The Green Bay Packers were in a privileged position in the 2026 NFL Draft. Granted, they didn't have a first-round pick, but with few glaring needs and solid offseason additions, they didn't have that many needs, either.
That's why they could afford to roll the dice and get creative with some high-upside prospects. Getting Penn State's Dani Dennis-Sutton in the fourth round was a true surprise, given that he could've been gone late in the second or early in the third.
While not the most polished player by any means, Dennis-Sutton's physical traits are just mesmerizing. So much that Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic can't help but see the resemblance between him and Detroit Lions star Aidan Hutchinson:
"Dennis-Sutton is still more a collection of tools than a polished product, but those tools are pretty outstanding. The 6-foot-6, 256-pounder (with 33 1/2-inch arms) ran a 4.63 40 and posted a 39 1/2-inch vertical jump and 10-11 broad jump. Athletically, he shows some Aidan Hutchinson-like flashes. We’ll see about the rest, though," Baumgardner wrote.
Dani Dennis-Sutton draws Aidan Hutchinson comparisons
Dennis-Sutton actually performed better than Hutchinson at the NFL Scouting Combine. Hutchinson ran a 4.74-second 40-yard dash with a 1.62-second 10-yard split and a 36-inch vertical. whereas Dennis-Sutton ran a 4.63-second 40-yard dash with a 1-62-second 10-yard split and a 39.5-inch vertical.
Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be as good as Hutchinson; the Michigan product was the No. 2 pick for a reason. However, the fact that he has the physical traits to be in the same conversation as him is music to Packers' fans' ears -- and an absolute nightmare for Lions fans.
The Packers usually err on the side of caution with their rookies, sometimes to a fault. They won't rush Dennis-Sutton into the fire, even with Micah Parsons likely to miss the first month of the season and Lukas Van Ness underperforming.
Still, that's only more reason to be excited about Dennis-Sutton. Penn State has a recent history of developing prime pass rushers, and the Packers can afford to take their time to mold this blank canvas into the dominant headhunter they think he can be.
Granted, that doesn't mean he won't play if he proves to be NFL-ready, but the fact that they don't need him to contribute right away speaks volumes about the team's current state. The Lions had to use a top-3 pick to get their star pass rusher, and the Packers may have found someone as good as him in the fourth round. That's why, regardless of how things have fared in recent years, the Packers will always be kings in the north.
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