PFF Suggests Packers Make ‘Under-the-Radar Move’ at Defensive Tackle

Meanwhile, a couple mock drafts focused on defensive tackle with the Packers’ first draft pick.

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle David Onyemata tackles Los Angeles Chargers running back Gus Edwards. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers enter the offseason with a roster that’s talented but also has some notable holes.

One of them is at defensive tackle, where they traded their best player to help land Micah Parsons. For the most part, Green Bay’s interior held its own without Kenny Clark, but the group was worn down by the end of the season. Late in the season, it was a revolving door as general manager Brian Gutekunst tried to beef up the interior of the defense.

Defensive tackle is a five-alarm need for the Packers entering 2026. But how will they address it? They’re in the red against the salary cap, so being especially active in free agency will be a challenge. And without a first-round pick, the Packers can’t rely on an instant-impact draft prospect falling into their laps at No. 52 of the second round and No. 84 of the third round.

At Pro Football Focus, Ryan Smith attacked the best way for each team to fill its biggest need. For the Packers, he suggested signing defensive tackle David Onyemata.

“The biggest concern with the Packers’ defense was its inability to stop the run, particularly the interior defenders. As a unit, Green Bay’s defensive tackles ranked 31st in PFF run-defense grade (30.6),” Smith wrote.

Onyemata, a native of Nigeria who played his college ball in Canada, turned 33 in November. During his three seasons with the Falcons, he played in 48 of a possible 51 games with 47 starts. He set a career high with 62 tackles this season and seven tackles for losses.

According to league data, the Falcons’ run defense was 0.33 yards per snap better when he was on the field.

“Onyemata has defended the run at a high level during his career and is coming off a season in which he ranked eighth among 130 interior defenders in PFF run-defense grade (74.2),” Smith continued. “This is the type of under-the-radar move that makes sense for a Packers team” without a lot of draft capital or free-agent money.

Onyemata isn’t an electric pass rusher but he’s not just a two-down player, either. According to PFF, there were 91 interior defensive linemen who had at least 222 pass-rushing opportunities (Devonte Wyatt’s number). Onyemata ranked 36th in pass-rush win rate. For Green Bay, Wyatt was 12th, Karl Brooks was 43rd and Colby Wooden was 79th.

Defensive Tackle for Packers in Mock Drafts

What about the draft? In a recent seven-round mock draft at Pro Football Network, the Packers selected Texas Tech defensive tackle Lee Hunter in the second round.

Hunter was a second-team All-American in 2025, when his 34 tackles included 8.5 for losses. Before finishing his career at Tech, he played at Central Florida. During his final two seasons, he led the nation with 58 stuffs – a tackle at or behind the line of scrimmage vs. the run.

The 6-foot-4, 330-pounder was No. 26 in Daniel Jeremiah’s first top-50 list at NFL.com. He will enter the NFL as a two-down run defender.

“Hunter is a thick, wide-bodied defensive tackle,” Jeremiah wrote. “He was a dominant run defender at Texas Tech and flashed upside as a pass rusher. Against the run, he can bend and leverage single blocks before chucking them aside and collecting tackles.”

He is aptly nicknamed “The Fridge.” His physical dominance demands extra attention.

“I know I'm going to get two,” Hunter told ESPN. “If two people are on me, my linebackers can eat. My brothers can eat. As long as everybody around me is eating and we're winning, I'm happy.”

In a two-round mock draft for The Athletic, the Packers selected Iowa State defensive tackle Domonique Orange.

“Big Citrus,’ Iowa State’s explosive interior big man who can play multiple spots along the front, could go a long way toward replacing what Green Bay lost in Kenny Clark,” was the explanation.

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 325 pounds, he was third-team all-Big 12, Orange went from playing 40 snaps only once in 2024 to nine times in 2025. He had 18 tackles, including one-half tackle for loss. He weighed 408 pounds in high school.

“I was one of the people that COVID really hit,” Orange told KCCI. “I got to the point where I was just eating, eating for fun. I got up to 400 pounds in high school.”

At Iowa State, he committed to losing weight and stuck with it.

“The buy-in factor has to be from you,” assistant coach Eli Rasheed said. “You can do everything right at this facility and then go home and eat 13 pizzas and ruin it and start over. He had to commit to that full-time, and that's what he did.”

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