Green Bay Packers 7-Round Mock Draft: Post-Aaron Rodgers Trade
The Green Bay Packers have finally made the Aaron Rodgers trade, so how do they attack the 2023 NFL Draft with extra draft capital?
The Green Bay Packers have finally done it. A new era is set to begin in Green Bay after the Packers traded Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets. The details included a pick swap of 13 and 15 in the 2023 NFL Draft, along with the additions of pick 42 and pick 207 for pick 170. The deal also includes a conditional second-round pick in 2024 that can become a first if Rodgers plays 65 percent of the snaps.
Green Bay Packers 7-Round Mock Draft: Post-Rodgers Trade Edition
The extra capital this year will give the Green Bay Packers the opportunity to build around Jordan Love for a true evaluation year. Whether they pick up his fifth-year option remans to be seen, but it feels plausible to assume that offense is a heavy part of the draft strategy this year. With that said, let’s look at how the Green Bay Packers could attack the 2023 NFL Draft in this seven-round mock.
Round 1, Pick 13: Broderick Jones, OT, Georgia
It really isn’t for shock and awe at this selection. Yes, Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the favorite now, but the Green Bay Packers could be looking for one of the top tackles after the pick swap. David Bakhtiari carries a massive cap number in 2024. Yosh Nijman is only under contract for a year at this point. Zach Tom could secure one of the tackle spots for 2024, but Brian Gutekunst has previously stated that his perceived best position was center.
All of that points towards being proactive at the tackle position. Broderick Jones gives the Packers exactly what they look for in a prospect: high upside with development. Jones is a tremendous athlete, whether it be as a puller or a space blocker to devastate second and third level targets or to recover in pass protection. He stays a bit upright to anchor, but it works at the collegiate level. Improving his ability to drop his hips to anchor, working on keeping his hands in tight, and staying within himself and balanced at contact, he has OT1 upside in the class.