Packers GM Brian Gutekunst currently looks at a 2026 NFL draft board with a completely blank Round 1. That ship sailed 12 months ago when Green Bay bet the house on Dallas’s superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons. And while the former Cowboy shone throughout the first three quarters of the 2025 season, his injury toward the back end of the campaign coincided with a downturn in fortunes at Lambeau, which culminated with a run of four straight defeats and a wildcard round playoff exit at the hands of the rival Chicago Bears.
His ACL-inspired absence reinforced the idea that there is still work to be done with this Packers roster if it is to contend for the Lombardi next season. Online betting sites certainly think they are currently in with a chance, but they remain on the periphery. The early football betting at Bovada odds price Green Bay as a +2000 fringe contender, and offseason strengthening will be imperative to seeing those odds shrink in the coming months.
Early Free Agency Moves
Free agency opened recently, and Gutekunst moved carefully. Sean Rhyan re-signed, stabilizing the interior after Elgton Jenkins was shown the door. Javon Hargrave landed for two years and $23 million, real pass-rush juice on the inside, even if Kenny Clark’s presence in Dallas still stings. WR Skyy Moore added depth. Zaire Franklin arrived from Indianapolis in a trade that sent Colby Wooden in the other direction. CB Benjamin St-Juste signed for two years and $10 million, a body in the secondary that nobody’s confusing for a cornerstone. Nate Hobbs? Released. Rashan Gary? Gone.
Next up is the draft, and the 2026 instalment of the annual spectacle will be the first time Gutekunst has managed a draft board without a first-round pick since he took the GM job in 2018. He called it at the combine—”I’m happy we did it”—with the kind of conviction that either signals genuine belief or a man who’s committed so hard to a narrative he can’t back out now. Parsons changes a defense when he’s healthy. In the meantime, Green Bay needs corners, edge rushers, interior defensive linemen, and offensive line depth—and the first pick doesn’t land until No. 52. So, what are the options? Let’s take a look.
Fixing the Secondary
While Jordan Love was quietly assembling a 4,000-yard season that deserved a better ending, the secondary was disintegrating behind him, and the Hobbs release just punched another hole in it. St-Juste is depth and he desperately needs some support.
Ohio State standout Davison Igbinosun is the name generating the most buzz in Green Bay circles, and ESPN has him mocked to the Packers in multiple post-combine scenarios. At 6’2″/189 lbs with a 4.45 forty, the Buckeye is the prototype—the kind of boundary bully Matt LaFleur wants pressing at the line the way Jaire Alexander did in 2018 before the injuries started stealing seasons.
D’Angelo Ponds won the National Championship in Indiana last season, and he is the quieter option. Multiple mocks have him sliding to Green Bay, and his ball production—interceptions, contested-catch wins, reliable instincts—gives him a Day 1 path to the rotation that Igbinosun can’t quite promise yet. Higher floor. Less upside.
Gary’s Gone, Parsons Is Limping—Now What?
Rashan Gary held this pass rush together for years. He’s gone. Parsons is the future—when he’s back—but “when he’s back” is doing a lot of work in that sentence. The Packers can’t blitz on faith and hope. They need a live body at edge who can win on third down right now.
Penn State star Dani Dennis-Sutton might be the most exciting name available on Day 2 this year. He recorded 8.5 sacks in each of his final two seasons as a Nittany Lion, and his combine answered the short-area quickness questions that had scouts hedging. Lombardi Ave put it perfectly—”the Robin to Micah Parsons’ Batman”—which understates how valuable that role is. He doesn’t need to carry the load. He needs to make opposing offenses account for two threats instead of one.
Failing that, Georgia’s Christen Miller could well be the pivot if the board breaks toward interior depth. With Clark in Dallas and Wooden traded to Indianapolis, Miller, as a one-tech anchor alongside Hargrave, gives LaFleur’s front an actual rotation. C-gap penetration, run defense discipline, the kind of interior disruption that makes edge rushers’ lives easier. Worth serious consideration at 84.
Pipeline Football
Florida OT Austin Barber fits Gutekunst’s well-documented offensive lineman assembly line. Rasheed Walker’s departure left Jordan Morgan exposed without legitimate depth behind him last season. Barber’s not a starter right now—pass-pro footwork needs refinement—but developmental swing tackles with upside are exactly what mid-round OL picks are designed to produce.
Gracen Halton, a defensive tackle out of Oklahoma, is the alternative if Dennis-Sutton fills the edge need at 84 and interior pressure stays critical. Rotational penetrator, C-gap burst, passing-down contributor. Plugs the Wooden trade void with legitimate upside.
Burying St-Juste on the Depth Chart
Oregon cornerback Jadon Canady could be an interesting pick on day three. He’s a slot press specialist, an immediate special teams contributor, and boasts sticky man-coverage skills that could push him into a nickel role faster than anyone expects. Hezikiah Masses is the rangier dart: 6’1″, 18 pass breakups, five interceptions as a senior, with PFF mocks pointing toward Green Bay. Long-term CB3 with the kind of prototypical size Gutekunst consistently covets.
The Lottery Tickets
Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels makes sense if he’s still available in round seven with Malik Willis gone to Miami and Desmond Ridder as the nominal Love backup. Mobile, eyes downfield, capable of pushing deep shots. Real developmental QB3 insurance. Alternatively, Bama corner Domani Jackson is a five-star upside project who never quite bloomed and could be worth a punt.
