With mock drafts flying around like Zubats in a dark cave, you’ll find some trends that differ between mocks from writers who follow the national media and those who exclusively cover the Green Bay Packers.
National mocks love to gift the Packers an exciting wide receiver in Round 1, usually with an I know they haven’t done this since 2002 caveat, while Green Bay-focused mocks won’t give them one for the exact same reason.
It’s a common point of discourse around the organization.
The Packers won’t give Aaron Rodgers a first-round weapon was a rallying call against Ted Thompson and Brian Gutekunst, and it’s spilling over into the Jordan Love era.
The Packers don’t seem to view it that way, though.
When asked about this history at the NFL Scouting Combine, Gutekunst balked at the idea that this is an organizational philosophy:
It’s never something like, “Hey, we don’t want to take wide receivers in the first round” or certain opportunities we’ve had, we thought that was gonna happen and for whatever reason it didn’t.
Gutekunst talked about this trend, Josh Jacobs’ pre-Super Bowl comments about the position, and more at his media availability at the combine. Through his comments, we learned more about how he approaches the draft and how he feels about the state of his wide receiver room.
It’s too early to divine what he’ll do, but it’s clear that absolutely anything is on the table.
Javon Walker is perhaps best known for being the last first-round receiver the Packers drafted. Walker did some nice things in Green Bay, including making the Pro Bowl in 2004. However, he had issues with team management, and the Packers traded him to the Denver Broncos in 2006.
Since then, the Packers have mostly taken defensive players in the first round, with a few exceptions, including Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love.
It’s a major talking point every draft cycle, often under the guise of the team being unwilling to help their franchise quarterback. But it’s not like being picked in the first round magically makes a player good, and everyone picked after 32 can’t play.
Green Bay has a long history of success with second-round receivers, including Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, and Davante Adams. In recent years, Christian Watson and Jayden Reed have flashed high potential. The Packers haven’t neglected their quarterback. While there are plenty of could have hads out there, that’s with the benefit of hindsight. The draft doesn’t always play out how people would like.
We know that Gutekunst wanted a wide receiver in 2020. He was reportedly high on Justin Jefferson and Brandon Aiyuk. Both were taken before the Packers were on the clock and trading up requires the right partner. In 2022, Gutekunst tried to trade up for Christian Watson at the end of the first round, but the Vikings wouldn’t make a deal with them until the second round.
With Watson out for much of the 2025 season and the drop issues plaguing the team’s other receivers, they need some new pass catchers.
The Packers could invest in the free-agent market, finding valuable roleplayers if not a complete WR1. But Gutekunst’s comments suggest they’ll look to the draft.
Gutekunst discussed how collegiate receivers have a major impact on the field as rookies and discussed his team’s success in the second round.
“At the same time, we’ve had a lot of second-round receivers that have been pretty good players for us,” he said, adding, “It’s never been a philosophical thing for us. Just really more kind of how it shook out.”
Gutekunst also discussed adding competition to the room to help fix their drop issues, paraphrasing the late Bobby Knight. Expect the Packers to make some sort of move to elevate the room.
Wide receiver is a need, but it’s not the team’s biggest concern. Gutekunst spoke at length about the need to disrupt the quarterback and to improve the pass rush. With a deep draft class at defensive line, Gutekunst will probably spend prime capital on that group. Despite his comments about not avoiding a first-round receiver, other needs might push them to wait again.
Even with these comments, I wouldn’t expect this to be the year Green Bay shocked everyone by targeting a weapon for Love in the first round. There are just bigger needs elsewhere, and the Packers have a good history of finding stars later in the draft. But if they pass on a Day 1 receiver, it won’t be because of some organizational taboo.