100 Days of Mocks: Going Short in New Seven-Round Mock
GREEN BAY, Wis. – A new quarterback. A new era. A new way of doing business.
With the Green Bay Packers set to turn the page to Jordan Love, they snapped their 21-year streak of not taking a receiver or tight end in the first round by taking Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid in a new seven-round mock draft by ESPN.com’s Matt Miller.
At 6-foot-3 5/8, Kincaid had a sensational final season with 70 receptions for 890 yards (12.7 average) and eight touchdowns to earn third-team All-American. Of tight ends in this draft class, Kincaid ranked second with 2.42 yards per route run and fourth with a drop rate of 2.8 percent, according to Pro Football Focus.
Kincaid had a predraft visit with the Packers.
"There's definitely some [George] Kittle to his game," one AFC scout told Miller, "but he's not there yet as a blocker."
Miller traded Aaron Rodgers to the Jets to gain the 43rd overall pick of the draft, which it used on Kansas State edge Felix Anudike-Uzomah. Anudike-Uzomah, who had a predraft visit to Green Bay had 19.5 sacks, 25.5 tackles for losses and eight forced fumbles during his final two seasons.
Now come the “small” problems in the mock.
Green Bay’s own selection at No. 45 was used on too-small receiver Tyler Scott, who at 5-foot-9 7/8 and merely 177 pounds might not be on its draft board.
The third-round pick was used on Illinois safety Sydney Brown, who at 5-foot-9 3/4 might not be on the board.
A fifth-round pick was used on Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, who at 5-foot-11 3/8 might not be on the board.
A seventh-round pick was used on TCU receiver/returner Davis, who at 5-foot-8 3/8 and just 165 pounds might not be on the board.
The Packers hosted only one top-tier offensive lineman among its 30 predraft visits. That player, Tennessee right tackle Darnell Wright, was the first-round pick in a seven-round mock by Pro Football Network’s Ian Valentino.
Wright started at right tackle in 2020, left tackle in 2021 and was back to right tackle in 2022. He is a “fantastic pass-blocker” who could play either spot, Valentino wrote.
The second-round pick seems almost preposterous with Kincaid falling through the first round and all the way to No. 45. He was the first tight end off the board in this mock.
The receiver came in the third round with LSU’s Kayshon Boutte, who entered the 2022 season considered a potential first-round pick.
A former five-star recruit at a program known for producing elite receivers, Boutte caught a career-high 48 passes in 2022, which he turned into 538 yards (11.2 average) and two touchdowns. He averaged 16.3 yards per catch as a freshman and scored nine touchdowns in just six games in 2021 before a season-ending ankle injury.
From there the mock turned to the defense, with a defensive tackle in the fourth, outside linebacker and safety in the fifth, and a corner to lead off the seventh.
Walter Football rounded out its mock, expanding it to seven rounds.
As has been the case, the mock started with the Packers landing Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid, Notre Dame pass rusher Isaiah Foskey in the second round and too-small North Carolina receiver Josh Downs in the third.
Of the four seven-rounders, three were used on players who had predraft visits. The fourth was on Old Dominion tight end Zach Kuntz, a prospect with immense potential with a perfect-10 Relative Athletic Score.
In 2021, his 73 receptions ranked second among the nation’s tight ends. He turned those into 692 yards and five touchdowns. In five games in 2022, he caught 12 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns before a season-ending knee injury.
The Associated Press had the Packers trading back to No. 20 and getting Kincaid.
Steve Serby of The New York Post went with Georgia offensive tackle Broderick Jones, noting David Bakhtiari’s age and $40 million-plus cap charge in 2024.
At Tankathon, the Packers started with Iowa pass rusher Lukas Van Ness before turning to the offense with potential-packed Georgia tight end Darnell Washington and too-small Houston receiver Tank Dell.
For the Action Network, Sean Koerner, who had one of the most accurate mocks in 2022, also took Van Ness.
Mark Inabinett of AL.com grabbed USC receiver Jordan Addison.
100 Days of Mocks
Starting Jan. 17, when there were 100 days until the start of the NFL Draft, we started our mock-worthy goal of 100 mock drafts in 100 days. Here are the last 10 days of the series.
5 days: Two massive hauls in Rodgers trade
Packer Central’s all-visits seven-round mock
6 days: All-trades mock lands Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Packer Central’s eighth all-Packers mock
7 days: Seven mocks, three votes for Jaxon Smith-Njgiba
8 days: A wild three-team Aaron Rodgers trade among 10 mocks
9 days: Four pass catchers and Peter Schrager among 10 mocks
10 days: Breaking down seven-round mocks by Brugler, CBS
11 days: Seven-round mock and a trade
12 days: Rodgers traded to Jets for first-rounder
13 days: Packers trade back, pick tight end
