Packer Central

Packers Take Potential Over Production in NFL.com Mock Draft

In his first mock draft for NFL.com, Lance Zierlein used the same logic the Packers used in picking Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness.
Bill Huber|
American team defensive lineman Shemar Stewart of Texas A&M (right) battles against a blocker at the Senior Bowl.
American team defensive lineman Shemar Stewart of Texas A&M (right) battles against a blocker at the Senior Bowl. | Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

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Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – In 2019, even after signing Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith in free agency, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst bet on traits and upside in using his first-round pick on edge rusher Rashan Gary.

In 2023, the Packers moved up from No. 15 of the first round to No. 13 as part of the Aaron Rodgers trade. Gutekunst bet on traits and upside in using his first-round pick on edge rusher Lukas Van Ness.

In his first mock draft for NFL.com, draft expert Lance Zierlein logically used the same thinking in picking Texas A&M edge defender Shemar Stewart with the Packers’ first-round pick.

“Stewart is a wild card in this draft because his size and athleticism are truly elite, but the production is disappointing,” Zierlein explained. “Still, the ceiling is very high and he would be hard to pass up for the Packers.”

Stewart had 1.5 sacks in each of his three seasons with the Aggies. In 2024, he set career highs with 31 tackles and six tackles for losses.

Stewart showed his potential during a superb but abbreviated stay at the Senior Bowl.

“He stamped himself as the best player,” one NFL talent evaluator told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

In his first NFL Draft rankings for NFL.com, Daniel Jeremiah had Stewart at No. 27 before the Senior Bowl. He is the No. 20 player at Pro Football Focus.

“If I was a GM, I would take me with the highest pick you got. You don’t want to miss this,” Stewart said.

Stewart was one of 12 Senior Bowl standouts, according to Jeremiah.

“Here we have a height-weight-speed freak,” he said. “There was more disruption than production from Stewart during his college career – he posted just 4.5 sacks in 37 games – but I thought he had an impactful week in practices. All of his traits are elite and he showed he’s starting to figure some things out as a pass rusher.”

Pro Football Focus named him the standout among edge defenders at the Senior Bowl, where he gave off some Jadeveon Clowney vibes with his “absurd explosiveness.”

His goal at the Senior Bowl was simple.

“I’m just trying to answer everybody’s question marks,” he said. “That’s all I’m trying to do.”

This particular play should help.

“I told No. 52 I was going to run through his face, and then I ran through his face,” Stewart said.

After a few dominant practices, Stewart headed home to continue his training rather than play in the game.

“I’m going to keep developing,” Stewart said. “I’m going to try to get that Defensive Rookie of the Year. I’m trying to make an immediate impact for whatever team I get chosen to go to.”

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.