Packers enter 2025 with clear goals but lingering questions about whether recent process flaws will hurt them again
The Green Bay Packers did some sort of rebuilding or retooling process quicker than expected entering the Jordan Love era. But the hardest part comes now, with the attempt to go from good to great with this version of the roster.Free agency is mostly over, and the draft is less than a month away. So, […]
The Green Bay Packers did some sort of rebuilding or retooling process quicker than expected entering the Jordan Love era. But the hardest part comes now, with the attempt to go from good to great with this version of the roster.
Free agency is mostly over, and the draft is less than a month away. So, there are a lot of topics to discuss about the roster-building process, and we’ll go through it in this week’s mailbag.
I won’t blame you for this perception, because I have also been fairly negative about some specific points of the Packers’ roster-building model—and the reactions from my followers on social media have indicated that.
But I do think the Packers have a strong and deep roster. Even though we will always look for needs and potential holes on the team, Green Bay doesn’t have clear, glaring necessities. My big question about the overall situation of the team is how it will dramatically improve from its 2024 version.
The first and obvious answer is a healthy Jordan Love. But beyond that, there’s not many good options. You can mention the draft, sure, but that’s not an advantage over the other 31 teams.
Considering the player the Packers pick, the player they bypassed, and everything involved in the decision, it has to be 2017 with TJ Watt over Kevin King. Green Bay traded down and ended up with King and Vince Biegel, and that created a butterfly effect.
Sure, they wouldn’t have signed Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith in 2019, but they could’ve happily spent that money to sign a better cornerback to pair with Jaire Alexander. And in 2020, King wouldn’t have been a big problem during the NFC Championship Game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Watt was such an obvious pick at that time. Athletic, productive player, from a premium position in which the Packers had a need. Ted Thompson probably overthought it a little bit, and it cost them.
That’s their Plan A. I don’t think they would have drafted Jordan Morgan in the first round if they didn’t think he could play at tackle to begin with. Elgton Jenkins is still fairly young, and offensive linemen tend to play longer. In a vacuum, Jenkins is certainly a better player than Rasheed Walker, so that’s the best possible outcome.
Now, if they think Jenkins can be an All-Pro center, I have no idea why they didn’t play him there to start last season when Morgan was still healthy. The ideal five could have Walker at left tackle, Morgan at left guard, Jenkins at center, Sean Rhyan at right guard, and Zach Tom at right tackle. They insisted on Josh Myers, and the free agent market has shown his current value.
As I mentioned in a previous answer, I don’t feel like the Packers have done enough to get much better than they were last year. At the same time, they were one of the teams which lost the least in free agency. Continuity is a big factor for Green Bay, and the Lions might suffer after losing both coordinators.
Our Lions writer Mike Payton doesn’t think the Lions will miss Ben Johnson that much, but losing both him and Aaron Glenn at the same time is something difficult to overcome. The Philadelphia Eagles suffered in 2023 before changing everything again and finding Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio this past season.
If the Lions regress and the Packers take some small steps forward, there’s reason for optimism with a healthy Jordan Love.
Shemar Stewart is the most Packers prospect to ever Packer. Athletic, monster upside, premium position. And yes, the college production isn't there in terms of sacks, but he was good at generating pressures and impacting the game when given the opportunity by his defensive scheme. If he's there at 23, which I doubt, I don't see a world where the Packers don't take him.
Another top option that might go early, but if he's there the Packers may take him, is cornerback Jahdae Barron. He's slightly shorter than what they would prefer at 5-10, but Jaire Alexander is as well.
The most realistic obvious guy at 23 is defensive tackle Derrick Harmon. He's everything they usually like, a solid fit in Jeff Hafley's defense with his ability to penetrate, and will probably be there when they are on the clock.
I will be shocked if the Packers don't take a cornerback in the first three rounds. The need there is obvious, especially after they lost Eric Stokes, Corey Ballentine, and Robert Rochell. Jaire Alexander will probably be playing elsewhere as well. Right now, they have three reliable cornerbacks on the roster in Keisean Nixon, Nate Hobbs, and Carrington Valentine, and none of them is a bona fide long-term solution to be CB1. At the other positions, they might need depth or are looking for an upgrade, but cornerback is where they need bodies and a future.
On the other hand, safety is the position where I don't see why they would do it. For tight ends and running backs, it's not necessarily because of need, but the class is so Strong at those spots that you can see the reasoning. At safety, the depth is awesome from top to bottom, and the players have longer deals.
Well, as I mentioned in the previous question, I do think they will draft cornerbacks. But Asante Samuel Jr. is an intriguing option to alleviate the need, and he would be a great option to avoid entering the draft with such a glaring issue.
Samuel is smaller than what the Packers tend to like, and that's a problem here, but Green Bay did interview him in the pre-draft process and he has a lot of experience and solid-level play as a boundary player. I don't know exactly why he's still unsigned, maybe it's injury-related or he's just asking for too much money. But if the price is right and he's healthy, it's the best available alternative in free agency at this point.
What’s the best draft strategy for the Packers, and why it might be hard to pull the plan off based on this year’s class
Not every draft class allows you to have a perfect outcome
