The position change was teased by Tariq Carpenter earlier this year, but the Green Bay Packers confirmed Carpenter’s transition from safety to linebacker during the offseason workout program. Coach Matt LaFleur said the Packers are attempting to find where Carpenter, a top special teams player as a rookie, works best in the defensive 11.
“He’s been (at linebacker) predomiantly the entire offseason, LaFleur said after Tuesday’s practice. “Just a move we felt could be in the best interest of him. We’ve all seen his value on (special) teams and the impact he can make. Just another way to see where he best fits.”
On the team’s official roster, Carpenter is now listed as a linebacker.
The 6-3, 230-pounder played 33 of his 81 total preseason snaps last year at a traditional safety spot. However, Carpenter played some linebacker at Georgia Tech and the Senior Bowl, so the transition is a natural one for a bigger-bodied safety who can move and doesn’t fear the contact of playing in the box.
The 2022 seventh-rounder made his mark with the third phase as a rookie. On special teams, Carpenter played 120 snaps across five different units. He tallied seven tackles, missed just one tackle and committed just a single penalty. Over the final eight games of 2022, Carpenter tallied at least one tackle in six games.
The Packers may see Carpenter as a core special teamer for Rich Bisaccia and likely want to both maximize his ability to get on the field on defense and provide more versatility in the scheme overall. Having the ability to be on the field as a subpackage linebacker gives Carpenter a better chance of making the team as a hybrid player who can provide depth-chart help at two positions in a pinch.
The Packers have two starters (Quay Walker, De’Vondre Campbell) and two dependable and experienced backups (Eric Wilson, Isaiah McDuffie) at the position, so moving Carpenter to linebacker opens the door to the Packers keeping five on the initial 53-man roster.
