F
Green Bay Packers
The Packers went off-script early, and it cost them a F.
by emc2feld ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 25 picks
· 8 steals
· 8 reaches
The Hayden Hatten selection is the head-turner. The Packers reached 81 spots for him, and it will define how this weekend is remembered. Little went right, and the F does not pretend otherwise.
The trade table is where this weekend went wrong. McClellan at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
The bill for those future picks comes due whether the class hits or not.
Bottom line, it will take a lot of luck to make this look better later.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 25 they get an anchor for the offensive line at a price that makes it sweeter. A real need, handled.
In the 26th pick they get a long-term starter on the line, and a steal at that.
In No. 27 they get an island corner at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In Round 1, Pick 28 they get a pocket-collapsing interior rusher, outstanding value to boot. A clean fit for the roster.
No edge and no loss on Junior Colson in pick 41; it is a wash and a sensible one. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A linebacker of that caliber at pick No. 58 is the definition of value, full stop. Stacking talent where they were already deep.
Ben Sinnott at the 88th overall pick is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. The roster fit checks out.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Mohamed Kamara in the Round 3 slot, miles early. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Nothing to complain about; Brenden Rice went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
By-the-book stuff, Malik Mustapha at slot 128 squarely in line with his ranking. A minor itch, scratched.
Bucky Irving at No. 133 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Steal is underselling it; Johnny Wilson at Round 5, Pick 8 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A need, and now a little less of one.
They did well to land Kitan Oladapo in pick 145, just ahead of his grade. They doubled down on a strength rather than a need.
Michael Pratt in the 147th pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Somehow Elijah Jones was still sitting there in pick 160, and they pounced on premier cornerback value. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A wild overpay on Khristian Boyd in the 163rd pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They read the board right and Trevor Keegan was the payoff at the Round 5 slot. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A conviction pick on Kimani Vidal at the 200th overall pick that the board grades a round light. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A market-rate linebacker, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Nathaniel Watson. A want dressed up as a pick, at a spot they had covered.
Jaylan Ford in pick No. 203 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Trey Taylor in No. 204 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Sam Hartman this early at Round 6, Pick 44. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They will replay Jase McClellan at Round 7, Pick 25 for years; that is how good the value is. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Frank Crum in the 248th pick is fair value, right on his grade. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They reached a country mile for Hayden Hatten at No. 255, and the board is aghast. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.