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Packers Eyeing Ex-Bengals Starting Guard After Week 1 Disaster
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- Packers Eyeing Ex-Bengals Starting Guard After Week 1 Disaster
Former Cincinnati Bengals left guard Cordell Volson. Getty
The Green Bay Packers are weighing the addition of a former Cincinnati Bengals starting left guard after their disastrous Week 1 loss to the Minnesota Vikings .
According to the NFL's daily transaction wire, the Packers hosted veteran free-agent guard Cordell Volson on Wednesday for a tryout, opening the door for them to add a 48-game starter to their roster before Week 2's matchup with the New York Jets .
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Volson was a 2022 fourth-round pick who started nearly every game at left guard for the Bengals over his first three seasons, winning the starting job outright during his rookie training camp. He missed the entire 2025 season, though, with a right shoulder injury that forced him to undergo surgery in August before the Bengals' roster cuts.
Volson signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Tennessee Titans in March's free agency period, but he failed to make their initial 53-man roster cut last month.
Perhaps the Packers could give him a shot, given their current left guard issues.
Cordell Volson Could Offer Packers' New LG Backup Plan
The Packers did not sign Volson to a contract immediately following his workout on Wednesday, but they have strong justification to circle back if they liked what they saw after how the left guard position fared in their season-opening loss to the Vikings.
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Despite a questionable designation on the injury report, veteran left guard Aaron Banks did not suit up because of a knee injury for the Packers' first game of the 2026 season, prompting them to turn to backup Donovan Jennings for his first career start.
Jennings had re-signed as an exclusive rights free agent in March after earning an active-roster spot in his second season in 2025, but the former UDFA looked out of his depth as the entire offensive line struggled to protect quarterback Jordan Love .
Pro Football Focus graded Jennings harshly for his blocking performance, handing him the second-lowest overall grade (39.3) in the league among all guards in Week 1.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur said "time on task" earned Jennings the start, but it wouldn't be a shock if they explored other options — such as Volson — before Sunday.
Aaron Banks Still Limited in Practice Ahead of Jets Game
The good news for the Packers at Wednesday's first practice is that Banks — who signed a four-year, $77 million contract in March 2025 — was a limited participant .
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The bad news is that while practicing is better than not practicing, Banks spent all of the first week as a limited participant before ultimately sitting out against the Vikings.
"He'll be back out there at practice, and we're trying to get him ramped up, ready to go. But, again, that's a process that will take through the week," LaFleur said Wednesday.
The Packers may not be able to rest easy unless Banks completely clears the injury report by the end of Friday's practice, but he has two more days to improve his status.
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