J. Michael Sturdivant Bolsters Packers Depth Chart With $200,000 Guarantee

J. Michael Sturdivant jumped onto the packers depth chart discussion with a $200,000 base-salary guarantee and a $15,000 signing bonus after joining Green Bay as an undrafted free agent. He entered OTAs with a real chance to win a roster spot later this summer.

Sturdivant and Green Bay

Sturdivant is 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds, and he ran a 4.4-second 40-yard dash with a Relative Athletic Score of 9.96 out of 10. Those numbers helped him land one of the clearest rookie opportunities on the roster bubble, even before the summer competition began.

Green Bay has a track record of giving undrafted rookies a shot, and Sturdivant could be next. The Packers did not add another pass-catcher via the draft, which keeps the door open for a receiver who can separate from a crowded group and stick through camp.

Packers Receiver Competition

Brian Gutekunst let Romeo Doubs walk in free agency and traded away Dontayvion Wicks, then added Skyy Moore, whose primary role is on special teams. That reshaped the competition around the top group of Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and Matthew Golden, with Savion Williams described as a roster lock and Bo Melton a candidate to move back to wide receiver full-time.

Sturdivant is not running alone for the final spots. He is competing with Will Sheppard, Brenden Rice, Isaiah Neyor and Jakobie Keeney-James for a place in a receiver room that still has room for one of the younger players to break through.

OTA Opportunity

OTAs gave him the first step, not the finish line. The guarantee and bonus show Green Bay was willing to invest a little more than the minimum in an undrafted receiver, and the next phase is whether he can turn those traits into a place on the 53-man roster.