Green Bay Packers: Recent Mock Draft is Quite Underwhelming

The Green Bay Packers’ first-round pick in this recent mock draft ends up being quite underwhelming.

At this stage of the game, we have all seen our fair share of mock drafts up to this point and while certain positions, such as wide receiver, have dominated, we’ve also seen a wide variety of players mocked to the Green Bay Packers in Round 1.

And it’s easy to understand why.

This is a Packers team, that despite going 13-3 and making it all the way to the NFC Championship game, has a number of positions that they could address early on in the draft. Of course, a few of these needs include receiver, linebacker, tackle, and interior defensive lineman.

Couple those needs with GM Brian Gutekunst’s unpredictability in the draft and it is certainly difficult to pinpoint who the Green Bay Packers will end up selecting in the first round.

However, while there are plenty of exciting prospects in this year’s class who could end up in Green Bay as impact players, this recent mock draft from Peter Schrager of the NFL Network was quite underwhelming, to say the least.

With players like Jalen Reagor, Ross Blacklock, and Denzel Mims still available, Schrager comes out of nowhere with linebacker Jordyn Brooks of Texas Tech going to Green Bay at pick No. 30. Here is what Schrager had to say about the selection:

"“Lightning-fast linebacker who fought through a shoulder injury to run at the combine for scouts (posting a 4.54 40). Blake Martinez is no longer in Green Bay, so here’s his replacement. This class’ immense WR depth allows the Packers to address that need later on.”"

While yes, Schrager is correct that Brooks does look quite fast on tape, the Packers still need their long-term answer at the linebacker position, and with the wide receiver depth in this year’s class, they certainly don’t have to select one right away. But with that said, at pick No. 30, Brooks is not the answer.

During his four-year career at Texas Tech, Brooks has developed into one of the more reliable tacklers in this class and totaled 360 in his 46 career games. 108 of those came in 2019, along with 20 tackles for loss, three sacks, and two fumble recoveries.

In addition to being a very good tackler, Brooks is physical, and when playing downhill, it looks like he is shot out of a cannon. However, in today’s NFL, he certainly comes with his limitations.

Brooks struggled in coverage while at Texas Tech and he just isn’t going to be able to cover most running backs or tight ends one-on-one. Instead, he is at his best when he can stay between the tackles and attack the line of scrimmage.

On top of that, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Brooks didn’t have a single interception or pass-breakup last season. And it’s that lack of playmaking ability that frustrated so many fans when it came to Blake Martinez’ tenure in Green Bay.

For a different perspective, here is what Kyle Crabbs of The Draft Network had to say about Brooks’ game in his final scouting report:

"“Jordyn Brooks projects as a sub-package defender at the NFL level. Working Brooks into a 3-down role is likely to require him to play the WILL, where his range and short area quickness can be amplified without tasking him to address blockers with consistency.Brooks’ game is predicated around playing in space and being slippery to attack the LOS — his best value comes as a QB spy or blitz player. He’s a fairly visual defender, so giving him free roaming reps is a must for best results.”"

It’s also worth pointing out that because of these limitations, selecting Brooks in the first round is a massive reach. Most draft analysts are projecting him as a second or even a third-round selection and this is the first time I’ve seen him taken in Round 1.

While we all know that the Packers’ linebacker position isn’t exactly solved with the Christian Kirksey signing, selecting Brooks at pick 30 isn’t the way to go about finding long-term stability and reaching like this usually doesn’t work out well for NFL teams.

To put it simply, from the Green Bay Packers’ perspective, I am not a fan of this mock draft at all. If the Packers really want Brooks there is certainly the possibility that they can get him at pick 62, but Round 1 is just too early and they could absolutely get better value by taking one of the three players that I mentioned were still available.