Packers Reportedly Showed Interest In Former First-Round Defensive Back

The Green Bay Packers are in a mixed position with their defensive back room. While the safety group features All-Pro Xavier McKinney and two promising second-year players in Javon Bullard and Evan Williams, the cornerback unit is a significant concern heading into the 2025 season.

Green Bay signed former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs in free agency and added Tulane’s Micah Robinson in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Additionally, they released Jaire Alexander three weeks ago.

Examining the current outlook of the cornerback group reveals a lack of reliable experience on the outside — both Keisean Nixon and Nate Hobbs, the team’s top two options, have spent most of their careers playing in the slot. That is a problem for a team with postseason aspirations, especially given the importance of holding up against boundary receivers.

The Packers are confident their current cornerbacks can get the job done, but that does not mean they have stopped exploring other options. According to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson, Green Bay recently showed interest in signing a former first-round pick who most recently spent time in the UFL.

“#Texans weren’t the only #NFL team interested in Damon Arnette Jr.,” Wilson wrote. “#49ers general manager John Lynch discussed him with UFL. #Packers were another team that explored Arnette option.”

The Las Vegas Raiders selected Damon Arnette 19th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. He started seven of the nine games he played as a rookie but saw limited action in 2021, appearing in just four games before being released by the team in November of that year. After he departed from Las Vegas, Arnette had short stints with the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs. Most recently, he signed a one-year deal with the Houston Texans and also joined the Houston Roughnecks of the UFL in 2024 as he looked to revive his career.

Arnette was an average run defender during his time with the Raiders, but he struggled in coverage, earning grades of just 37.5 in 2020 and 29.6 in 2021, according to PFF. 

Arnette turns 29 this September and, at best, could offer some extra depth in the secondary — but it’s hard to picture him stepping in as a starter. At this point in his career, there’s little evidence to suggest he can completely turn things around and become a reliable, starting-caliber player.

If the Packers showed interest, it probably means they saw something worth taking a closer look at — maybe a few flashes on tape or some growth during his time in the UFL. However, it is tough to believe that whatever they saw would be enough to change the landscape of the secondary going into 2025.