C
Green Bay Packers
The Packers got the worse of every deal, and it shows in the C.
by emc2feld ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 27 picks
· 7 steals
· 11 reaches
The Hayden Hatten selection is the head-turner. The Packers reached 70 spots for him, and it will define how this weekend is remembered.
Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Simpson. The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. Edge rusher was the priority and it is no longer a question, which is most of the job.
They bet on numbers rather than a single high pick.
The verdict is a shrug for now, with the swing picks left to write the real ending.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get an anchor for the offensive line, outstanding value to boot. A real need, handled.
Cooper DeJean at pick 60 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A tidy little value on Payton Wilson in pick No. 61, a step better than break-even. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
No drama and no debate, Mike Sainristil went about where he belonged in No. 73. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Jaden Hicks in slot 90 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Zak Zinter at the 105th overall pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A need, and now a little less of one.
A straight-up fair deal on Cedric Gray at the 106th overall pick, value and slot in agreement. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Somehow Blake Corum was still sitting there in pick No. 110, and they pounced on premier running back value. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A conviction pick on Mohamed Kamara at pick 126 that the board grades a round light. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
No edge and no loss on Ben Sinnott in Round 4, Pick 28; it is a wash and a sensible one. It fills a real need, too.
They paid sticker price for Roger Rosengarten in slot 131, and that is fine. The roster fit checks out.
They went early on Michael Pratt in No. 133, and the value did not follow. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A premium they did not need to pay, Hunter Nourzad a notch or two before his time. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Jarrian Jones at the Round 5 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Malik Mustapha at No. 164 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Joe Milton III in Round 5, Pick 33 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
By-the-book stuff, Fabien Lovett at pick 181 squarely in line with his ranking. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Taking Jaylin Simpson in the 202nd overall pick is close to grand larceny; a cornerback that good had no business lasting this long. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They jumped the gun on Javontae Jean-Baptiste, taking him earlier than his grade liked. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Frank Gore Jr. in the Round 6 slot is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Trevin Wallace at the 219th pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
A tidy bit of business in pick No. 225, where Nathaniel Watson graded well above the range. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
A wild overpay on Jowon Briggs in Round 7, Pick 6, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Trey Taylor in pick 245 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
Value said wait; Frank Crum in No. 248 says they were not listening. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They let Edefuan Ulofoshio come to them and pounced at pick No. 253. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They reached into another round for Hayden Hatten, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.