C+
Green Bay Packers
The Packers landed square in the muddy middle: C+.
by mlpackman ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 0 steals
· 8 reaches
The Packers clearly saw something nobody else did in Roman Hemby, taking him 139 picks ahead of his grade. The board is not convinced. For now it grades a C+, with the swing picks left to settle the rest.
For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain. Cornerback is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
Almost all the early capital went to that side of the ball. Their trades came out a wash either way.
If Graham Barton and a couple of the gambles land, hindsight will be kinder than this grade.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 19 they get an anchor for the offensive line at fair value.
A big swing on Cooper DeJean at the 40th pick, well ahead of any board in the building. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Luke Lachey in the 51st overall pick, miles early. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
The board had cheaper options than Zak Zinter at pick No. 83, and it noticed. A need, and now a little less of one.
A tidy little value on Donovan Edwards in No. 88, a step better than break-even. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Cedric Gray at the Round 4 slot is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Khyree Jackson at the 135th pick nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A real head-scratcher, Jase McClellan in slot 179 is miles ahead of his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Phil Jurkovec at the 197th overall pick is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Turner Corcoran at pick 217 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
They talked themselves into Roman Hemby at No. 219, and the board did not agree. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Frank Gore Jr. in the Round 7 slot is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.