One of the big questions entering the 2024 regular season was how the Green Bay Packers were going to use their defensive tackle rotation. Dropping from three interior defensive linemen in their 3-4 base to just two in their 4-3 base is fairly significant, even if the team is only playing its base defense around one-third of the snaps — compared to their nickel defense.
On Friday, the Packers started TJ Slaton next to Kenny Clark, but Slaton played just 39 snaps to Clark’s 54, which ranks as the fifth-most snaps among interior defensive linemen in Week 1 according to NFL Pro. So how did Green Bay supplement the snaps when Slaton (and Clark) was off of the field? By playing former first-round pick Devonte Wyatt in a situational role.
For most of the summer, Slaton and Wyatt split reps nearly 50-50. Against the Eagles, Wyatt played 36 defensive snaps — which was pretty close to Slaton’s 39. While Slaton is the “starter,” it’s much more accurate to consider them co-starters at the position.
What’s really interesting is the usage of these players. Wyatt was on the field for 22 pass-rushing snaps compared to Slaton’s 17. At the same time, Slaton was on the field nearly twice as much versus the run, 22 snaps to Wyatt’s 12. Wyatt also out-snapped Slaton seven snaps to three on third and fourth down when the Philadelphia Eagles needed more than two yards for a first down. On second and long (seven or more yards), Wyatt was on the field 11 times to Slaton’s 7.
So, yes, the 330-pound Slaton is starting over the 304-pound Wyatt, but they ended up with roughly the same snap count in Week 1 because the Packers played Wyatt in more pass-leaning situations. For what it’s worth, it seems like Green Bay made the right judgment on when to play which player. Last season, Wyatt played 192 pass-rushing snaps and pressured quarterbacks on 29 plays (15 percent) while Slaton played 251 and only registered 14 pressures (6 percent). Against the Eagles, Wyatt posted two quarterback pressures, which was good for third on the team behind Clark and edge defender Rashan Gary, to Slaton’s one.
