Aaron Rodgers trade haul from Broncos could have been great

The 9th overall pick

Had the Packers traded Aaron Rodgers to the Denver Broncos prior to the 2021 NFL Draft, they could have used the 9th overall pick on someone like Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith or his Alabama teammate Pat Surtain II, the guy the Denver Broncos wound up selecting with that pick.

Even if those two guys were the only options for the Packers with this selection, they would have been doing pretty well for themselves.

Taking Surtain here would have given the Packers arguably the best defensive player in the entire 2021 NFL Draft class.

Taking Smith would have given Green Bay an outstanding number two receiver to pair up with Davante Adams.

Of course, the sting of trading Aaron Rodgers might have taken some of the shine off of a pick like this, but the Packers moved up to get Jordan Love in the 2020 NFL Draft and obviously think highly of him over the long term.

Even if Love is not exactly where they need him to be development-wise, he certainly would have benefitted greatly from having a young receiver like Smith to get the ball to in addition to Adams.

Since the Packers ultimately used their late first-round pick on Eric Stokes, they could have gone with Stokes at that pick had they used the 9th pick on Smith, or if they went with Surtain at pick number 9 they could have used the late-first on another big-play receiver like Elijah Moore.