Packers’ Draft Mistakes in 2021 Continue to Haunt Them in Free Agency

‘Twas the second night of the draft.

And business was set to be gone about.

Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst was looking for an offensive lineman and a wideout.

The Green Bay Packers went into the 2021 NFL Draft in the midst of a public feud with their franchise quarterback, and had selected cornerback Eric Stokes in the first round as news of Aaron Rodgers’ unhappiness broke.

As the second night of the draft began, Gutekunst was looking to help supplement his offense that had fallen one game short of getting back to the Super Bowl.

These were no small investments.

Ultimately, Gutekunst made two picks that night: center Josh Myers from Ohio State and receiver Amari Rodgers from Clemson. They were supposed to be key pieces to help get Green Bay over the hump and into the Super Bowl.

Myers was installed as the team’s starting center from the day he set foot in Green Bay. Rodgers’ role in the offense was altered by the late-summer addition of Randall Cobb and had to settle for being the team’s primary punt returner.

Fast forward to 2025. Neither player is on the roster, and the Packers are likely left wondering what might have been.

We’ll start with Myers, who just agreed to a one-year $3.5 million deal with the New York Jets. Considering some of the money being thrown around at offensive linemen this offseason, Myers’ contract is for relative peanuts. He may not even be a lock to make the roster.

One of those teams that spent a large sum of money on the offensive line was the Packers. Aaron Banks was given a four-year $77 million deal to be the team’s starting left guard. Two-time Pro Bowl left guard Elgton Jenkins will slide to center.

Famously, of course, Myers was taken one spot in front of the Kansas City Chiefs’ All-Pro center, Creed Humphrey.

Humphrey was, by consensus, the proper choice at the time. Asked after Day 2 of the draft why Myers was the pick, Gutekunst said, “It was a pretty good center class up at the top this year, and I thought we had some options. But Josh is a guy, his size, his athleticism, his power, how smart he is, what they asked him to do at Ohio State and understanding he could handle some of that here, I think was intriguing to us, and I think he fit what we’re all about.”

Myers was not a complete disaster. He had some nice moments in Green Bay. He was tough as nails and was called a “heart-and-soul player” by Matt LaFleur during the season.

Evidently, the Packers were OK with part of their heart and soul walking away for minimal money.

Despite all of Myers’ intangible value he brought to the team, it never fully manifested itself on the field. Myers’ highlights made him look like he was destined to be an All-Pro player. His lowlights made you wonder how he was drafted at all, let alone with a second-round pick.

Myers was the 62nd pick of the draft. Humphrey, the 63rd pick, was a second-team All-Pro in 2022, a first-team All-Pro in 2024 and a three-time Pro Bowler.

The Packers, to their credit, did recognize the mistake, but it was an expensive admission. Is Banks worth $77 million in a vacuum? Probably not. Could he become more consistent and worth that contract? Sure.

The reality is Banks is not the only player affected by the poor selection of Myers. For all the good that Jenkins has done in his career, he’s always been best suited at guard. The Packers recognized that in 2022, when they moved him to right tackle to start the year but back to left guard at midseason, and they’ve kept him there ever since.

Is the tandem of Banks at guard and Jenkins at center better than Jenkins at guard and Myers at center? Probably. In a salary cap league, though, resources are limited. Imagine an interior offensive line with Jenkins being allowed to remain at guard with Humphrey as the pivot man.

Instead, the Packers had to throw free agency money at a problem they created.

Amari Rodgers is a different level of a mistake.

Rodgers was drafted to be the team’s slot receiver and punt returner. He wasn’t good in either role. Myers had bright spots. Rodgers had none.

Making matters worse, Gutekunst traded his fourth-round pick to move up from No. 92 to No. 85 to get Rodgers. Instead of Michigan’s Nico Collins, who was selected by the Texans at No. 89, and USC’s Amon-Ra St. Brown, who was taken by the Lions at No. 112 of the fourth round, the choice was Rodgers.

Collins fit the Packers’ typical preferences at receiver. St. Brown did not, but neither did Rodgers.

Now, both players have become stars.

St. Brown famously keeps a list of receivers that were drafted over him, and Rodgers’ name is on it.

Last season against the Packers, St. Brown had 12 catches for 99 yards. In the game at Lambeau Field, he scored a touchdown and proceeded to mock the Packers by doing a headstand in the end zone.

For his career in Green Bay, Amari Rodgers had 95 yards on eight catches. St. Brown has 13 individual games better than that, including one against the Packers.

Rodgers struggled with fumbles during his career as a punt returner and never carved out a role in Green Bay’s offense. After a fumble in November 2022 against the Cowboys, Gutekunst realized his mistake and released Rodgers.

Rodgers is out of the NFL. St. Brown was a first-team All-Pro each of the last two seasons. Collins was a Pro Bowler in 2024.

Had Gutekunst taken Collins or St. Brown instead of Rodgers, the Packers’ wide receiver situation would look a lot different than it does now and could have changed history.

In 2021, the Packers finished with the best record in the NFC. In the divisional playoffs, with Rodgers glued to the bench, the Packers lost at home to the 49ers with Aaron Rodgers relying solely on Davante Adams to make their passing game go.

Could that game have gone differently with St. Brown running routes in the slot instead of the ghost of Cobb? Or what about Collins on the outside instead of Allen Lazard?

Furthermore, the Packers would have had a ready-made replacement in house for when they moved on from Adams just two months after that franchise-shifting playoff loss.

Instead, in 2022, Aaron Rodgers was playing with a trio of rookies who showed promise but were learning the ropes while having to play with a demanding quarterback. The passing game sputtered, and the team missed the playoffs.

The passing game showed promise with Jordan Love in 2023 but took a step backward in 2024. None of the young receivers on the roster took the step forward to reach a level close to that of St. Brown or Collins.

That led Josh Jacobs to publicly clamor for the team to add a veteran receiver in the offseason. As of now, that’s someone the Packers are still chasing. They did not re-sign Adams. They did not trade for DK Metcalf. They’ve been connected to Cooper Kupp. While he would help, his best playing days are behind him.

Instead, they have St. Brown tormenting them twice a year and get to watch Collins from afar.

The moral of the story is that football, in many ways, is just like life. Sometimes, mistakes are expensive, and you have to throw money at a problem or go without solving it.

In the case of the offensive line, the Packers had to throw money at their mistake with Josh Myers. They have yet to resolve their receiver issue.

Gutekunst will have to use additional salary cap space and draft capital to solve those problems.

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