The Green Bay Packers fell to the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second week of the 2015 NFL preseason on Sunday. Here are five players trending up and five others trending down as Green Bay prepares to play the Philadelphia Eagles on Saturday: 

UP

CB Ladarius Gunter: You can officially use a Sharpie to write Gunter’s name in on the 53-man roster. He shined for a second straight week, defending three passes (including on back-to-back plays in the third quarter) and allowing just a single catch for six yards. Opposing quarterbacks now have a 10.8 passer rating when targeting Gunter (10 attempts) this preseason. He’s no longer competing for a roster spot; he’s fighting for playing time. 

FB Aaron Ripkowski: The Packers sixth-round pick needed just two exhibition games to establish himself as one of the club’s core special teamers. His four special teams tackles (two at NE, two more at PIT Sunday) are the most in the NFL this preseason. On a team in desperate need of better special teams, Ripkowski is all but a lock to make the 53-man roster. Keeping John Kuhn for another year will give the rookie a redshirt year on offense before taking over all the duties of the position by 2016. 

DL Christian Ringo: You want to see young players stack good performances. Ringo did that Sunday. After impressing during practice on Thursday, Ringo turned in a strong effort during the second half against the Steelers. He’s still a work in progress, but there’s some power to his game, especially against the run. Maybe the lightbulb is starting to come on for the sixth-round pick, even if he’s probably a year away from actually contributing. 

CB Damarious Randall: The Packers got a scare Sunday when Randall needed a cart back to the locker room for cramps and dehydration. He returned to play 33 snaps in his NFL debut. His highlight came on the first play of the second half, when he rose high to intercept a pass in front of 6’4 receiver Martavis Bryant. The ball was under-thrown (thanks to interior pressure from Mike Pennel), but Randall’s ball skills were obvious. It’s hard not to be excited about the young players in the Packers secondary. 

OLB Jayrone Elliott: Green Bay’s preseason superstar struck again in Pittsburgh. Early in the second half, Elliott used an inside spin move on the left tackle to hit quarterback Bruce Gradkowski and force an incompletion on third down. And of his three tackles against the run, two came at or behind the line of scrimmage. On one series, Elliott knifed in to drop the running back for a two-yard loss on first down, and then tackled the speedy Dri Archer after a short gain to set up third-and-long. To be perfectly honest, I don’t think there’s a huge gap in the talent level of Elliott and Mike Neal. 

Honorable mentions: Lane Taylor replaced Josh Sitton early on and got some run with the starters. He had another good day. I’d say he makes the 53…Scott Tolzien missed Jeff Janis for a big gain down the right sideline, but he was efficient for a second straight week. Of his six incompletions, three were drops and two were batted balls at the line…Carl Bradford finally showed some life. The final preseason game may make or break his future in Green Bay. 

DOWN

OT Don Barclay: The Packers thought they had a backup at tackle in Barclay, but two preseason games—with cameos on both the left and right side—have proven he’s not long for the edge. Despite playing left tackle in college, Barclay was again overmatched—giving up two ugly sacks (including one for a safety on Aaron Rodgers) and drawing a holding penalty. He struggled with his lateral agility before he ripped up his knee last August; now, Barclay can’t handle any kind of speed or countermove. He’s still oversetting and lunging. Barclay will probably have to make the 53-man roster as a guard. 

RB Alonzo Harris: A week after busting a 25-yard score in New England, Harris dropped two passes and received just one carry against the Steelers. One of his drops came on a perfectly executed screen that likely would have gained 20 or more yards. Sunday was a definite setback for Harris, who got the first run behind Eddie Lacy and James Starks. Raijon Neal might reassume those duties this week. 

P Tim Masthay: It’s a good thing Masthay can hold a perfect ball for Mason Crosby, because he’s still struggling to consistently hit his punts. His first kick traveled just 36 yards and gave the Steelers the football at midfield. He also had kicks of 29 and 39 yards late in the game. The ball just doesn’t come off his foot consistently, especially when he attempts to directional punt to the right side. Great holder, average punter. 

WR Ty Montgomery: Cowboy Ty played 36 snaps, second most on the offense behind Don Barclay. Of those 36, 27 were passing plays, but Montgomery still failed to see a single target. The rookie has made play-after-play in camp, but getting open has been a more difficult task in a live-game setting. It was also notable that Jeff Janis entered the game once Jordy Nelson exited. Maybe best to temper expectations early on, even with Nelson out. 

QB Brett Hundley: The Packers’ young project quarterback looked like a young project quarterback Sunday. It wasn’t going to be all sunshine and rainbows for the fifth-round pick, who impressed over a decent sample size during his debut in New England. Hundley took two sacks and was penalized for intentional grounding behind a makeshift line, while completing 3-of-4 passes for 19 yards. All four of his drives ended in three-and-outs. In fact, Hundley’s four drives netted exactly one yard of total offense. Ouch. Needless to say, he’s no competition for Scott Tolzien right now. His opportunity to be the backup will come in 2016. 

Zach Kruse contributes to Cheesehead TV. You can reach him on Twitter @zachkruse2 or by email at [email protected].