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8 standouts from Packers' preseason win over the Seahawks

The Green Bay Packers ended the preseason on a high note, beating the Seattle Seahawks 20-7 on Saturday to finish the exhibition schedule at 2-1.

A handful of starters on offense and defense saw the field before handing things off to the backups. For most, it was one final opportunity to make a case for a spot on the initial 53-man roster before Tuesday’s cutdowns. 

So, with this year’s preseason officially in the books, here are the Packers’ standouts from Saturday’s win over the Seahawks.

QB Malik Willis

Despite playing only two drives, there was plenty of excitement when Willis was on the field against Seattle. The opening drive ended in a poor decision by Willis, who overthrew a well-covered Malik Heath deep down the middle for an interception. Seahawks safety Ty Okada had the play of the day with his incredible diving one-handed pick. However, Willis bounced back on the second drive to lead a 14-play, 96-yard scoring drive, in which he picked up 50 yards through the air and 19 on the ground. Willis delivered a nice 39-yard completion to rookie Matthew Golden before capping off the drive by finding Romeo Doubs on a slant for a 1-yard touchdown pass.

DE Brenton Cox Jr.

The 2023 undrafted free agent capped things off with a good performance in the preseason finale. During the first quarter, Cox used a speed rush to beat the right tackle and forced a strip sack against Jalen Milroe, which Kingsley Enagbare recovered. The turnover led to a field goal to give the Packers a 10-0 lead. He later flashed on run defense with a stuff in the backfield for a two-yard loss. Coming off a strong second half in 2024, Cox has had a productive summer and is in line to be a top rotational piece for Green Bay’s defense.

LB Ty’Ron Hopper

After a bleak rookie campaign, the 2024 third-rounder has made a significant jump in Year 2. With a year under his belt, Hopper has looked much more comfortable in Jeff Hafely’s defense, becoming a consistent playmaker on the second-team defense during the preseason. He had another solid outing in Week 3, totaling three tackles with two impressive stops on fourth down, including a forced fumble on a QB sneak and a sack. Matt LaFleur believes Hopper is one of the team’s most improved players.

DE Deslin Alexandre

Alexandre is back on the standout list thanks to a solid performance against Seattle. He made two high-impact plays, including getting his hands up to bat down a pass at the line of scrimmage on fourth and goal and then securing a sack on third down to start the second half. The second-year UDFA also made a tackle on punt coverage. Alexandre remains a long shot to make the team, but he’s made a strong case to be brought back on the practice squad.

K Brandon McManus

Unlike last year, the Packers’ kicking game is in a great place heading into the regular season. And it’s all thanks to McManus. The veteran has been steady all summer, finally bringing stability to the kicking game. McManus hadn’t kicked much in the preseason, but he got two opportunities against Seattle and drilled them both from 48 and 52 yards.

P Daniel Whelan

Two specialists rarely make the standout list, but Whelan was hard to leave off after booming five punts for 297 yards and an average of 57.5 yards. Hopefully, the Packers don’t need to use him much during the regular season, but it’s always nice to have a field flipper on standby.

LB Isaiah Simmons

Things weren’t looking good for Simmons through the first two preseason outings, but he finished strong in Week 3, totaling a team-high seven tackles. Simmons had a couple of good stops in the run game, but his path to the initial 53 starts with what he can do on special teams. Luckily, he flashed his ability in the preseason finale with a nice tackle on punt coverage. Was it enough to secure the former top-10 pick a spot on the team? We’ll find out by 3:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday.  

CB Kamal Hadden

The second-year cornerback was credited with two pass breakups, and coach Matt LaFleur said he thought he had at least one more. Hadden was sticky in coverage for most of the afternoon, bouncing back from a rough outing in Indianapolis last week.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: 8 standouts from Packers’ preseason win over the Seahawks

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