33 Days Until NFL Draft: Trading Up for ‘All-Pro Potential’
With less than five weeks until the start of the 2024 NFL Draft, two fresh mock drafts have the Packers moving up and another has them moving back.
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Over the last few weeks, no player has been mocked to the Green Bay Packers more often than Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean. The reality is his size, athleticism, ball production and physicality could take him off the board before Green Bay is on the clock at No. 25.
The Athletic’s Diante Lee took care of that dilemma in his new mock draft. In his simulation, the Packers moved up 10 slots and gained an additional fourth-round pick at the expense of a second-round pick in 2025 to land DeJean.
Is DeJean a cornerback, which he played exceptionally well at Iowa? A slot? A safety? Lee compared him to Jalen Ramsey and Derwin James.
The second-round picks were used to bolster the offensive line with UConn guard Christian Haynes and Notre Dame right tackle Blake Fisher. Packers GM Brian Gutekunst, by the way, was at Notre Dame’s pro day on Thursday.
NFL.com (4 Rounds): Washington OT Troy Fautanu
In a four-round mock draft by Chad Reuter, the Packers moved back a few spots and landed Fautanu while gaining an additional fourth-round pick.
The Packers could be looking for a left tackle to be the permanent successor to left tackle David Bakhtiari. That could be Fautanu, who Reuter said has the length, bend and strength to be for Jordan Love what Bakhtiari was for Aaron Rodgers.
The second-round picks addressed the defense with Washington State safety Jaden Hicks, who as a bigger defender would complement free-agent addition Xavier McKinney, and Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Hall, who will take a predraft visit.
In the third round, the choices were North Carolina linebacker Cedric Gray and ultra-athletic Wisconsin center Tanor Bortolini. Both of those picks would fill needs, with Green Bay having a big hole at linebacker and limited depth on the offensive line. Gray had 99 tackles as a sophomore, 145 as a junior and 121 as a senior with a total of 29 tackles for losses, five forced fumbles and five interceptions during those three seasons.
Green Bay added two more defenders in the fourth round.
NFL Draft Scout (Trade Up): Penn State OT Olu Fashanu
Taking a page from our Jacob Westendorf, Jeremy Bissett moved up to No. 14 to take the Penn State left tackle. Unlike a few of the other offensive tackles in this class, no projection is needed with Fashanu. He replaced Rasheed Walker in the starting lineup and allowed zero sacks as the Nittany Lions’ left tackle in 2022 and 2023.
Fashanu is a top-10 talent who will be pushed down the board by the top quarterbacks.
Sports Illustrated (4 Rounds): Iowa CB Cooper DeJean
Luke Easterling stuck at No. 25 to select DeJean. While adding the top safety in free agency, Xavier McKinney, will provide a big boost in the secondary, the Packers need more help after intercepting only seven passes last season.
With DeJean, the Packers would get a high-impact defender with “big-play ability” as a returner. He was the choice over, among others, Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins, Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry and offensive linemen Amarius Mims, Tyler Guyton and Graham Barton.
The first of the second-round picks filled the huge hole at linebacker with athletic Texas A&M playmaker Edgerrin Cooper. The second of the third-round picks provided the sidekick to McKinney with Miami’s Kamren Kinchens, a big-time playmaker in college who ran poorly at the Scouting Combine and didn’t improve by much at pro day.
The fourth-round pick was spent on Washington offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten, a big-time athlete who allowed zero sacks in two seasons as the starting right tackle.
The Athletic (Beat Writers): Clemson CB Nate Wiggins
The Athletic’s team beat writers conducted their second mock draft. Just like the first, Matt Schneidman picked Wiggins, who has an elite combination of size (6-foot-1 3/8) and speed (4.28 in the 40 at the Scouting Combine). According to Pro Football Focus, he allowed 18 completions in 41 targets in 2023.
Six offensive tackles went ahead of Green Bay, including Tyler Guyton to Dallas at No. 24.
Yahoo: Oklahoma OT Tyler Guyton
Charles McDonald and Nate Tice joined forces for this mock. With Tice making the odd-numbered picks, he picked Guyton, a “high upside” player capable of playing left and right tackle.
The Packers badly need a tackle. Are they sold on Rasheed Walker as the left tackle for a potential Super Bowl contender? If so, then they at least need a versatile backup; Luke Tenuta, at the moment, is the next man up after Yosh Nijman signed with the Panthers. If they don’t believe in Walker, then maybe Guyton would be the long-term solution.
CBS Sports: Georgia OT Amarius Mims
With the release of David Bakhtiari, the Packers might be looking for a left tackle. As is the case with Guyton, Mims was a right tackle at Georgia. Can he make the move to left tackle? Josh Edwards believes he can in making him the pick over Guyton and DeJean.
Atlanta Falcons: Georgia OT Amarius Mims
Falcons team beat writer Tori McElhaney made Mims the sixth of seven offensive tackles taken in the first round.
33rd Team: Duke OL Graham Barton
Cooper DeJean and Amarius Mims were on the board butIan Valentino went with the versatile Duke blocker, who played center as a freshman before three solid years at left tackle. He allowed two sacks in each of his final two seasons. Arm length could move him to guard, where he could challenge Sean Rhyan in 2024, or center, where he could replace Josh Myers in 2025.
