D
Green Bay Packers
A costly weekend of dealing drags the Packers to a D.
by emc2feld ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 30 picks
· 8 steals
· 11 reaches
Call it belief, call it a gut call, but Devin Culp at No. 253 is 51 spots clear of consensus, and that is the headline. Put together, it is a D.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Eichenberg.
The Packers clearly valued win-now help, adding bodies who have done it before. They went 8 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even.
Pick-by-Pick
Nothing to complain about; Quinyon Mitchell went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They paid sticker price for Payton Wilson in Round 2, Pick 26, and that is fine. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Kingsley Suamataia in the 66th overall pick. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
No drama and no debate, Renardo Green went about where he belonged in pick No. 71. A minor need, but a need all the same.
A slide stopped in slot 88, with Mike Sainristil worth more than the price. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jaden Hicks slipping to the Round 3 slot is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Zak Zinter in Round 4, Pick 4 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. The roster fit checks out.
No edge and no loss on Ray Davis in slot 105; it is a wash and a sensible one. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Cedric Gray at the Round 4 slot is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It is more luxury than necessity; they were already set here.
They liked Ben Sinnott enough to skip the value, taking him in pick 114. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A real head-scratcher, Roger Rosengarten in the 116th pick is miles ahead of his ranking. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They took Mohamed Kamara at par in pick No. 126, which is nothing to complain about. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Good price on Jacob Cowing in No. 153, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. A need, and now a little less of one.
Tommy Eichenberg in the 169th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
Jaheim Bell at pick 170 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A big swing on Joe Milton III at the Round 5 slot, well ahead of any board in the building. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A reach on Tanor Bortolini in the 172nd overall pick; the board had better options right there. It fills a real need, too.
They paid a round early for Jordan Jefferson in No. 175, more than the board wanted. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Ty'Ron Hopper at pick No. 181 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
A tidy bit of business in the 202nd pick, where Cornelius Johnson graded well above the range. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A wild overpay on Trevin Wallace in Round 6, Pick 35, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Jase McClellan is a better player than slot 212 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Value said wait; Trey Taylor in the Round 6 slot says they were not listening. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
The board fumbled Ryan Flournoy all the way to slot 225, and they scooped it up. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
The board had Nathaniel Watson higher than Round 7, Pick 6, and the linebacker fell to them anyway. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Jowon Briggs at pick 236 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
They went early on Jalen Sundell in pick No. 239, and the value did not follow. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Matthew Jones at the 245th overall pick is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Devin Culp in the 253rd pick is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Value with a capital V on Daijahn Anthony in No. 255, a genuine coup. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.