There are officially 28 days until the 2025 NFL Draft kicks off. As of today, the Packers will head into draft weekend with eight draft picks. Brian Gutekunst has a history of not always holding firm on his draft picks; he has moved up and down. It’s hard to predict how he will approach this next draft. The Packers don’t have many glaring needs. As a matter of fact, they have strong depth at most positions.

The Packers are slated to pick 23rd overall. Last August, they traded away their seventh-round pick for Malik Willis. They replaced that pick by trading away Preston Smith in November. Additionally, the Packers earned one seventh-round compensatory pick for the 2025 draft after Yosh Nijman signed a two-year contract with the Carolina Panthers in the 2024 free agency. Their current selections are as follows:

  • Round 1: 23rd overall pick
  • Round 2: 54th overall pick
  • Round 3: 87th overall pick
  • Round 4: 124th overall pick
  • Round 5: 159th overall pick
  • Round 6: 198th overall pick
  • Round 7: 237th overall pick (via Pittsburgh)
  • Round 7: 250th overall pick (Compensatory Selection)

The Packers’ pass rush certainly has to improve. Development is needed from the wide receivers. By no means is the roster perfect, but it is strong. There is one glaring need, though – stars. Other than Xavier McKinney and Josh Jacobs, there might not be any true “stars” on the Packers roster. Some players could become stars, but they are not stars yet.

Jordan Love hasn’t cemented himself as such. Jaire Alexander is potentially on his way out. Rashan Gary has been underwhelming. It’s hard to identify any other players that could be considered elite. The Packers are no longer going to find any star power in free agency. That leaves one avenue remaining – the draft. Packers should not wait around on draft night to go and find their next potential star. 

It’s Time to Trade Up

Since becoming the General Manager, Brian Gutekunst has traded up several times on draft day with varying degrees of success. Amongst the most notable players he traded up for are Jordan Love and Christian Watson. Arguments could be made whether or not either player was worth trading up for, but both players have shown the ability to be difference-makers when healthy. Some of the other players Gutekunst has traded up for are listed below:

  • Moved up from 126 to 111 – Evan Williams
  • Moved up from 168 to 163 – Jacob Monk
  • Moved up from 53 to 34 – Christian Watson
  • Moved up from 92 to 85 – Amari Rodgers
  • Moved up from 30 to 26 – Jordan Love
  • Moved up from 30 to 21 – Darnell Savage
  • Moved back from 14 to 27, then moved back up to 18 – Jaire Alexander**
  • Moved up from 101 to 88 – Oren Burks

It can’t be ignored that Gutekunst is not batting 1.000 when it comes to trading up in the draft, but he has shown the ability to find good players. Evan Williams quickly became a reliable piece on defense. Darnell Savage was a starter for five seasons. Jordan Love is the franchise quarterback. He has produced back-to-back strong draft classes. He has had his share of misses, but he needs to keep swinging to hit a home run.

It has been reported that the Packers were heavily interested in Justin Jefferson and Brandon Aiyuk when they were draft prospects. Instead of making a move up to land either player, the Packers waited and saw their NFC foes draft the talented wide receivers. Now, both players have become stars. The problem isn’t that Gutekunst misevaluated either play; it’s that he didn’t aggressively go up and get one of them.

To be clear, the Packers should not trade up from every single pick. That’s not feasible. But they should look to target “their guys” in one of the first four rounds. With only eight draft picks this year, the Packers aren’t strapped with a ton of ammunition to move up. That still shouldn’t stop them. If they trade away Jaire Alexander, as many anticipate, they may gain more draft capital. They can always trade a 2026 draft pick if need be. Accumulating as many day-three picks as possible should not be the goal this year. Instead, Gutekunst should be using those picks to move up to obtain as many top-100 picks as he can.

There’s a Time and Place for Trading Down – It’s Not This Year

There are years where it’s great to have as many draft picks as possible. This is not that year. When analyzing the current roster, 45 players could be considered “locks” or “pretty good bets” to make the 2025 team. There are not a lot of roster spots that are currently up for grabs. The team could use more competition at wide receiver, offensive line, defensive line, and cornerback, but the Packers should be focusing on quality over quantity.

Yes, Brian Gutekunst should always be looking to add competition to every position. But the Packers don’t need a rotational wide receiver, they need someone who has the potential to be a star wide receiver. They don’t need someone who can rotate in amongst the defensive line on first and second down; they need someone who can be a difference-maker on all three downs. Repeatedly trading down is not how the Packers will acquire these types of players.

Gutekunst might be faced with a scenario where he can move back a few spots to accumulate additional picks and still get the guy he wants. Maybe that is the right move. If none of “his guys” are on the board, there’s no sense in moving up to draft someone they don’t have confidence in. That said, there will likely be at least one opportunity for Gutekunst to move up to draft a player they strongly believe in.

Staying Put or Playing It Safe?

Brian Gutekunst has gone on the record saying the team needs to up their sense of urgency. He needs to put his money where his mouth is. There’s an argument that he acted with urgency by spending quite a bit in free agency on Aaron Banks and Nate Hobbs. Sure, those moves were not cheap. Both players are good, but neither player is elite. Neither move showed a strong sense of urgency by Gutekunst to find that field-tilting, impact player. 

When draft weekend comes around, Gutekunst should act with urgency. He typically likes to let the board fall to him, and while that strategy is generally smart, it’s time to trust the board. Go and get the players that he believes will become impact players. Instead of waiting until pick 23, Gutekunst needs to identify the guy he wants and then actively try to go and get him.

Should Gutekunst mortgage the entire future to move up into the top ten? Definitely not. He may not even move up in the first round, but he should consider making a move up in rounds one, two, or three. Moving up five to eight spots to ensure he gets the guy he wants would certainly be worth it. Sitting still and waiting is playing too much “chance” with other teams potentially taking their guy.

Act With Urgency

This is the year the Packers should be actively trying to move up in the draft. The current roster is strong. The young talent is nearing the end of their rookie deals. They won 11 games last season with a pretty similar roster, and they didn’t lose much in free agency. Adding an impact player might be all they need to get over the hump. Now that free agency is pretty much complete, the draft is the best way to do so.

Every move comes with risk. Trading up for an impact player is no sure thing. There are a high number of draft picks every year that don’t pan out. Gutekunst has taken big swings before and whiffed (i.e Darnell Savage and Amari Rodgers). That doesn’t mean he shouldn’t take another big swing again. 

Brian Gutekunst loves as many draft picks as he can get. This year, he only has eight, so he may struggle parting with any of them. While getting as many bites at the apple is usually a good thing, Gutekunst doesn’t need to draft ten players this year. He needs quality, not quantity. If he were to only draft six players, but four or more are top 100 picks, that would be a success. Act with urgency, and go and get the next star(s) for the Green Bay Packers.