Benjamin from Evergreen Park, IL
A little early for this question…but given our team’s history, who is the next Allen Lazard or Tramon Williams from this group? A holdover player who has proven themselves and could work themselves into a much bigger role.
I want to see what a healthy Brenton Cox Jr. can do. Like Emanuel Wilson, the Packers have a decision to make with Cox Jr. as a restricted free agent but there is so much natural ability in that 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive end’s body. He’s not a core special-teamer like Kingsley Enagbare and Arron Mosby, but the guy can get after the quarterback.
Will the Packers’ draft philosophy remain taking the highest-rated player on the board? With cornerback being by far the biggest need, could they take the highest-rated corner on the board? In fact, I could see Brian Gutekunst drafting several corners next draft.
Gutekunst hasn’t been shy about overseeding a position in the draft when he feels the need (e.g. receivers in 2018 and 2022-23, and inside linebackers and safeties in 2024), I don’t know when. I don’t know where. But I wonder if this is the year the Packers dip deep into cornerback.
Charles from Whitewater, WI
Wes, I agree with Tim from VA that defense wins championships. However, I can’t agree we need more defensive draft picks. ATMR(WCBW), Green Bay finished 15th in the league in offense yards and 16th in points scored while 12th in defense yardage and 11th in points allowed. To put in perspective, GB was right there with the NY Giant juggernaut. And, if you consider losing players to free agency, I think we need to trust Gutey to pick the best player available – either side of the ball.
For sure, but my response was more believing in Matthew Golden, Anthony Belton and Savion Williams to play a bigger role on offense in 2026. While Golden and Williams got their feet wet, Belton wound up playing nearly 500 snaps. The rookie work is done and those small steps are often what lead to major contributions.
Hi Wes, I believe being “aggressive” has been a mantra of Coach LaFleur during his tenure with the Packers. One thing I’ve noticed about the other playoff teams is they generally don’t seem to shoot themselves in the foot with stupid decisions and the coaches seem to put their players in the best position to succeed. Do you see Coach placing a heavier emphasis on discipline moving forward?
I don’t disagree that Green Bay needs to do a better job with penalties, but LaFleur has always emphasized discipline. It’s one of the areas in which the Packers really improved and excelled during LaFleur’s first season in 2019. Maybe there’s a new way to drive that point home, but everyone knows the most disciplined teams typically are the ones with the best shot at playing into February.
Wes, stagnation is not my concern. While the results of the last seasons have been comparable the circumstances were very different. The one recurring theme is periods of ineffectual football including bad starts and blown leads. These periods demonstrate the need for complementary football. That these things happen to all teams reflects the week to week nature and the impact of key injuries in the NFL. Can the Packers correct this issue before it becomes characteristic of their performance?
They have to. Because this ain’t going away until the Packers get to the bottom of the issues that plagued them this season. Again, these are questions for individuals with a much higher pay grade than me. I’m just the staff writer, but everyone agrees there needs to be measurable progress next season. Hopefully, the injuries subside and the Packers can get back to competing for championships. They have the talent to do so.
Last offseason you were outspoken about the No. 1 priority was to re-sign Brandon McManus. Why are you being so shy about answering questions regarding retaining our current FAs?
First, I haven’t really been asked yet. Secondly, the Packers have a boatload of unrestricted free agents this year and I don’t have a good gauge of what their fair-market value will be. Re-signing one will have affect the Packers’ ability to bring back another. Last year, Green Bay didn’t have nearly the number of top-tier free agents that it has this offseason, making McManus a no-brainer – especially when you consider all the Packers’ kicking troubles since Mason Crosby left.
Martin from United Kingdom
How does not having a first round picks in the draft affect how the scouting department spend their time and resources? Do they ‘ignore’ the projected top 20 guys, as there is very little chance that they will still be on the board at 52? I know lots of people had Sanders going in the first round and he dropped to the fifth but that seemed to be an anomaly. Thanks for all you do, providing your insight to all us Pack fans. GPG
The Packers still perform their due diligence on top picks because they might reference those reports in the coming years. Even though the Packers didn’t have a shot at drafting Parsons in 2021, you can bet they had scouting reports they revisited prior trading for him.