The Packers looked at the value chart, folded it up, and took Braelon Allen at No. 135 regardless, 24 picks early.
The Packers indulged a want in Stover while a need in edge rusher, quarterback and other spots stayed open. That edge rusher hole did not close this weekend, and it was the biggest one on the wall. Tampa at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
Cornerback is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
R2.2
· Pick 34
· Kamren Kinchens
· S
· rank 34
No drama and no debate, Kamren Kinchens went about where he belonged in the 34th pick. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
R2.8
· Pick 40
· Patrick Paul
· OT
· rank 47
Patrick Paul at No. 40 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A need, and now a little less of one.
R2.17
· Pick 49
· T.J. Tampa
· CB
· rank 39
Value with a capital V on T.J. Tampa in the Round 2 slot, a genuine coup. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
R2.18
· Pick 50
· Jackson Powers-Johnson
· C
· rank 51
They paid sticker price for Jackson Powers-Johnson in Round 2, Pick 18, and that is fine. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
R2.22
· Pick 54
· Edgerrin Cooper
· LB
· rank 56
Edgerrin Cooper in pick 54 is fair value, right on his grade. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
R2.25
· Pick 57
· Trey Benson
· RB
· rank 68
A reach on Trey Benson in the 57th overall pick; the board had better options right there. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
R3.8
· Pick 72
· Johnny Wilson
· WR
· rank 73
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Johnny Wilson. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
R3.23
· Pick 86
· McKinnley Jackson
· DL
· rank 87
By-the-book stuff, McKinnley Jackson at Round 3, Pick 23 squarely in line with his ranking. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
R3.37
· Pick 100
· Cade Stover
· TE-EDGE
· rank 93
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending the 100th pick on Cade Stover with edge rusher, quarterback and other spots unsolved.
R4.20
· Pick 120
· James Williams
· S
· rank 135
They zigged when the board said zag, taking James Williams at safety with edge rusher, quarterback and other spots open.
R4.35
· Pick 135
· Braelon Allen
· RB
· rank 159
A big swing on Braelon Allen at pick 135, well ahead of any board in the building. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.