What Does S Jonathan Owens Bring To The Packers? Is The Door Now Shut On Adrian Amos?

On May 12, 2023, the Green Bay Packers announced they signed S Jonathan Owens to a 2-year $1.39 million dollar contract.

Green Bay had one open roster spot left, and while many thought that spot would be used to bring back Adrian Amos or Marcedes Lewis, Brian Gutekunst and the rest of the front office opted for a new face in Titletown.

So, what exactly does Owens bring to a depleted safety room in Green Bay?

Background

Owens entered the NFL by way of Division II Missouri Western State University in 2018. The former Griffon went undrafted and signed with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent, but got injured during OTAs and was waived before making an appearance for the team in 2019. The Houston Texans subsequently picked up Owens less than a month after being released by the Cardinals, where he has been until being picked up by the Packers. In his first two seasons in Houston, Owens saw a combined 18 snaps before seeing 168 snaps in 7 games in 2021. Owens took over as the starting Safety in 2022, playing and starting in all 17 games for the Texans. Owens is also married to Olympic Gold Medalist Gymnast Simone Biles.

What does he bring to the Packers?

As the full-time starter in Houston, Owens first and foremost brings experience to an unproven safety room in Green Bay. Outside of Darnell Savage, the only safety that started more than 3 games in 2022-23 is Rudy Ford with 6 starts for the Packers last season. Owens’ experience projects to help stabilize the safety unit and add consistent play in the last line of defense.

The former Texan is one of the better tacklers in the league as well, totaling 125 total tackles per Pro Football Reference and an 80.9 tackling grade per PFF. Owens looks to fill the void left by Adrian Amos as a sure-tackling safety not afraid to come up and make plays in the run game.

One thing about Defensive Coordinator Joe Barry’s defense is you need to be versatile; Owens fits this mold. Per PFF, Owens played most of his snaps at Free Safety at 576. However, Owens saw play at multiple other positions, such as 215 snaps as a box safety and 115 as a slot cornerback. As seen with Darnell Savage’s 200+ snaps at box safety and slot corner, Barry values versatility highly in his secondary and Owens seems to fit well with his ability to play multiple positions.

Overall, Owens’ skillset brings a versatile, sure-tackling secondary piece that can play all over the field for the Pack. He projects as a day 1 contributor and a potential starter for the Packers.