The Packers are made up of unofficial teams composed entirely of pros and novices

GREEN BAY, Wis. – When the Green Bay Packers face the Philadelphia Eagles in the wild-card game on Sunday, they’ll be up against one of the best right tackles in NFL history, Lane Johnson.

On the Pro Football Focus All-Pro teamThe Packers’ Zach Tom beat out Johnson for first-team honors.

“Tom has shown continued improvement throughout his career, and his third season away from Wake Forest was his best to date,” wrote PFF’s Gordon McGuinness. “He set career highs with a 90.0 pass-blocking grade and an 82.1 pass-blocking grade while allowing 24 tackles on 562 pass-blocking snaps.”

According to PFF, Tom has allowed three sacks this year. He lost to the Eagles in Week 1. His pressures allowed are down 13 from last year.

“Zach is who he is. “I feel very good about myself,” offensive line coach Luke Butkus said recently. “He is a professional. He is reliable, comes to work every day, does his job, but like everyone else he understands that he needs to improve and be more consistent. It’s just him coming to work.

At safety, Green Bay’s Xavier McKinney was named to the second team, behind the Lions’ Kerby Joseph, who won the NFL interception title by one game over McKinney, and the Ravens’ Kyle Hamilton.

The Eagles had six players on the PFF team. Left guard Jordan Mailata and linebacker Zach Baun were named to the first team, while linebacker Saquon Barkley, receiver AJ Brown, cornerback Cooper DeJean and Johnson were named to the second team.

ESPN: Xavier McKinney, Elgton Jenkins

Bill Barnwell made his own All-Pro team. Safety Xavier McKinney was named to the first team, while safety Elgton Jenkins was named to the second team.

As part of a much longer summary of McKinney’s season, Barnwell wrote: “In addition to picking, McKinney’s role in the middle of the field has made him an essential part of what the Packers do best. They rank second in QBR allowed on deep throws (20 or more yards in the air) and first in bombs (30 or more yards in the air), and offenses are 1 of 15 for 31 yards with a touchdown and three picks in the latter category. They only allowed 13 plays of 30 yards or longer, the third-fewest on the team.

McKinney, linebacker Rashan Gary and running back Josh Jacobs were selected to the Pro Bowl.

“I told him what a great achievement it was, how proud I was of him and that he deserved it because he worked so hard for it,” linebackers coach Ryan Downard said last week.

“The player and person he has developed into in the process is what I am truly most proud of, as the effects of that can be felt throughout our group. But then I pulled him back in and said, “Hey, that’s not exactly what we wanted to do.” It will be nice to remember this event at the end of the year.” A very similar approach to previous awards.”

At the guard position, Barnwell went with Joe Thuney of the Chiefs and Quenton Nelson of the Colts, although Jenkins did not allow any quarterback pressure, according to Next Gen Stats.

SB Nation: No players from the first team

They were running back Josh Jacobs and kick returner Keisean Nixon second team selections. Xavier McKinney did not make it to the finals.

PFF All-Rookie

The Packers finished fifth in total defense and sixth in points allowed – their best mark in both categories since winning the Super Bowl in 2010 – thanks in part to guard Edgerrin Cooper and safety Evan Williams.

They were named to the starting lineup on PFF’s all-rookie team.

The Eagles, whom the Packers will face in Sunday’s wild-card game, also had two starting cornerbacks, as well as cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean.

CBS All-Rookie

Edgerrin Cooper and Evan Williams were also CBS favorites.

Of Cooper, Jared Dubin wrote: “Green Bay… has found a true keeper in Cooper. He was limited in his ability to get after the passer, but he was incredibly effective when asked to do so (four sacks and eight pressures in just 46 rushes), and he ranks first among starting linebackers in stopping. He has occasionally been the victim of creative offenses in coverage, but that is usually the last thing that happens to young defenders off the ball.”

33rd All-Rookie Team

Edgerrin Cooper was the only Packers player on this all-rookie team.

In a longer analysis, Tyler Brooke said Cooper, when healthy, “looked like one of the best middle linebackers” in the NFL.

“In addition to his top-flight play speed, Cooper’s instincts have shined through to shut down screens, quick passes and open-air runs throughout the year. Offensive linemen struggled to control Cooper’s rushing speed, which allowed him to take clean shots to running backs all year long.

Latest news about the Green Bay Packers

The regular season is over. Here you will find the decline #Packers (and the Eagles) in our Consensus NFL Power Rankings. https://t.co/WIfldwrUSE

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) January 7, 2025