Packers UDFA profile: Nazir Stackhouse could carve out role on defense as a rookie

The Packers only made eight draft picks in 2025, the joint-lowest in Brian Gutekunst’s tenure as general manager, but they helped to make up for it by scooping up Nazir Stackhouse, very much a draftable player, in undrafted free agency.

After T.J. Slaton left in free agency, Green Bay was in need of a nose tackle type body along their defensive line, and at just under 6-3 ⅔ and 327 pounds, Stackhouse fits the bill.

In three years of extensive playing time at Georgia, Stackhouse earned his keep almost exclusively as a run defender.

He had an 83.1 PFF grade against the run in 2024, 74.8 in 2023 and 86.1 in 2022, giving him an average grade of 81.3 against the run, which is impressive over such a long period in the SEC. Of defensive tackles drafted in 2025, Stackhouse ranked 20th in run grade in 2024.

The biggest strength of Stackhouse’s game is his ability to eat up space on the defensive interior. He has great core strength and is difficult to move even when in a compromised position.

Stackhouse digs in and clogs in the run game very well, and has the discipline to accept his role and hold his ground, mastering the art of ‘dying slowly’.

His core strength allows him to stay anchored even when going down to one knee and withstand a second hit while engaged with an opponent. He is not easy for even double teams to move off the spot

Powerful hands and an ability to play with leverage are big parts of his success in run defense. Offensive linemen feel his initial punch and are impacted by it, giving him an early advantage and helping him quickly disengage when required.

He does a good job of staying low and shooting his hands upwards into an opponents’ chest or shoulder pads, fully extending his arms and jarring them back. Once his hands are latched, he is able to wrestle and control offensive linemen.

Another string to his bow in run defense is his awareness. Stackhouse shows a good sense for where the ball is, keeping his eyes on it while engaged with a blocker and knowing when to shed to attempt a tackle.

He is able to just throw out a big arm and absorb or engulf running backs without even fully shedding his block.

The 23-year-old has some lateral quickness and movement ability to not make him a liability on outside runs. He does not get pushed back while engaged with a lineman on the move, keeping himself in the picture.

There is a nice play on his 2022 tape where he fights through two blockers while moving towards the sideline, eventually breaking through and having the ball carrier come right to him for a tackle.

He can quickly beat offensive linemen off the snap with an arm over move or sidestep them to get into the backfield. There is enough to indicate he can get to whatever gap he needs, quickly enough.

As a pass rusher, he shows some ability to gain steam off the line and generate force on contact with opponents, pushing the pocket.

Stackhouse plays with good effort, chasing the ball to the whistle even if he has no hope of getting there, and could have special teams value, having blocked a field goal back in 2022.

On the negative side of the ledger; Stackhouse is not a dynamic athlete. He is not a bad one – he had "okay" RAS grades for speed, explosion and agility – especially for a nose tackle, but he has a very thick lower half and not in a good way, lacking flexibility and any wiggle whatsoever.

He is not going to make plays in space, and also lacks juice and explosiveness in his first step.

In terms of pass rush production, Stackhouse’s resume is very underwhelming. His highest PFF pass rush grade in a season was 58.2, and he only has three sacks and 28 pressures in his entire college career.

There is no real plan or skill to his pass rush, and he essentially has two modes: pop straight up and square up to his opponent, playing patty cake and hoping to get his arm up and bat a pass, or lowering his head and trying to push the pocket as much as possible.

When he does try to go full steam ahead, Stackhouse’s momentum can be used against him as linemen let him take himself out of the play. It is about the only time he is vulnerable to being knocked off balance, or to the ground, by a second hit.

At times he was used on stunts at Georgia, but it is not really in his wheelhouse. Stackhouse is essentially useless on passing downs. He is not versatile and will not be playing anywhere but the A or B gap. All these factors will limit his play time at the next level.

For primarily a run defender, his 44 run stops in the last three years is not particularly impressive. He is more plugger than playmaker, and will mostly be tasked with doing the dirty work of taking up space.

As a younger player, he failed to anticipate or read the offensive line’s plan quick enough, and could get moved out of the play or turned and walled off before he could react. This improved significantly in 2024, but his football intelligence will be even more important in the NFL.

Overall, Stackhouse is a very valuable pick up as an undrafted free agent and could have a long NFL career as a designated run stuffer on early downs.

He will feel hard done by to not have been drafted, and given the complexion of Green Bay’s defensive line room, has a legitimate shot of not only making the team, but carving out a role as a rookie.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers UDFA profile: Nazir Stackhouse could carve out role on defense