C
Green Bay Packers
The Packers won the night they stopped Hadden from sliding. Grade: C.
by emc2feld ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 22 picks
· 7 steals
· 4 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Packers watched Kamal Hadden slide 35 picks past his grade and did not hesitate. A weekend of give and take that grades a C.
They are betting Hartman proves the room right and everyone else wrong. They will regret leaving edge rusher for another day if the season turns on it.
The dealing tilted against them, just enough to notice. Job largely done: cornerback settled and 5 of 8 of the wish list covered.
Hit on Amarius Mims and the swing picks, and this ages a lot better than it grades today.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 25th pick they get a long-term starter on the line. A clean fit for the roster.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Tyler Guyton in the Round 2 slot. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They paid sticker price for Payton Wilson in slot 58, and that is fine. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Fair-plus on Jaden Hicks, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Zak Zinter at pick No. 105 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It fills a real need, too.
No edge and no loss on Ray Davis in Round 4, Pick 10; it is a wash and a sensible one. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Value with a capital V on Elijah Jones in pick 126, a genuine coup. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
By-the-book stuff, Jarrian Jones at the 131st overall pick squarely in line with his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They took Jaylin Simpson at par in pick 133, which is nothing to complain about. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Isaac Guerendo at Round 4, Pick 36 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Good price on Michael Pratt in the 145th pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A market-rate linebacker, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tommy Eichenberg. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Malik Mustapha in No. 169 is fair value, right on his grade. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They jumped the gun on Tanor Bortolini, taking him earlier than his grade liked. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Ty'Ron Hopper in the 202nd overall pick is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Pure best-available; the position was not exactly begging.
Kamal Hadden in pick No. 203 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Circle this one: Cornelius Johnson at the 215th overall pick is a fall that decides a draft. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A straight-up fair deal on Jordan Magee at pick No. 219, value and slot in agreement. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
A wild overpay on Sam Hartman in the Round 7 slot, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Trey Taylor well ahead of where he belonged. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
Matthew Jones at Round 7, Pick 33 jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They let Jalen Sundell come to them and pounced at No. 255. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.