Packers draft history under Brian Gutekunst reveals clear pattern that points to another major investment in 2026
The general manager has been active in adding offensive linemen in the draft, and this class should be another heavy one in terms of volume.
The Green Bay Packers badly need offensive line depth. Well, help is likely on the way. Since general manager Brian Gutekunst took over in 2018, he selected multiple offensive linemen in the same class five times — including three in the same class four times. If history is an indication of what’s to come, get ready to know some big guys soon.
Strong track record
It’s not a coincidence, but a trend. “The Lord only made so many of them” is a frequent sentence thrown around in Green Bay for a reason.
In his first two seasons as a GM, Gutekunst took one lineman per year — Cole Madison in 2018, Elgton Jenkins in 2019. Then, he started to take several of them every year. Jon Runyan, Jake Hanson, and Simon Stepaniak in 2020; Josh Myers, Royce Newman, and Cole Van Lanen in 2021; Sean Rhyan, Zach Tom, and Rasheed Walker in 2022.
Those classes, but 2022 in particular, gave the Packers a foundation of what the offensive line would look like for years to come. Especially because this is a position where it’s extremely hard to find production via free agents or trades, investing in it via the draft is the perfect approach.
After not taking any offensive lineman in 2023 for the first time as general manager, Gutekunst drafted five of them over the past two years — Jordan Morgan, Jacob Monk, and Travis Glover in 2024; Anthony Belton and John Williams in 2025.
It’s not necessarily about the hit rate. Especially taking so many players on Day 3 of the draft, mistakes are natural. But getting multiple ones reduces the risk of missing on all of them — if you take three linemen, at least one will likely be a positive player. And that’s enough to keep the group playing at a good level.
Huge need
Because the Packers didn’t take linemen in 2023 and haven’t had huge success stories over the past two years, the depth is now a concern. Hopefully for them, left tackle Jordan Morgan and right guard Anthony Belton will establish themselves as viable starters.
But to improve depth, the team signed left guard Aaron Banks in free agency and traded for versatile backup Darian Kinnard. That’s unusual for their standards, but became necessary under their circumstances.
Now, especially with Rasheed Walker moving on in free agency, depth is a key component of the draft process — for the short- and long-term. With eight draft picks in 2026, don’t be surprised if Gutekunst utilizes two or three to take advantage of those few athletic freaks the Lord made.