There are still seven months until Super Bowl 50 is played, but it’s never too early for oddsmakers to name an early favorite. This year, the Green Bay Packers find themselves honored with that distinction.

To actually get there, though, the Packers’ top players will have to deliver great seasons.

The following series will look at the 10 most important players to Green Bay’s success on both offense and defense. It’s not a ranking of the Packers’ best players but rather their individual importance to the team’s wins and losses.

Today, we’ll look at numbers 10 through six on offense. Monday will run through the top five players on offense, then defense comes into focus with the back half of the top 10 on Wednesday and the five most important on Friday. 

No. 10: Richard Rodgers, tight end

Age/experience: 23 / 2nd NFL season

Stats last season: 543 snaps, 25 receptions on 36 targets for 273 yards and three touchdowns, one dropped pass and two quarterback sacks allowed

Expectations for 2015: The Packers are intent on giving Richard Rodgers every opportunity to be the team’s long-term fixture at tight end. Green Bay released Brandon Bostick in the offseason and now has a decision to make after Andrew Quarless’ arrest during the Fourth of July weekend. Even if Quarless is allowed to remain a Packer, it’s Rodgers who represents the bigger upside. Rodgers needs to show significant improvement as a run-blocker, an area where he struggled mightily as a rookie – which led to ProFootballFocus rating him as a minus-14.5. Rodgers was a dependable pass catcher last season, but he rarely separated himself from defenders. Head coach Mike McCarthy believes strongly in player development from year one to year two, and Rodgers’ progress will be among the most notable to track.

Injury history/position depth: Rodgers didn’t miss any games due to injury in 2014. Green Bay is lacking depth at tight end, so the Packers have to hope he’s able to stay on the field. Behind Rodgers and Quarless is second-year player Justin Perillo (who will be challenged to even make the 53-man roster) and sixth-round pick rookie Kennard Backman.

No. 9: Josh Sitton and T.J. Lang, guards

Age/experience: Sitton: 29 / 8th NFL season; Lang: 27 / 7th NFL season

Stats last season: Sitton: 1,160 snaps, zero sacks allowed, named second-team All-Pro and named to the Pro Bowl; Lang: 1,110 snaps and three sacks allowed

Expectations for 2015: Josh Sitton and T.J. Lang could be counted separately, rather than as a duo. However, their play is so in sync that keeping them apart seems illogical. There’s no question that Sitton is one of the NFL’s five best guards. An argument could be made that Lang has entered himself into the top-10 discussion. In fact, Sitton and Lang were two of ProFootballFocus’ top-four-rated guards last season. They’ve been so steady on the Packers offensive line that their importance is somewhat minimized. And, at their respective ages, there’s little reason to think their performance is about to fall off.

Guard isn’t the type of position that gets a lot of attention, and it doesn’t have the same impact on wins and losses as quarterbacks. But nearly every team in the league would be getting an upgrade if they were to somehow convince Ted Thompson to trade either Sitton or Lang. They’re both just that good.

Injury history/position depth: Sitton and Lang both battled through injuries last season and were given praise for being able to play through it. Green Bay limited their responsibilities in the second half of the season by removing them from the field goal protection unit. The Packers have swing linemen Don Barclay and JC Tretter as their first options off the bench, but guard isn’t either of their main positions. Lane Taylor will need to prove he’s worthy of a spot on the 53-man roster, but if he does, he’d likely be the first to step in for Sitton or Lang. That would represent a major dropoff in production.

No. 8: Bryan Bulaga, right tackle

Age/experience: 26 / 6th NFL season

Stats last season: 1,091 snaps and four sacks allowed

Expectations for 2015: Bryan Bulaga’s new five-year, $33.75 million contract will bring about increased expectations for him. It was an investment from the Packers that showed their belief Bulaga can at least replicate his success from last season (which was arguably the best of his career). Bulaga doesn’t have to worry about switching to left tackle anymore. Green Bay paid him to be its right tackle of the present and future. As a pass-blocker, Bulaga is very good. It’s his work in run game that could still use improvement.

Injury history/position depth: Injuries are the only thing that could give Thompson any pause when it comes to projecting forward with Bulaga. He missed all of 2013 with a torn ACL and the final seven games of 2012 with a hip injury. Bulaga seemed fortunate to escape with just a minor injury in Week 2 last season that only cost him one game. If Bulaga misses time, Barclay would likely step into the right tackle role. Barclay started 14 games at that position in 2013.

No. 7: Davante Adams, wide receiver

Age/experience: 22 / 2nd NFL season

Stats last season: 885 snaps, 46 receptions on 80 targets for 570 yards and four touchdowns, and four dropped passes

Expectations for 2015: It’s been a long time since any second-year Packers player has been hyped up as much as Adams has in recent months. McCarthy described him as the MVP of the offseason, with Aaron Rodgers saying that Adams has "humongous upside." Adams is a very confident player, even at the young age of 22. It would seem like he could handle the increased attention well – though it might be nearly impossible for Adams to play as well as what McCarthy and Rodgers are projecting.

For Adams, it’s about consistency. He was incredible Week 13 against New England and in the divisional round playoff win against Dallas. However, Adams was almost completely invisible in Weeks 10, 11, 12 14, 15, 16, 17 and in the NFC championship game. The big games are great, but if he continues following them up with forgettable month-long stretches, Adams will have failed to live up to the lofty expectations placed upon him.

Injury history/position depth: Adams remained healthy during his rookie season. If he goes down at any point, though, Green Bay has quality but unproven depth behind him. Between Jeff Janis, Jared Abbrederis and Ty Montgomery, there are 15 total NFL snaps played – those belonging to Janis. Perhaps an injury to a starting receiver is all that Janis, Abbrederis or Montgomery need to shine.

No. 6: Corey Linsley, center

Age/experience: 24 / 2nd NFL season

Stats last season: 1,216 snaps and two sacks allowed

Expectations for 2015: Corey Linsley walked onto the field Week 1 in Seattle without having ever taken a game snap with Aaron Rodgers. The spotlight clearly wasn’t too big for the Ohio State product, who turned in a memorable performance and showed right away that he was for real. Linsley had a few subpar games, but he quickly became one of the NFL’s better centers. If he can do that in his first season after not getting starter reps throughout most of training camp, Linsley’s ceiling should be high. Even if he turns in an equal-caliber 2015 season, everyone with an office inside Lambeau Field headquarters would be happy.

Injury history/position depth: The Packers thought they had Rodgers’ long-term man at center with Tretter, but his injury in the third preseason game changed those plans. Linsley was ultra-durable as a rookie. If he suffers an injury, though, Tretter would likely step right back into the spot that he lost during the 2014 preseason.

** Make sure to check back to see the conclusion of the Packers’ 10 most important offensive players, and then stay tuned for a ranking of Green Bay’s 10 most important defensive players.