The Green Bay Packers have a long and proud tradition of undrafted free agents making the 53-man roster and making contributions to the team, and second-year wide receiver Isaiah Neyor may have a shot to be the next in line.
After making some plays at practice during OTAs and minicamp earlier this month, he earned praise from head coach Matt LaFleur, who said the difference between how Neyor is playing now, compared to when he signed with Green Bay last August is “night and day.”
LaFleur continued: “He’s really shown a lot of flashes of excellence. Another big, long guy that can run. You can never have enough of those guys especially at that position, so I’m excited about what’s to come at training camp for him.”
Neyor even got some snaps with the first-team offense during the offseason program, working with Jordan Love and company during a two-minute drill.
Already 25 years old, Neyor’s journey to the NFL has not been a straightforward one, and has featured plenty of adversity.
Beginning his college career at Wyoming, Neyor enjoyed a strong season way back in 2021 as a sophomore, putting up 878 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns, and earning a PFF receiving grade of 85.5.
His yards per route run of 2.87 was better than future early-round draft picks such as Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, Jahan Dotson, Alec Pierce, Chris Olave and Packers receiver Jayden Reed.
A transfer followed, as Neyor moved to Texas over offers from Tennessee, Ole Miss and USC. A strong season there could have catapulted him into conversations to be a legitimate NFL prospect.
Instead, Neyor tore his ACL in his first training camp with the Longhorns and never touched the field in 2022.
By the time he got healthy ahead of the following campaign, Adonai Mitchell had transferred in from Georgia, and between Mitchell, Xavier Worthy and Jordan Whittington, Neyor’s path to playing time was blocked. He caught just one pass in 2023.
Neyor then transferred to Nebraska for his final college season, but was still not able to recapture his previous form, managing only 455 receiving yards, five touchdowns, and a PFF receiving grade of 61.3.
Looking at what he could bring to the Packers, Neyor is exactly the type of big, fast receiver they have traditionally looked for and found success with.
In pre-draft testing, Neyor posted a 9.89 Relative Athletic Score (RAS) out of a possible 10 at the wide receiver position. He is over 6-4, 218 pounds and has 4.40 speed, which is a rare combination. His explosion testing was elite, as he jumped 38” in the vert and 11-1 in the broad.
His top two athletic comps are Calvin Johnson and Chase Claypool, who recently had a tryout with Green Bay.
His exceptional size and speed give him a chance to develop into a useful boundary receiver who can stretch the field and win at the catch point, although he will need to improve on his 8.4% career drop rate in college.
After a redshirt year with the Packers, spending the 2025 season on the practice squad, Neyor will try to make some noise in training camp and stick on the back end of the roster.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Could wide receiver Isaiah Neyor be Packers’ next UDFA success story?
Reporting by Mark Oldacres, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Mark Oldacres, Packers Wire | USA TODAY Network
