The Packers looked at the value chart, folded it up, and took John Emery Jr. at slot 219 regardless, 124 picks early. Good, not great, and the B- says as much.
On value alone, Barrett makes the weekend a net positive. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped quarterback, which is a strange place to end up. Edge rusher is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
The weekend tilted hard toward the defense.
Solid rather than spectacular, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pick-by-Pick
R1.25
· Pick 25
· Kool-Aid McKinstry
· CB
· rank 19
In slot 25 they get an island corner. Exactly the need they had to hit.
R2.9
· Pick 41
· Jackson Powers-Johnson
· C
· rank 51
A reach for Jackson Powers-Johnson in Round 2, Pick 9; a little patience would have been rewarded. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
R2.25
· Pick 57
· Chris Braswell
· LB-EDGE
· rank 57
Chris Braswell in the 57th pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
R3.25
· Pick 88
· Malachi Corley
· WR
· rank 79
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Malachi Corley at No. 88 is the proof. A need, and now a little less of one.
R3.28
· Pick 91
· McKinnley Jackson
· DL
· rank 88
McKinnley Jackson at the Round 3 slot nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
R4.25
· Pick 125
· Cedric Gray
· LB
· rank 135
They liked Cedric Gray enough to skip the value, taking him in the 125th overall pick. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
R4.35
· Pick 135
· Malik Mustapha
· S
· rank 139
They paid sticker price for Malik Mustapha in slot 135, and that is fine. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
R6.28
· Pick 203
· Michael Barrett
· LB
· rank 183
Michael Barrett at the 203rd overall pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
R6.42
· Pick 217
· Demani Richardson
· S
· rank 246
This one needs a full-page explanation: Demani Richardson in the 217th pick, miles early. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
R6.44
· Pick 219
· John Emery Jr.
· RB
· rank 343
They talked themselves into John Emery Jr. at No. 219, and the board did not agree. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
R7.26
· Pick 246
· Walter Rouse
· OT
· rank 258
They jumped the gun on Walter Rouse, taking him earlier than his grade liked. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.