The Most Important Packers: No. 19 — Sean Rhyan
The Green Bay Packers went 11-6 last season, sweeping the NFC West and the AFC South along the way.
Overall, though, no one in the building was happy.
The Packers failed to build on their terrific finish to the 2023 campaign, settled for the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs, and lost a Wild Card game to eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia.
Afterwards, general manager Brian Gutekunst turned up the heat on everybody in the building.
'We need to continue to ramp up our sense of urgency,' Gutekunst said. 'I think it's time we started competing for championships.'
Those are fair expectations.
The Packers return 20 of 22 starters, and appear to have upgraded the roster via free agency and the draft. With several third and fourth year players trending upward, Green Bay should be poised to make a move.
'I think they're ready,' Gutekunst said.
Now, it's time for the Packers to prove their G.M. right.
Green Bay's first training camp practice is July 23. Between now and then I will count down the '30 Most Important Packers' heading into the 2025 campaign.
At No. 19 is right guard Sean Rhyan.No. 19
Sean Rhyan, RG
Last season
Rhyan started all 17 games at right guard and had a respectable season. Rhyan allowed four sacks, had six penalties, and allowed 24 pressures.
Rhyan's pass blocking grade from Pro Football Focus was 69.4, which ranked 38th out of 136 guards. His run blocking grade was 58.4, which ranked 87th.
Rhyan split time with 2024 first round draft pick Jordan Morgan the first two months. In early November, though, Morgan was placed on the injured reserve list with a shoulder injury and Rhyan played all but eight snaps in the final 10 games.Career to date
Rhyan, a third round draft pick in 2022, was suspended the final six games of his rookie season for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances. That ended a dismal rookie year in which Rhyan played just one snap, and that came on special teams.
Rhyan started the 2023 season where he spent the 2022 campaign — on the bench. By midseason, though, he had impressed enough during practice and began platooning with former Packer Jon Runyan.
From Week 9 on, Rhyan played 183 snaps at right guard, didn't allow a sack and didn't have a penalty. According to league data, the Packers averaged 0.78 more yards per rushing attempt with Rhyan on the field versus when he wasn't in the lineup.
Rhyan (6-5, 325) has unique athleticism for a guard, impressive strength and is incredibly bright.
Rhyan's vertical jump of 34-1/2' was No. 1 among all guards at the NFL Combine in 2022. He set shot put and discus records while attending San Juan Hills High School (Calif.) and qualified to play on the feeder team for the Olympic USA rugby team. Rhyan also posted a 29 on the 50-question Wonderlic test, which is eight points higher than the NFL average.
Rhyan was a starter at left tackle from the day he arrived at UCLA, starting 31 games during an impressive career with the Bruins. Rhyan earned freshman all-American honors after starting 12 games in 2019, and was named first-team all-Pac 12 in 2021.
While Rhyan's hands are extremely large (11 1/8'), his arm length (32 3/8') was in the bottom 10% of guards in his draft class.Outlook
All indications are the Packers will give Morgan every chance to unseat Rasheed Walker at left tackle. That means Rhyan could have firm hold on the right guard position, for now anyhow.
If Morgan loses out at left tackle, the Packers could let him battle with Rhyan again. Rookie second round draft pick Anthony Belton could also factor in.
But Rhyan — a tough, physical, athletic player — will be tough to dislodge.
Rhyan is also entering a contract year, as are fellow offensive linemen Zach Tom and Walker. The Packers could lock Tom up with a long term deal before the season begins, but Rhyan's future remains uncertain.They Said It …
'As the season's been progressing, he's just getting better and better. He's still got things to work on fundamentally, but he just seems more comfortable, more confident. In the run game, he's doing a really good job finishing his blocks and just being physical at the point of attack. So yeah, it's been fun to watch.' — Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich on Rhyan last season'I'm a bigger guy. I know that they want me to move guys and I think being able to run the ball as good as you can pass the ball in this league I think is really an advantage. Some guys will just, ehhh, and then pass pro they're (expletive) All-Pro. But I think if you can do both as an O-line, I think that's great. And that's what I would like to be really good at, both run and pass as opposed to better at one than the other because I think running the ball is hugely important.' — Rhyan on his run blocking mentalityTHE TOP 30
• No. 30 — RB MarShawn Lloyd
• No. 29 — WR Dontayvion Wicks
• No. 28 — S Javon Bullard
• No. 27 — WR Savion Williams
• No. 26 — LB Isaiah McDuffie
• No. 25 — OL Jordan Morgan
• No. 24 — WR Matthew Golden
• No. 23 — CB Carrington Valentine
• No. 22 — WR Romeo Doubs
• No. 21 — QB Malik Willis
N0. 20 — DE Lukas Van Ness
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