Seven-Round Packers Mock, Exactly One Month Before Start of NFL Draft

The NFL offseason continues to trudge along as free agency has come to a screeching halt, with most of the league turning its attention toward the NFL Draft, which will begin exactly one month from today.

The Green Bay Packers, who are unlikely to participate in the first day of the draft thanks to their trade for Micah Parsons in August, came into the offseason with pressing needs at cornerback, linebacker, defensive tackle and offensive line.

They’ve made key additions at cornerback, linebacker and defensive tackle, while keeping what they hope to be their top six offensive linemen under contract for the 2026 season.

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What they’ve done by adding players at those positions is set themselves up to take the best player available in this draft class regardless of position.

For better or worse, that is how Brian Gutekunst typically likes to operate. In addition to present needs, he’ll look at the future of the roster, as well, where cornerback, receiver and edge have major question marks moving forward.

In our fourth mock draft of the offseason, the focus is trying to balance the present and the future of the team.

Selections were made using the PFSN Mock Draft Simulator.

First Round: Traded

This pick was traded for Micah Parsons.

Second Round, Pick 52: Caleb Banks, DT, Florida

Banks was set to be one of the standouts of the NFL Combine before he had to leave the field with an injury to his foot. As it turns out, the injury reportedly occurred the night before workouts, which gave him two broken bones in his foot within a six-month span.

Had those injuries not occurred, Banks likely would not be available to the Packers at this point of the draft. Since he is, however, the talent may be too much for Brian Gutekunst to pass up.

As the old saying goes in the NFL, fast gets slow but big doesn’t get small. Banks is not going to get small 6-foot-6 and 327 pounds. He has the power to hold up at the point of attack, and showed explosiveness in his college career, which included four sacks and seven TFLs in 2024.

The Packers added defensive tackle Javon Hargrave in free agency, but they still need more bodies and, frankly, more juice.

Karl Brooks and Devonte Wyatt are scheduled to play on expiring contracts in 2026. Nazir Stackhouse and Warren Brinson did not show enough to inspire confidence they can be impact players in 2026.

Banks would add another big, powerful body to Green Bay’s defensive line.

Third Round, Pick 84: Malik Muhammad, CB, Texas

Muhammad is talented enough to be the pick here; the question might be if he is heavy enough.

He measured at the NFL Combine at 6-foot tall but only 182 pounds. Would the Packers take a cornerback that light? They drafted Micah Robinson a season ago at 183 pounds, but that was a seventh-round pick. This is one of only two top-100 draft picks that Gutekunst has this year.

Texas Longhorns defensive back Malik Muhammad celebrates an interception intended for Oklahoma Sooners receiver Deion Burks. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Perhaps any concern about Muhammad’s weight is nothing a few cheese curds cannot fix.

If that were the case, Muhammad has the physicality the Packers have typically liked at cornerback as a willing run defender and tackler. He had a career-high two interceptions in 2025, which would have tied the Packers’ entire cornerback room over the course of 18 games.

As things sit right now, Benjamin St. Juste is the only cornerback who is under contract for 2027. Gutekunst has said he wants to improve the depth at cornerback, and he’ll have to; otherwise, that room could get empty, quickly.

Fourth Round, Pick 120: Isaiah World, OL, Oregon

Cut from the same cloth as Caleb Banks, Isaiah World is unlikely to get small anytime soon. Or short, at least.

He stands as a mountain of a man at 6-foot-8 and 318 pounds. World is big and powerful, which is a shift the Packers have taken in their preferences along the offensive line.

World was a four-year starter. At Nevada, he played mostly right tackle in 2022 and left tackle in 2023 and 2024. At Oregon in 2025, he played left tackle and gave up one sack. He could start the season as a right tackle but have the ability to kick inside to either guard spot with some refinement.

World did not work out at the Scouting Combine, which could lead to questions about whether the Packers will pick someone with an incomplete athletic profile.

Fifth Round, Pick 158: Jake Slaughter, OL, Florida

Florida offensive lineman Jake Slaughter (66) gets a hug after the Gators lost to Tennessee. | Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Another offensive lineman, and this one is destined to play inside. Jake Slaughter has plenty of experience with 33 starts in the SEC, which probably gives him a high floor as a prospect. It also could be something that shortens his learning curve as a rookie if he were asked to step into the lineup.

The Packers need a backup center with Sean Rhyan taking over the duties as the pivot man full-time coming into 2026. Jacob Monk is likely the top option on the roster to be the backup. He’s played only 57 snaps in two seasons, including 51 against Minnesota in Week 18. The Packers could use some competition for that spot.

The concern for Slaughter is that there are questions as to how he could cross-train at guard due to his lack of size and power in the run game.

The Packers have taken players who were only going to be a center, like when they took Corey Linsley in 2014. Would they do that again?

With the inconsistency that Rhyan has shown throughout his career, and Green Bay’s willingness to look for his replacement, nothing can be ruled out at center.

Sixth Round, Pick 201: Thaddeus Dixon, CB, North Carolina

A late-round cornerback to add to the back of the roster while improving the depth of the room feels like a near lock for the Packers during the draft.

Dixon, in this case, has the ability to play on the boundary at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds. Dixon did not run at the Scouting Combine but did show off his athleticism with a 39.5-inch vertical jump, and a 10-foot, 5-inch broad jump.

Dixon, who had two interceptions and 16 passes defensed in two seasons at Washington and zero interceptions and six passes defensed in seven games at North Carolina in 2025, played 170 special teams snaps during his career. That will be a necessity if he’s picked on Day 3.

Seventh Round, Pick 236: Caden Curry, edge, Ohio State

Caden Curry was given the monumental task of trying to replace JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer for a vicious Ohio State defense in 2025. Curry lived up to his end of the bargain with 11 sacks and a forced fumble in what was his breakout season in Columbus.

The pass-rush room in Green Bay has some uncertainties with the departures of Rashan Gary and Kingsley Enagbare.

Curry could seize an opportunity to find his way onto the field in the early portion of the season with Micah Parsons likely on the shelf due to a knee injury. As of now, the Packers would likely start Lukas Van Ness at one of their outside linebacker spots. Who would start across from him is unknown. Brenton Cox, Barryn Sorrell and Collin Oliver will all have opportunities to take hold of that opportunity.

Adding Curry to the mix would create more competition.

Seventh Round, Pick 255: Chip Trayanum, RB, Toledo

Running back is a sneaky need for the Packers with Emanuel Wilson out the door in free agency. As of now, Chris Brooks and Josh Jacobs are the only two backs on the roster who played for the team in 2025.

Trayanum spent six years at four colleges, including two seasons at Ohio State with TreVeyon Henderson before transferring to Toledo for his final season.

Trayanum broke out with his first 1,000-yard season and 12 touchdowns on the ground. He added 21 receptions and two touchdowns as a receiver out of the backfield. The pass-catching ability is something the Packers could use if they’re looking for competition at the back of the running back room.

East running back Chip Trayanum (14) runs with the ball during the East-West Shrine Bowl. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

What I Liked

Adding big, talented players to both sides of the line of scrimmage is something that should be a priority for any general manager in any offseason. That’s especially true in Green Bay after getting pushed around to end the season on both sides of the ball.

Muhammad and Dixon would add depth and young skill to the cornerback room, even if Muhammad would need to add some weight to fit what the Packers have typically preferred at the position.

World and Slaughter add some depth to the offensive line, with Slaughter giving them a potential center should Sean Rhyan’s contract not age well.

Curry and Trayanum are worthwhile fliers late in the draft to add to the back end of each of their position groups.

What I Didn’t Like

The reality of this year’s draft is the Packers have limited capital to play with, so that means there are likely going to be some spots that are addressed too late, if at all.

In this case, receiver was a position that was neglected in the draft. If the draft played out this way, Gutekunst would really be banking on development from both Matthew Golden and Savion Williams, as they’re the only two receivers under contract in 2027.

That could change with a contract extension for one of Jayden Reed, Christian Watson or Dontayvion Wicks. For now, all of those players are playing on expiring deals entering the 2026 season.

If they were unable to draft a receiver, they may pigeonhole themselves into having to pay market value for Watson and Reed. Can they do that with an impending salary-cap crunch and other players on the roster also set to see their contracts expire?

Trayanum is a solid running back at the end of the draft, but if a situation presented itself earlier, the Packers could use some more explosiveness in the backfield.

Not adding an edge rusher until late in the draft puts a lot of eggs in the baskets of Barryn Sorrell, Collin Oliver and Brenton Cox to hold down the fort until Micah Parsons can return from his torn ACL.

The other big concern is the injuries with Banks. Is that a worthwhile swing if he falls to 52? Absolutely.

Could it go up in smoke a la Justin Harrell from 2007? Yes, it could. The Packers need help up front, and they need it immediately. With the expected roster decay and limited draft capital, the Packers have to hit on their picks. Could that cause them to look in a different direction than Banks?

Maybe, but the talent also is something that could be too much to pass up.

One other small thing is that I wasn’t able to add a tight end. Tucker Kraft is likely to get a contract extension, but the rest of the room could turnover between now and next offseason. If a tight end goes undrafted, the Packers could be a really desirable situation with a chance to make a 53-man roster.

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