Packers 7-round 2023 NFL mock draft: The trading down version

Stick with me here, we get a little funky. The Green Bay Packers are active on the trade market in this seven-round mock of the 2023 NFL Draft, including three trades!

Green Bay started the event with ten picks and finished with 13, giving them plenty of ammunition to address their plethora of needs. Without further ado, let’s dive right in!

I’m a big fan of this trade for the Packers and proposed it once before here. Green Bay can move back just five spots in the first round while picking up another top-90 selection. My theory is they will be able to move back and still nab Jaxon Smith-Njigba with the 20th overall selection. That didn’t play out in this mock, as he was already gone by the 15th pick.

It will be ironic if the Packers finally draft a wide receiver in the first round the year Aaron Rodgers gets traded. Although Smith-Njigba is my preferred first-round option, Zay Flowers will also give them a good playmaker they can rely on from day one. He’s fast, explosive, and brings something different to the table from what Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson offer.

The Green Bay Packers trade down multiple times, including in the first round, in this version of a seven-round mock of the 2023 NFL Draft.

The trade we’ve all been waiting for! Green Bay gets the 42nd overall pick in this year’s draft, plus a conditional 2024 second-rounder that could escalate to a first based on team success from the Jets. And with the new pick, the Green Bay Packers….

Trade it to get another selection! The Packers send the 42nd pick to Washington to move back just five spots while picking up a fourth-rounder in the process. The trade chart calls this a fair deal for both squads and allows Green Bay to acquire an additional pick to address their massive needs list.

With their original second-round selection, the Packers add depth on the edge with Felix Anudiek-Uzomah. Preston Smith will need to be replaced sooner rather than later, and Anudike-Uzomah gives them some much-needed help on the edge in the short term. He can really get after the quarterback and immediately upgrades the pass rush.

The Packers obviously need a tight end early in this draft, and I’ve seen a lot of mocks having them take Michael Mayer in the first round. Mayer is a better prospect than Washington, but I don’t like taking a tight end in the first. This seems like the sweet spot–right after Green Bay has added an immediate playmaker on both sides of the ball. Washington is a freak athlete who could develop into a steal.

I dislike using a third-round pick on a quarterback, as I believe in Jordan Love. However, I’d be ignorant to ignore the need, and I think Green Bay will use a selection on the position earlier rather than later. McKee is a pocket quarterback with great accuracy and solid decision-making. He needs a couple of years to improve his arm strength, which Green Bay can hopefully offer him.

One of the last major needs I haven’t addressed yet is safety. It’s certainly possible Green Bay takes a safety before this, but this felt like a good spot. Battle is one of the top five safeties on most big boards and could help the Packers immediately. It’s hard to argue with that value from a third-round selection.

Green Bay is set at running back for 2023, but it will quickly become a need. Chase Brown tested off the charts and the Packers could develop him into a role player in a year or two.

The Packers let Dean Lowry and Jarran Reed walk in free agency and will depend on Devonte Wyatt and TJ Slaton to play an expanded role in 2023. I added Moro Ojomo to that list. He’s another elite athlete who gives Green Bay beef and strength up front.

Now that all of the Packers’ needs have been addressed at least once, I began to circle back to some of their significant holes. I use three straight selections to give Love more weapons, which they desperately need. All three players have high Relative Athletic Scores, something Green Bay targets in the draft. Ford-Wheaton and Landers, specifically, give Green Bay more intriguing options on the outside.

The Packers re-signed a couple of safeties this offseason, but allowed Adrian Amos to walk. Merriweather is another athletic safety and could add to their depth on the defensive side of the ball.

General manager Brian Gutekunst might add more than one offensive lineman, something he loves to do in the middle to late rounds, but there were other glaring needs to address. Nonetheless, I grabbed him one with their second-to-last selection. I ended the draft by giving Green Bay another big body on the defensive line for depth purposes.

Overall, I’m really pleased with how this draft played out. I grabbed three wide receivers, two tight ends, two safeties, two defensive linemen, one quarterback, one running back, one offensive lineman and one edge player. That feels like the right combination, and Green Bay is in a much better position coming out of this draft.