Brian Gutekunst has only been the Packers GM for a few drafts, but he has shown that he is always willing to make moves.
In every 1st round he has been a part of, he has traded up.
He also traded down in the 1st round once.
In short, he moves around to get the guys he wants.
This year, the Packers have needs all over the team ranging from an upgrade at cornerback and a starting offensive tackle to reinforcements on the defensive line to wide receivers for 2022 (when they have 0 under contract) all the way to special teams.
With so many needs, it seems like a stretch to say that Brian Gutekunst doesn’t have his eyes on some guys that he will be moving around to purse.
So, what options to the Packers have for trading up in the 2021 NFL Draft?
Well, lets start with an inventory of the Packers picks in the first 5 rounds to see what they’re working with (all values are gathered from DraftTek’s Trade Value Chart):
- 1st round pick #29 overall: 640 points
- 2nd round pick #62 overall: 284 points
- 3rd round pick #92 overall: 132 points
- 4th round pick #135 overall: 38.5 points
- 4th round pick #142 overall: 35 points
- 5th round pick #173 overall: 20.6 points
- 5th round pick #178 overall: 18.6 points
Given that, let’s see where the Packers could move up to and their most likely trade partners:
Jaguars 1st round pick #25 (720 points) for Green Bay’s 1st round pick #29 (640), 4th round pick #135 (38.5), and 4th round pick #142 (35)
Last year, Brian Gutekunst traded away his 4th round pick to move up for Jordan Love. The year before, he traded away two 4th round picks to move up for Darnell Savage. He could continue that trend this year and move ahead of the Brown, Ravens, and Saints – who are mocked to covet similar defensive prospects as the Packers.
Jets 1st round pick #23 (760 points) for Green Bay’s 1st round pick #29 (640) and 3rd round pick #92 (132)
If the Packers wanted to get a little higher – and hang on to one more pick – they could use their 3rd round pick to move up to 23. Christian Barmore, the top defensive lineman in the class, looks to be taken somewhere in this general vicinity.
Cardinals 2nd round pick #49 (410 points) for Green Bay’s 2nd round pick #62 (284) and 3rd round pick #92 (132)
The Packers could get more mileage out of their 3rd round pick by moving up 13 spots in the 2nd round instead of just 6 spots in the 1st round. There are a lot of solid 2nd round prospects at cornberback and offensive tackle. If a run starts at either of these positions and the Packers feel like they need to get one, this move
Dolphins 1st round pick #18 (900 points) for Green Bay’s 1st round pick #29 (640) and 2nd round pick #62 (284)
If the Packers really wanted to be aggressive, they could use their 2nd round pick (a pick that will likely have some solid cornerback, wide receiver, and offensive tackle prospects waiting) to get up to #18 overall. Most teams don’t make a move this aggressive unless they need a quarterback, but the Packers may really have their eye on someone. Maybe if Caleb Farley’s back injury had him falling, the Packers may be interested in moving up.
The Ricky Williams Option
The Packers entire draft class is worth 1175.6 points. If they really, really, really wanted someone, the best this could do would be to get them someone around the Chargers pick at #13 (1150 points) or the Eagles pick at #12 (1200 points). The Packers would have to see someone there are a truly generational prospect. This is extremely unlikely. More than anything, this calculation shows how hard it’s going to be for the Packers to get move much past the high teens.
So there are the most likely ranges the Packers could move up to if they had their eye on a specific player.
We don’t know what the Packers are thinking or who might be available, but we do know that Gutekunst has a history of trading up and it is a key part of his draft strategy.
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