Packers may regret what they traded for Christian Watson

The Green Bay Packers desperately needed a wide receiver as Day 2 of the NFL Draft started and they didn’t waste any time in making that happen. In just the second pick of the second round, they traded their 53rd and 59th overall picks to the Minnesota Vikings to move up to 34th overall and draft wide receiver Christian Watson out of North Dakota State.

First things first. This post isn’t hating on Watson–I think he’s great. Watson is a speed demon who also happens to be 6-foot-4 and is exactly what Green Bay needed at wide receiver. He’ll be a deep threat that Aaron Rodgers loves throwing to and they should be able to connect instantly.

He does need to improve his hands and route-running, but he has the highest ceiling of any receiver in the entire draft. That’s awesome. (It will be even better if Watson becomes a star and this is yet another thing we can hold over the Vikings).

I’m more concerned about what Green Bay gave up to move all the way from 53 to 34. They reportedly tried to do the same deal to move up to 32, which Minnesota also held, but the Vikings weren’t interested in that deal.

The Green Bay Packers gave up a lot to get wide receiver Christian Watson at the beginning of the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

Regardless of which trade chart you use, the Packers lost this deal based on value alone. For example, if we use the Jimmy Johnson trade chart, Green Bay gave up 680 points between their two picks to acquire 560 points. That’s the value of the 95th pick in the draft–a late third-rounder.

A lot of trades will vary by a few points here and there, and that’s no big deal. But to be off by 120 points and a late third-rounder–that’s huge. Green Bay got fleeced in the deal if we’re simply talking value of the draft picks.

Assuming Green Bay would’ve stayed put at their original picks of 53 and 59, they could’ve accomplished the same goal and added an additional quality player.

At 53, wide receivers Alec Pierce and Skyy Moore were still available. Both players are fast and accomplish exactly what the Packers needed at wide receiver–to be fair, neither player has the potential Watson does either. Sam Williams, an outside linebacker out of Ole Miss, was also available at 53.

If we fast forward to the 59th selection, there were a number of quality players still available as well. That list includes versatile defensive back Cam Taylor-Britt and outside linebackers Drake Jackson and Nik Bonitto.

Watson has the best chance to become the best player out of any of those picks, it’s just hard to swallow that Green Bay lost out on an additional quality player to move up in the deal. Going back to the Jimmy Johnson trade chart, they should’ve, at the very least, gotten a pick back from Minnesota or been able to subsite their third and fourth picks for one of the seconds.

What is done is done, and it’s easy for me to criticize the move the Packers made from my basement. Only time will tell how this move plays out. Green Bay may have gotten fleeced based on trade value, but they obviously liked Watson enough to make the trade despite the risks.