Green Bay Packers defensive back Nate Hobbs looks to defend against the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 28 in Arlington, Texas. (AP file photo)

GREEN BAY, Wis. — This wasn’t the type of start Nate Hobbs had in mind when the former Las Vegas Raiders defensive back signed with the Green Bay Packers.

Hobbs, 26, dealt with a knee injury during training camp, struggled through the first half of the season and finally fell out of a starting cornerback role Sunday during the Packers’ 35-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Hobbs says his struggles aren’t a result of feeling extra pressure to live up to the four-year, $48 million contract he signed in the offseason.

“It’s only pressure if you make it pressure,” Hobbs said Wednesday. “The pressure’s all in your head.”

Hobbs repeatedly mentioned his faith while talking to reporters about how he’s dealing with adversity. He cited the example of New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields, who rallied his team to a 39-38 triumph over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday and then spoke during an emotional news conference about how his faith helped him cope after getting benched and receiving criticism from owner Woody Johnson.

“I’ll piggyback off him,” Hobbs said. “My faith in God — not even in myself, in God — is so thick and so strong, nothing can penetrate that faith. And I rely on God and not myself and I know he’s putting me through this and teaching me a lesson, and I think it’s all just depending and relying on him. I can’t do everything myself. I try to do everything myself, and that’s not going to work.”

Hobbs only played four defensive snaps against the Steelers as 2023 seventh-round draft pick Carrington Valentine started in his place. Hobbs had started each of Green Bay’s first five games and was on the field for every defensive snap against Cincinnati and at Arizona, the two games before the trip to Pittsburgh.

Coach Matt LaFleur praised Valentine’s performance but added that “it’s going to continue to be a competitive situation because we still have a ton of confidence in Hobbs.”

Hobbs believes he’s playing fine most of the time but adds that cornerback is an unforgiving position that exposes all mistakes. Hobbs said he must make sure he’s wired in and focused on every single snap.

“When you play corner, it boils down to a couple plays,” Hobbs said. “I have a lot of snaps where I played really good, you know what I’m saying? Really good snaps, really good plays. You take two, three plays here and there, but that’s just the life of a corner. That’s why I signed up for it.”

One example came at Arizona, when Hobbs allowed a 35-yard completion to Marvin Harrison Jr. on third-and-14. That conversion set up a Cardinals touchdown in a game the Packers won 27-23.

“He kind of slowed down, I slowed down, we didn’t think ball was coming our way,” Hobbs said. “And he kind of sped up, and by the time I got my head around, the ball was dropping in.”

One week later, Hobbs was spending most of the game on the sideline.

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