#284 Packers Unscripted: First-round thoughts

how it might unfold. There are all kinds of scenarios as far as how this could go for the Green Bay Packers currently sitting with the number fourteen overall pick. Do you have a gut feeling as to who might be available, who the Packers might be choosing from, assuming they decided to stay at fourteen for now? Yeah, I

think you do. Uh, this is the first year I think you can confidently say that the the The contrasting part to this, though, Mike, is the fact that out of all the years that the Packers we're picking near the end of the first round, this is probably the year where you're getting a little bit more bang for your buck at the end of the round, depending on how many quarterbacks go, depending on if there's a run

in a certain player. UM not that saying it will be picked through by any means at fourteen, but there really seems to be The Packers are right on that line right now in terms of where I think you're truly going to find the elite players. And then when you're starting to find guys a little bit based on projection, you have the five quarterbacks. I know Mason Rudolph's name now is getting thrown out there too as a potential first rounder. I don't know if he ends up in

that vicinity at all. But then you got that next wave, and in the way I look at it, I think you have five elite type prospects. As far as the defense is concerned, it's Bradley Chubb, believe it's Smith from Alabama the linebacker, and then the Georgia from Georgia, and then the three defensive backs Derwin James mco Fitzpatrick and Denzel Ward. The Packers would be through the moon if

Ward was available at fourteen. The only question is, though, with him being the top natural cornerback in this spot and this being a passing league, whether or not he can trickle down that far. Yeah, I would say the

other guy that I'm hearing. If you're talking about that the elite defensive prospects, you throw Tremaine Edmunds from Virginia Tech into that mix, so that gives you that gives you six guys there, um two or three linebackers essentially in Chubbs, Smith and Edmonds, and then the three defensive backs that you mentioned. Really, this whole thing is going to be dictated by the quarterbacks. You've got the top four quarterbacks, Alan, Rosen, Donald, and Mayfield. They could go

in whatever order. Lamar Jackson being talked about as the um as the potential fifth quarterback, Sae Kwon Barkley, Quentin Nelson running back from Penn State and guard from Notre Dame, respectively, also being talked about as as top ten picks, possibly even top five or six picks. Um, it's where these quarterbacks go that are going to that's going to determine who will be there for the Packers on that that

number fourteen line. And I'm gonna throw one other name into the mix as a as a guy to watch who could change this holy equation. And I'm talking about Mike McGlinchey, the left tackle from Notre Dame. Because this is a very Matt There you go, Matt Ryan's cousin. This is a very thin draft for franchise left tackles, and McGlinchey, by all accounts, is probably the best one

on the board. If somebody who needs a left tackle is really really enamored with him, that's another guy who maybe sneaks up into the top twelve or thirteen picks and then pushes another one of those defensive prospects potentially down to number fourteen. But you don't really know. You just don't know how this is gonna go there. There are any number of ways. There are any number of

ways it could go. But I agree with you that those names you mentioned, particularly the three defensive backs, because I don't think Chubb or Smith is going to be there at fourteen. I almost write that off, like from the beginning, But those three defensive backs, Ward, Fitzpatrick and James, if one of those guys is there at number fourteen, I think the Packers are going to be pretty happy. Yeah. And another thing to bring up to and you mentioned McGlinchey.

This is what you mentioned. It's not a great year for a lead offensive tackles. Last year wasn't either, So there are gonna be some teams out there that are gonna be hungry to try finding them. I think Colton Miller falls into that category too. From U c l A. He won't go that high. I think he does go in the first round six ft nine six fights from U c l A. I think the real I think the lynch pin for those first ten picks is what the Giants do. Do they go with Barclay or do

they go with a quarterback. If they take a quarterback, that might tempt one of those teams, whether that that has a quarterback in place, like like the Chicago Bears, you know, maybe like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that they were looking at maybe a defensive his Asian to get them to bite on Barkley if he happens to fall that far. Because I have to think that Denver Broncos, even though they let C. J. Anderson go, they still got to be thinking about quarterback to they're trying to

find their next guy. So the Giants are the interesting one. And Okay, so if the Giants do take the quarterback, then Barkley is probably not making it past number four with the Browns. But if they take Barkley, well, your hair is on the line with this one in terms of I doubt that the Browns are going to take another quarterbacks. So then what position does John Dorsey take? This is the big question. And then if you want to make it just a little bit more confusing, Mike,

those phones are constantly. There's teams looking to move up. There's teams that are, you know, kind of mortgaging their future to get the guy that they feel is going to help them right starting this day one. Yeah, and for those wondering about the hair comment, to clarify for people, you mentioned in our Insider Inbox column that if John Dorsey, as GM of the Browns takes quarterbacks with both the first and the fourth pick, that you would shave my head.

I was not involved in this decision whatsoever, but you threw it out there. So now I think the Insider Inbox community is going to hold you to it. Oh. Absolutely. And I wouldn't put my own hair on this, Mike. Look at that some luscious locks that you have going on there. If I shape my head it might not

grow bad. I'm just holding onto whatever I have left I would be foolish to put my own hair on the line, but I did want to understate the fact that it would be tempting, especially in this environment, to take two quarterbacks. But you got to remember the position you'd be putting those young men in. They want to say that they're the franchise you want to rally around

your guy. How do you rally around a guy when you have two of them standing around and they both well, and how do and how do you develop two at once when you're trying to figure out who the franchise guy is. I I you gotta pick one and go for it. But Dorsey holding that first and fourth pick, he's he's also the turnkey guy in this draft. In some respect, it's very important because he could trade it.

He could take a really good football player at that spot. Um, if you look at it too, they have a lot of good guards. They're already they have that side of the line kind of fortified, so you wonder if they would sap up one of those defensive players. So it's just it's a lot of question marks, and it's all based on what really, to me, the Giants end up

doing at number two. Yeah, and you mentioned some trade scenarios, and I want to talk about those after the Breakback with Moron Packers Unscripted, right after this Welcome Back to Packers unscripted. Mike Spofford in this chair, West hodku WIT's in that one, okay, West. So if the Packers decide to trade out of the fourteen spot, do you see them? Do you see Brian goudacunt is going up or back?

I want to go up. They find the Packers. And the reason I've said this so long, Mike, it's it's probably going to be a broken record at this point, but this is an opportunity. I've said it since the very end of the season when we knew the Grim Bay Packers were going to be picking. This is your chance to go and find a guy that on every single board, unequivocally, the guy has a first round grade for the most part. I want to get one of

those players. And if you feel if and you don't want to get married to guys, obviously Brian Goodquin's talk this week, you have to be able to to find the right balance that that you're not just going out of your mind to get a guy that you think is just the greatest thing since sliced bread, there has to be value taken into account. But I just feel, especially with those twelve picks, you have that third rounder that could be used to move up three or four

spots if you need to. I, if it's me personally, I would trade up. And that's when you when you talk about the value being there, that's all part of

the equation. When we're talking about these quarterbacks, that these four, possibly five quarterbacks that could go in the top ten or twelve picks, that's pushing down you know, best player available types areos guys that you know, if you take the quarterbacks out of the mix, our top five, top six, top seven picks in this draft, but they're gonna drop down into that ten, eleven, twelve range. And when you say opportunity, the packers normally have been picking at you know,

thirty some years. The cost of moving from thirty up to ten, for example, is way bigger than moving from fourteen up to ten if you've got that guy in your sites that you want to get. So when I hear you say opportunity, that's what I'm understanding. You're saying, yeah, absolutely, and and hey, I'm not going to discount anything we don't know what it's like in that draft room. If there's one of these teams with two first round picks, or somebody overwhelms you, and then the draft value chart

just tells you you're getting a bargain. Okay, you play that game. But my thought is is that it's just you have whether it's somebody's gonna fall like somebody will unequivocally. So you're gonna get one of the top defensive backs, You're gonna get one of the top pass structures, You're gonna get one of the top prospects in this draft with over a thousand players will be entering the league here, you're gonna get one one of the top one percent

of that. And I just I really think and when you you you want to have swings at the plate. You want to be able to get as much value

as you can. But to me, I just look at that number fourteen spot is a huge asset and that it gives you the power to potentially move up and not have to you know, trade future picks, but it also gives you the option that depending on what happens at the cornerback position, if quarterbacks don't end up going in the first ten, and maybe there isn't a guy there that you like, and somebody wants to come up and get one of those quarterbacks that fell another option

on the table as well. Yeah, okay, so let me throw this out at you. Go back to two thousand and nine. We've said it many times. The last time the Packers had a pick in the upper half of the first round was two thousand nine when they were sitting at number nine and selected b J. Rogie. And that was also the year then that Ted Thompson used second and third round picks to move back into the tail end of the first round to select Clay Matthews

and have two first round picks in one year. Do you see that as a possible scenario this year or do the Packers maybe not quite have the draft capital to do it. I really appreciate that you brought this question up, because it's a great point you make, because the same thing we talked about with moving up from thirty to ten, the same holds true in the second round.

The Packers had those extra picks and had the value there to move back into the first round to take Clay Matthews, because they just ended up taking b J. Raji at number nine. They didn't trade anything to move up from that spot, So the same principles are in

line there. For that reason, if the Packers do sit at fourteen, I think that's entirely in play that if there's a guy that they feel is there at the end of the first round that can be a difference maker that they can potentially move up and get that player. It all depends on what the prices to play that

hand though. But you look at two thousand nine, Mic, and you can't always replicate history, but you and I both know that without b J. Raji and with play Matthews, that defense doesn't become what it was in two thousand nine and two thousand ten. They don't get to the super Bowl. They don't have that instant renovation underneath Dom

Capers if those two players aren't there. Caper said, right from the beginning, you needed the defensive tackle, especially in that day and age when they're playing that much space, and you needed the pass rusher, and it ended up coming up spades for them. Yeah. Well, all the way all of these different things could play out. We'll talk about this more later, but very quickly, your gut feeling as of right now, do the Packers sit at fourteen?

Do they trade up or do they trade down? To me, I still have this hunch that they're going to trade up and then no, no, basis all speculation, And when you look at my draft board, it's just all Caddy wombus at this point. I mean, I got I got nothing in terms of where all these guys are gonna turn out. But I just I think this is a chance to make a statement. And I just feel, depending on how that board is moving at number seven or eight, that if you think the value is there to go

get a playmaker, I think you take your shot. All right, I'm gonna say that they probably just stay at fourteen, But we're going to talk about that more on our next show. The next thing I want to get to though, is, uh, there's more to this draft than just the first round. So let's get to that after the breakback with more on Packers Unscripted. Right after this, Welcome back to Packers Unscripted,

Mike Spofford alongside West Hodko. It's okay, West, let's step out of the first round for a minute here and take a look at, you know, kind of these middle rounds which is where you know the real drafters, the top gm s make hey and make their reputation. Is

is with these middle round picks. Are there some guys and I don't care what position you want to address, but are there some guys in the middle rounds that that you kind of had your eye on that maybe you think could be a good fit for the Packers that we might see the Packers take on Day two or even early on Day three of this draft as far as fit, and I don't know how high offensive line is going to be on their list of needs, but Austin Corbett from Nevada is just the guy I've

really had my eye on because he fits that prototype that they've looked for on the offensive line for the last decade and that he was a really successful college tackle at a mid you know, a mid level tier. I mean, Nevada is not considered like a big FBS power, but he's going to transition to being an interior linement in the NFL six four, three oh five. I don't know about you, they've had a lot of success with that body type in the interior of the offensive line.

I think that that's a guy that gives you some flexibility depending on where you have to use him. I think he's probably gonna end up being a day to pick, and he might be a little too high for forty five, So I don't really know if it's gonna equate. But in terms of just looking at a guy that screams a packer person to meet, Corbett's one of the going through this whole process is but one of the guys

I've ever been following. All Right, well, I'm gonna take you to the state of Oklahoma first, let's do it to keep your on and and I'll bring up these guys partly because I did prospect primers on them for our website. So then you do a little research on these guys and you start to think, uh, yeah, I could see these guys, you know, fitting maybe maybe the packers are gonna like this guy. And they're both past catchers. University of Oklahoma tight end Mark Andrews strikes me as

kind of like another Jimmy Graham. Not as fast, not quite as fast anyway, but kind of like another Jimmy Graham, just in terms of tall guy, tough matchup, big catching radius, you can throw the ball all sorts of places, um and uh. Um, a guy who's gonna need some time to develop, which is why I don't think he's necessarily going to be a first or a second round pick. He's gonna be he's gonna be taken later in the draft. And the other guy that strikes me also from the

state of Oklahoma. This is Oklahoma State, and I'm talking about wide receiver James Washington. I think this guy is a mid round type of pick, and he strikes me as another James Jones, but with a little more speed, a little bit more of a deep threat than perhaps James Jones was in his very productive career here for the Packers. So those are two guys if you want to check out the prospect primers on the website. Um,

I did a little research on those guys. Just guys that intrigued me because I think the Packers are going to restock the past catchers at both wide receiver and tight end in this draft. I'm keeping my eye on those two. Yeah. And then one of the guy to throw up, although now he's he's kind of like been um, like Vander Esh one of these outside backers that's sort of been climbing up boards with Sam Hubbard from Ohio

State outside linebacker, defensive end, edge rusher. I was originally thinking he would end up being a mid round guy, but then I saw I think it was ESPN did their mock draft with their beat writers, and Hubbard ended up going in the first round. I think there's some questions about his upside and just how far his ceiling goes. But he he looks the part of a really successful outside backer six three over six three, um and you know about that two sixty pound range, very successful at

Ohio State. I was another guy kept an eye on and then just I mean for my own purposes, just trying to keep an eye on it. I mean, Shack Griffin is going to be a guy. I think everyone's gonna be watching great story. I don't know where he goes from what I understood. I think he's going to Dallas, right,

He's gonna be He's gonna be at the draft. Yeah, so he might end up first being a Day three pick, But I mean, you talk about a guy that has obviously maximized everything in his life to get to this point. It's just it's gonna be a great moment for him whenever his name does get called. Because I think if nothing else through this combine process, he assured himself that

he will get drafted. And when you talk about Hubbard, to step back to him for a second, I think he's a guy who's going to go sooner rather than later because edge rushers are are at a premium. Not only at a premium, but it's not a very deep group of edge rushers in this draft. So that's a guy who, you know, maybe from a pure talent standpoint, is going to be rated here, but he's going to be drafted up here because of the position he plays, and there just aren't a lot of those in this

draft defying there really aren't. And then one last name for you, Darius Leonard from South Carolina State kind of reminds me of a Joe Thomas a little bit but a little bit more athletic, and he will get draft in those middle rounds as well. I don't know what the need is going to be there for the Packers and an inside linebacker with Blake Martinez coming back in Jake Ryan, but I think he's another guy that could

be interesting. All right. With that, we will toss to another break back with Moron Packers unscripted right after this Welcome back to Packers unscripted. Mike Spofford here West, Hodkuh, It's over there, So okay, West Packers are at the overall pick if they decide to stay there and select at fourteen. You wrote a story about this on our website, packers dot com. There's a little bit of history on their side, not only Green Bay Packers history, but NFL

history in general. With the success of that four pick. In Packers history three times they've drafted at number fourteen. Two times. It's turned out to be an awfully good player. One of those guys is in Canton. Yeah, Dave Robinson, who I think. You know, they built the crux of that team in the late fifties, you know Jack NISI and in the scouting department and the job that Vince

Lombardi did developing him. But Dave Robinson was a fun player because he came in sixty I believe it was sixty two, um, so that they kind of already turned things around, but that's when they started to kind of fortify things. End up having an incredibly productive career, such a big playmaker, twenty seven career interceptions. I think every year he was in the league, he had at least one at the linebacker position working with Ray nich Key. Um,

just a phenomenal football player. Uh. And then yeah, Bubba Franks. I mean, Franks isn't the type of guy that I you know, he's not going into Canton, but I think for that time and place, he fit what they were doing so well. And and and to be honest with you, it was kind of really truly like the last Ron Wolf type pick. Uh. You know, there's so many questions about that two thousand one draft, and you know, he's three time Pro Bowl are incredibly productive in the red zone.

But even more than that, Mike I went back and looked at it the last fourteen drafts because it's the number fourteen pick. Yeah, I went back and looked twenty three Pro Bowlers, thirteen All Pro teams in five Super Bowl victories among them. Uh. That group includes you know, Earl Thomas, who has been considered one of the not the best safety in the NFL. Uh. And then you

look no further than Durell Rivas. Rivas now on the downside of his career, how pactful he was for so many years and in Mike Petton scheme as well, those were the names I was going to mention because you go back to where we started the show talking about is one of these, you know, top defensive backs Denzel Ward, Minka Fitzpatrick or Derwin James is one of those guys going to be available potentially at fourteen for the Packers. Then you think, you think about guys like Durell Rivas

and Earl Thomas being selected with the fourteenth pick. I remember back to that two thousand seven draft. The Packers were sitting at number sixteen. They wanted Darrell Reevs. You know, they liked him. You know, I don't remember the scenario in terms of the picks they had, if they would have had any opportunity to move up or not, but um, the Jets took him two spots before Green Bay, and

obviously the rest is history. But then again, that goes back to our question of if one of those dbs is there and the Packers really really like that guy, you know, is Brian Goodin is gonna pull the trigger and make a trade and make sure he doesn't miss out? And I touched on this an Insider in boxes past week. Mike, to me, that's why I've been saying best available playmakers the need for the Packers, and more specifically, that's the

slot cornerback position. You can manufacture things sometimes on the boundary, but you need that Charles Woodson type player. It looks like either Fitzpatrick or James could be that guy. I think Ward gives you a little bit more flexibility in terms of being able to be used outside. That's the quandary right now for all these gms and for Brian

Goodkins trying figure out who's gonna be the next big fit. Yeah, and with that, we are a little closer to the first round of the NFL Draft, and we will sign off for now on Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team on Packers dot com. On Twitter, you can find him at west Hot I'm at Mike Spofford at Packers for the team account. Thanks for tuning in, everybody, We'll see you next time.