished that game with a 39.9 grade from PFF, though I wouldn’t have been that harsh in that particular game, myself. I thought he had an okay showing, and the defense as a whole was showcasing a lot of new talent that week. Then a week later, Hopper snagged an interception in the wild card game against the Bears that really should have been game sealing.
Now, as we head into the 2026 season, Hopper should have the opportunity to earn even more snaps on the field. A strong training camp showing could have him pass Isiah McDuffie on the depth chart altogether, and be a part of any 3-LB packages that Johnathan Gannon could have up his sleeve. But, that’s kinda part of the problem as well, because I really can’t imagine a heck of a lot of three linebacker packages being used this year. Though Gannon has maintained his intention to utilize a “hybrid” base defense, there are plentiful signs that a 3-4 defense is more expected than a 4-3. Then there is the problem of getting into a base defense at all, which Gannon doesn’t really love to do. In fact, according to his historical tendencies, he’ll probably use a one linebacker dime defense more than base. So, barring injuries, which we of course hope will not be a factor, there really isn’t much opportunity for Hopper, at least on paper.
Could Hopper end up passing Zaire Franklin on the depth chart? It’s not totally impossible by any stretch, but highly unlikely all the same. Hopper would have to completely dominate the training camp and preseason. Hopper does have experience with the green dot, having served as the defense’s primary communicator in games past. However, Franklin’s experience, stacked on the fact that Green Bay had to trade a player away in order to go get him, makes it pretty obvious that the odds are extremely stacked in Franklin’s favor.
As is the case with his third round draft-mate Marshawn Lloyd, the historical trends of a player not being able to impact the team in their first two seasons is… not great. Having those two players make the most of the 2026 season would go a long way in keeping the Packers competitive in the Super Bowl discussion. Unlike Lloyd however, there just isn’t much room (again, on paper) for Hopper to actually make good on his upside. If Hopper is just an average to good backup linebacker for the team, that’s still an important role for the team! It just falls far short of the expectations of fans, and of what I’m sure the team itself had envisioned for him when they selected him.
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Co-Owner of the thirteen time world champion Green Bay Packers. Sometimes I write about them. Follow me on Twitter at https://x.com/kjones_in_co and on Substack for film breakdowns!
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Comments (19)
Savage57
May 25, 2026 at 07:12 am
I believe the word you're looking for was "dregs".
I know next to nothing about Hopper. So little in fact, when I see or hear his name the first thing that comes to mind is Cooper. Of course fans want to see him succeed, but does he have enough juice to overcome the Packers third round hex?
Nice series, Kalani. Makes us think of the other guys.
Guam
May 25, 2026 at 07:15 am
The author suggests Hopper's growth in playing time might come at the expense of Franklin, but Hopper's skill set ("high speed pursuit and solid coverage skills) suggests he is a better replacement for Cooper than Franklin. And Hopper will not be replacing a rising star like Cooper barring serious injury. Even if Hopper makes a jump, I don't see him getting significant playing time this year.
SicSemperTyrannis
May 25, 2026 at 02:06 pm
Depth is still important. It would be great if Hopper takes a big step forward, and might prove to be crucial..
golfpacker61
May 25, 2026 at 07:57 am
Hopper might not be in the same boat as Lloyd, but he is in the same pond. A lot of us think this is Lloyds last hurrah in GB, if he can't stay healthy and show some of the production we spent a 3rd round pick on. If he can't get on the field then GB will move on, 3 years is plenty.
Hopper has been healthy but isn't good enough to see the field. There is no other way to say it, he was overdrafted by 2 rounds and might never be any more than a #4 or #5 LB. He just isn't that talented.
golfpacker61
May 25, 2026 at 08:22 am
If we really wanted a LB in the 3rd round of the 2024 draft, then Peyton Wilson was the steal at that point. He was the co-#1 LB in that class but had fell because of multiple knee surgeries. Teams were scared off, but the Steelers saw the value and took him after we took Hopper. Bottom line is Wilson has been healthy and plays a lot, Hopper has been healthy and never plays.
I would have taken a CB with that pick. Khyree Jackson was available and the Vikings grabbed him in the 4th round. I believe the young man was killed in an auto accident and never played. The other CB I would have taken was T J Tampa-Iowa State. Big, fast, and productive. We needed CBs too.
2024 was the year of rebuilding the Safety room. Williams and Oladapo in the draft and the big Free Agent signing. Oladapo is kind of in the same conundrum as Hopper, better players ahead of him, special teams only for the most part. Both players will be on the bubble every year going forward.
Lare
May 25, 2026 at 08:34 am
Is Hopper a factor on Special Teams?
If not, it was a pretty bad draft pick.
Coldworld
May 25, 2026 at 09:18 am
Hopper has played about 500 ST snaps over his 2 seasons with the Packers. That would suggest he’s been a pretty core element of kick and punt coverage and probably return units.
Coldworld
May 25, 2026 at 09:06 am
Tyron Hopper was 228 at the combine. He is an undersized ILB. He started out as a corner in college. His big knock was a high missed tackle rate. His big plusses were coverage in space and the ability to rush. He’s not a Mike, size wise or in terms of his projected strengths as a player, As has been pointed out by Guam above. He is an example of two bites at the same cherry by Gute. The difference here is that unlike Kraft/Musgrave, in this case Cooper has proved to be not just the first taken, but really good pick.
It’s worth noting that Kraft only got an opportunity when Musgrave was injured and out for some time. In Hoppers case, Cooper’s absence has just meant that Eric Wilson and McDuffie got snaps. That both are more Mikes didn’t prevent them getting priority. McDuffie is a former college player for Hafley who was clearly favored, not only over Hopper but Wilson in the end. Last season suggests that the merit of that can be justifiably questioned re Wilson. If so, it’s quite possibly true of Hopper, particularly at Will.
In the end, we don’t know what Hopper is. In his one full game late last year he was played as a Mike, a role he’s unsuited to and undersized for. Haffley never tried to use him to rush the passer, but he never used Cooper for that last year either. Ultimately, it requires snaps to prove what a player is, but snaps in roles that the player is put in at least a decent position to succeed in. Hopper has never had that.
Perhaps with a new DC he will now. Hopefully Gannon will return Cooper to a more featured role not that of last year. Hopefully Cooper remains healthy, but if he doesn’t hopefully Hopper can prove his worth. Perhaps Hopper can get opportunities to rush/cover on obvious passing downs and he may feature as a big DB in some of the 1 ILB formations if Gannon uses them with similar personnel to those he’s called on in the past.
McDuffie though should be the Mike off the bench, not Hopper, in 2 ILB sets (and nothing else). Then we may see why Hopper is here and whether he was a good pick up or not. For now it’s usage or lack of it. In Camp/preseason last year he looked like the second best ILB (if also the second best Will). Hopefully Gannon is more open to finding ways to exploit that.
dobber
May 25, 2026 at 09:30 am
"it’s important to understand that a prospect’s true range is where an NFL team is willing to take them, for better or worse."
I think this should be a banner on the CHTV home page starting after the last snap of the Packers' season and running until the first snap of the new season.
I'll echo CW's sentiment: most are seeing Hopper's chance as being in a relief role for Franklin in obvious passing situations. He's a different player from both McDuffie and Franklin, but we'll see how much play he actually gets. I don't know if the Packers will be willing to pay McDuffie--one of Hafley's guys--to sit behind Franklin.
Coldworld
May 25, 2026 at 10:01 am
If we were going to move on from McDuffie (and I thought we might), the internal prospect was Johnson. We released him before the draft. We didn’t take a Mike prospect in the draft and the only ILB prospect we took even as a UDFA is Quinn, a former safety and undersized for a Mike as well. However, unlike Hopper, he was a Mike in college.
If we do move on from McDuffie it’s going to need to be through picking up an outsider. Perhaps that’s the plan, but we can’t go into the season without a good player of the run behind Franklin and we don’t have an obvious one.
If the goal is to convert Hopper into that then I’m fearful we are again trying to nail a square peg into a round hole. If it’s Quinn then he’s going to need to have a great summer I would think before he’d be credible as a replacement for McDuffie. We actually don’t have an off ball ILB over 235 on the 90, unless you count Oliver. We have a very lightweight ILB group.
golfpacker61
May 25, 2026 at 10:39 am
The LB I really liked as a late round pick for GB in the 2024 draft was Nathaniel Watson-Miss State. Miss State has produced a lot of NFL draft talent, especially on the defensive side. NFLDRAFTBUZZ said this "Watson combines the athleticism of a chase-and-tackle defender and the toughness and physicality of a classic 4-3 Mike." He was 6'2 240lbs and ran low 4.6s. He had 400 tackles in his 4 year career.
His senior stats included 137 tackles & 10 sacks.
In 2024 Edge Cooper, Trevin Wallace and Cedric Gray were mocked to GB a lot. If Watson fell onto the Browns practice squad I would steal him.
gsd3
May 25, 2026 at 02:14 pm
In a heartbeat. Loved Watson coming out
GregC
May 25, 2026 at 12:09 pm
If Zaire Franklin got injured and/or Ty'Ron Hopper had a great training camp, to the point where Hopper was clearly the team's second best linebacker, I wonder if they would consider having Edgerrin Cooper play the "mike" role so Hopper could get on the field with him. Cooper bulked up to around 240 last season, so he should be more stout against the run, and he now has enough experience that he could wear the green dot.
I'm not expecting this to happen, but maybe it's possible.
Coldworld
May 25, 2026 at 12:53 pm
I wonder if Cooper is still that weight? Presumably that was a Hafley initiative. He was more impactful lighter.
GregC
May 25, 2026 at 03:43 pm
Yeah, I thought maybe the weight gain slowed him down. He did not look as fast last year. I have no idea whether or not he has maintained the higher weight.
SicSemperTyrannis
May 25, 2026 at 02:30 pm
I hope Cooper gets developed into our Mike, under Franklin's mentorship.
Ferrari-Driver
May 25, 2026 at 12:38 pm
".The consensus board had Hopper listed as the 190th overall prospect, a sixth rounder"
As a sixth round pick, I think Hopper would be a reasonable selection. Taking him in the 3rd round may have been quite a reach.
stockholder
May 25, 2026 at 03:04 pm
Thin-framed former defensive backs-
Oren Burks
Ty Hopper -
Etc.
So Gute sees these "stacked" second-level defenders.
And we wonder why they got drafted.
Maybe if he drafted the LBs that
can shoot the gaps.
We wouldn't keep having busts.
It's Always disappointing giving up on a player.
But until Gute stops his misses.
It's the norm.
HarryHodag
May 26, 2026 at 10:00 am
I really don't care what the 'experts' think of a draft pick. Willie Wood was undrafted and went on to a Hall of Fame career with the Packers. The Packers saw his ability. It would help if fans would remember there's a large industry of 'experts' selling you info about draft picks. Just because the 'experts' tell you something doesn't mean it's so. I've coined the term "Kiperized" about people who think the draft can fall out in a regimented order by round. It isn't that simple. The folks inside the personnel office are looking for players who fit their system. Just because a guy is drafted low doesn't mean he's a bust in the making, or that he's a top pick he will be a Hall of Famer. All of it gets shaken out during training camp.
Hopper might not ever be a Pro Bowler but he could be a solid backup and part-time starter. We will find out in a couple of months.