GREEN BAY – With injuries mounting on the offensive line, the Packers have signed 11-year NFL veteran Laken Tomlinson.
Tomlinson, 34, has started in 162 games over 11 NFL seasons spent with Detroit, San Francisco, the New York Jets, Seattle and Houston.
Here are five things to know about the new Packers guard:
1. Tomlinson is a former first-round pick and Pro Bowler.
The Detroit Lions drafted the 6-foot-3, 323-pound offensive lineman in the first round (No. 28 overall) in 2015, becoming the first Duke alumnus to be selected in the first round since Mike Junkin in 1987.
Tomlinson started 25 games for the Lions before being traded to San Francisco at the end of training camp in 2017. He made 80 straight starts for the 49ers over the next five seasons, capping his run with a Pro Bowl selection and Super Bowl LIV appearance in 2021.
He signed with the Jets as an unrestricted free agent and started his run in New York with a penalty-free season in 2022. More recently, Tomlinson has worked on one-year deals with Seattle in 2024 and Houston in 2025.
2. He has plenty of connections in Green Bay.
Tomlinson was a key cog on the 49ers' offensive line and worked with several coaches on the Packers' coaching staff.
Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich was an assistant offensive line coach for San Francisco during Tomlinson's first two seasons in the Bay Area.
Other current Packers assistants with whom Tomlinson worked include strength and conditioning coordinator Aaron Hill, offensive quality control coach T.C. McCartney, defensive line coach Vince Oghobaase, and cornerbacks coach Daniel Bullocks.
Tomlinson's final season with San Francisco coincided with Packers starting left guard Aaron Banks' rookie season with the 49ers.
He's played 12 games against the Packers in his career (including postseason).
3. Tomlinson has been incredibly durable over the course of his career.
Tomlinson has never missed an NFL game due to injury, only sitting out of the 49ers' regular-season opener in 2017 after being traded from the Lions a week earlier.
"Just being that rock, being the stability," said Tomlinson of his durability. "Definitely is something I want to continue in my career. Just going out there and playing my game. This offseason, I put in a lot of work in my training. This is what I've been waiting for – for that call. I'm definitely trying to continue that."
His streak of 141 consecutive regular-season games played came to end last November when Jarrett Patterson usurped Tomlinson for the Texans' starting right guard post. He's played in 180 games with 169 starts (including postseason).
Tomlinson finished the 2025 season on Baltimore's practice squad, and following offseason surgery on his heel, started this year on the Dallas Cowboys' practice squad.
4. Most of his 10,547 NFL snaps have come at left guard.
In fact, you'd have to go back to Tomlinson's 2016 season in Detroit for the last time he's played on the right side of the offensive line in an NFL game.
That said, Tomlinson started 52 games at right guard during his four years at Duke. He told reporters on Monday that he's continued to rep both sides throughout his career and is fine playing whichever side Green Bay needs him.
5. Tomlinson was born in Savanna-la-Mar, Jamaica.
He moved to the United States with his mother, Audrey Wilson, and three siblings when Tomlinson was 11 years old. His first exposure to sports came through soccer and cricket with friends.
Tomlinson grew up in the Chicago area, where he starred in both football and track and field. He studied pre-med at Duke and has stated his lifegoal is to one day build a hospital in Jamaica.
"It's always been my dream," said Tomlinson while he was with Seattle in 2024. "That's part of the process for myself to get that done. That's something that's truly a part of me."
