Scouting Combine Day 2: Winners and Losers at Packers Position of Need

One day after defensive tackles and linebackers took center stage at the NFL Scouting Combine, perhaps Green Bay’s biggest need took the field on Friday.

The cornerback group is thought to have some depth to it, and that should be music to the ears of the Green Bay Packers and their General Manager, Brian Gutekunst.

While Gutekunst has said he does not believe his team needs wholesale changes in the cornerback room, he does need to add some bodies at the position.

There’s a very realistic possibility that Nate Hobbs, Carrington Valentine, and Keisean Nixon are all allowed to leave after the 2026 season. Nixon and Valentine are both on expiring contracts, and Hobbs’ contract situation could make him a salary cap casualty.

Even if the Packers do not pick a cornerback with their first pick of this year’s draft, they’ll likely throw multiple picks at the position to improve the depth if nothing else.

“Do we need wholesale changes? No. I do think it’s an area those guys can get hurt. They’re the smaller guys on the field,” Gutekunst said in his first press conference after the season ended. We ask a lot of those guys in run support. The depth there, for me, is important that we have answers.”

The other reality is that of the positions on their draft board, cornerback might be where the Packers are the pickiest.

Ever since picking Terrell Buckley, an undersized cornerback out of Florida State, the Packers have almost refused to take short cornerbacks.

The one exception was Jaire Alexander, Brian Gutekunst’s first draft choice as the man in charge.

Measurements matter, and so does athleticism. You better have size and the ability to change direction if you want to play cornerback in Green Bay. That likely won’t change until the Packers hire someone from outside of the Ron Wolf tree to be their General Manager.

With that in mind, here are some guys that put themselves on Green Bay’s board if they’re looking to take a cornerback.

Winner

Chris Johnson, San Diego State

Johnson has become the darling of the fanbase, and appeared to be one of the early favorites for the Packers to pick if he were available once Green Bay is on the clock.

That includes us, as we took Johnson in our initial mock draft earlier this month.

Johnson was excellent in 2025, with Pro Football Focus charging him with 18 completions in 41 targets. With zero touchdowns and four interceptions, his passer rating against was a meager 16.1.

He measured in tall enough, at 6-foot even, and 193 pounds. That’s almost cut from the exact cloth the Packers would prefer from a size standpoint at cornerback.

Instant pedal transitions and stride retractions, effortless sink and balance, acute shin angles.

Chris Johnson reaffirming his stock in Indianapolis. Ran a 4.4 and jumped 38” as well.

pic.twitter.com/hNzGrOKYT8
— Ian Cummings (@IC_Draft) February 27, 2026

The problem? Johnson may have tested himself out of Green Bay’s range on the clock with a 4.40 40-yard-dash, and a 1.54 10-yard split.

That speed and explosiveness to go with his size makes him an unlikely candidate to slip down the board to Green Bay.

If he does, he’ll certainly be on Green Bay’s radar.

Toriano Pride Jr, Missouri

Would the Packers take another cornerback who toes the line of being too short? Toriano Pride Jr. may have done himself a few favors in Indianapolis with a 4.32 40-yard-dash, the fastest among all cornerbacks, and so far second to only Ohio State’s Lorenzo Styles Jr. of all players in the 40.

Pride would later tell the broadcast that he feels overlooked, which has put a chip on his shoulder.

That’s something the Packers could use more within their locker room, as players who feel like they have something to prove.

On the field, Pride displayed some ball skills while starting 12 games in 2025, including a pick-six against Murray State.

Green Bay’s cornerback room was devoid of ball skills, so if Pride’s can translate to the NFL, along with his athleticism, he could provide a boost to Green Bay’s secondary.

Daylen Everette, Georgia

Is there anything in the world Brian Gutekunst loves more than he loves former Georgia Bulldogs?

If that holds true again this year, Daylen Everette could be someone who caught the eye of Gutekunst throughout the year, and during Friday’s drills.

Everette measured in tall enough at 6-foot-1 and 196 pounds, Everette showed off his athleticism that had him ranked as a five-star recruit when he came into college.

Everette has plenty of experience as a three-year starter in the SEC in Kirby Smart’s defense. He started 41 games, and ran the 40-yard-dash in 4.38 seconds. That athleticism, combined with his experience could be enticing for the secondary if Gutekunst is looking for someone who could contribute as a rookie. Typically they have not relied on rookies, but it’s a different world now that Micah Parsons is a Packer and they have fewer resources than they did before.

Everette is fast enough, he’s big enough, and he’s got plenty of experience, that could make him an enticing option if he’s on the board on the second day of the draft.

Loser

Jermod McCoy, Tennessee

The Tennessee cornerback is talented, but sometimes the Combine reveals medical red flags that become too much to overcome. That could be a reason the Packers passed on cornerbacks like Arizona’s Will Johnson, and Washington’s Trey Amos a season ago in favor of drafting Anthony Belton.

This year, the biggest loser on the medical side of things might be Tennessee's Jermod McCoy. McCoy tore his ACL in January of 2025, which caused him to miss all of the 2025 college season.

Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy said his body doesn’t feel ready to do workouts at the combine.
— Jarrett Bailey (@JBaileyNFL) February 26, 2026

More than 450 days later, he still was not healthy enough to participate in drills at the Combine. He would later say that his body still does not feel right.

The Packers have a massive need at cornerback, but if there is any team that should be able to spot a troublesome knee injury, it’s Green Bay. David Bakhtiari had a complicated recovery from his torn ACL that he suffered on New Year’s Eve of 2020. That injury would torpedo the rest of his career as he only played 12.5 games, including just one in 2023, which turned out to be his final season as a pro.

With McCoy’s injury still lingering, can the Packers, or any team, really afford to invest significant draft capital into him? This type of update is one that could have McCoy scouring the market as an undrafted free agent.

Here is a more extensive story on new Packers special teams coordinator Cam Achord, who led the No. 1-ranked unit in 2020 but couldn't get close to maintaining that status. Included here are others who had second interviews and the challenge ahead. ⬇️https://t.co/5ypdBz2dp7
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) February 27, 2026