Green Bay Packers Sign Electric 22-Year-Old Directly After Loss To The Pittsburgh Steelers

The Green Bay Packers suffered yet another heart-breaking loss on Sunday.  This time it came in the form of a 23-19 nail-bitter against the Pittsburgh Steelers.  Yet again the Packers had the ball with a chance to win late in the game and came up empty.

While the Packers may be out of the playoff picture this season, they continue to build for the future.  Today they signed a 22-year-old who may be able to do just that.

On Monday, the Green Bay Packers shifted their defensive backs unit by signing Kelly.His father, former NFL cornerback Brian Kelly, played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions for more than a decade. In late August, the Baltimore Ravens released the younger Kelly after drafting him in the fifth round of April’s draft.

Following his release, Kelly was signed by the Seattle Seahawks, for whom he played five games this season. In total, he’s played 38 special teams snaps in the 2023 campaign.

There is something interesting about the addition of a cornerback to this 53-man roster.In the wake of the trade of Rasul Douglas to the Buffalo Bills, the Packers’ preferred starting cornerbacks moving forward are Jaire Alexander, who has an injured shoulder, and Eric Stokes, who has a hamstring injury.

Corey Ballentine, who was called up from the practice squad a few weeks ago, and Robert Rochell, who was poached from the Panthers’ practice squad, make up the cornerback depth chart on the team. While Ballentine has played relativley well, it will be interesting to see how they manage this group moving forward.

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The Green Bay Packers are currently 3-6 and well out of playoff conversations in 2023.  The loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers may have been the nail in the coffin when it comes to a possible playoff run.  While there were certainly some positives to take away from their loss, there were enough negatives to warrant a release.  That is exactly what the Packers did less than 24 hours after the loss.

It has been announced that the Green Bay Packers have released S Innis Gaines. The transaction was announced by General Manager Brian Gutekunst on Monday.

Gaines originally joined the Packers on Jan. 8, 2021, and has been on Green Bay’s practice squad and active roster. Since joining the Packers, he has appeared in 12 games with one start. That includes four appearances this season. Gaines has made four defense tackles (all solo) and seven special teams tackles for the Packers.

It appears that Gaines’ release was make room for a new defensive back. Packers claim Seahawks’ Kyu Blu Kelly off waivers according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.

Kelly was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the fifth round of the 2023 draft. After final cuts in August, he was claimed off waivers by the Seahawks and spent the first two months or so on their roster, playing 38 snaps on special teams.