Former Texas A&M linebacker Chris Russell signed a three-year contract with the Green Bay Packers on Wednesday, according to his agent Kimberly Williams.
By signing with the Packers, for whom he trained after the draft, Russell will reunite with former Aggie star linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, who was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Despite a largely stellar career in College Station, Russell went undrafted. He was invited to the Packers’ rookie camp but was not offered a contract. That changed on Wednesday.
During his time in Aggieland, Russell was involved in 112 tackles, 10 TFL, 4.5 sacks and had one interception.
Green Bay has been hit hard by injuries, especially at linebacker. Cooper, Ty’Ron Hopper and Quay Walker have all missed practice due to persistent injuries. All it takes is one player to clear a spot on the roster and Russell can earn extra practice.
If Russell is brought in this late in training camp, it will be extremely difficult for him to make the final 53-man active roster.
However, teams can bring a practice squad of up to 16 players. Russell could show enough in the final two weeks of training camp to justify one of those spots.
Head coach Matt LaFleur has already stated that the reserve players will play the entire preseason game against the Denver Broncos this weekend. If that is the case, we may see Russell make some appearances with the third team. Any appearance he gets will be an honor.
