After upgrading their secondary and defensive line earlier in the NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers turned their attention to their pass rush after taking Penn State edge rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton in the fourth round on Saturday afternoon.
Ranked as the No. 12 edge rusher by the Wide Left consensus board and the No. 13 edge rusher by The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, Dennis-Sutton could be an answer for the Packers’ depth after trading Rashan Gary to the Dallas Cowboys and watching Kingsley Engabare leave during free agency. But he could also become more and be a huge win for a player that shouldn’t have fell as far as he did.
Dani Dennis-Sutton Could Wind Up Becoming Packers’ Steal of NFL Draft
The Packers had a sneaky need at edge rusher as Micah Parsons may not be ready for the 2026 season. While he recovers from a torn ACL, Lukas Van Ness and Barryn Sorrell could start the season as starters but Green Bay’s depth was a big issue even with Brenton Cox Jr. returning and Collin Oliver entering his second season.
With that in mind, taking an edge rusher in the fourth round was a likely outcome for the Packers. But to have a player that was graded as a second-to-third round prospect is a massive victory.
Brugler noted that Dennis-Sutton led the Big Ten with 3.8 pressures per game last season and he’s recorded 8.5 sacks in each of his two seasons as a starter (2024, 2025) with the Nittany Lions. Brugler added that “wins with a combination of quickness and power in all facts of his game” and “offers a solid anchor in the run game” which indicates a key talent fell down the board.
The Packers may have been happy if they decided to take Dennis-Sutton in the second round, but having him fall to the fourth was unexpected as he was the 72nd overall player on the Wide Left consensus board. The cheap draft capital could be another victory when looking at the future of the Packers’ edge rushers.
Parsons is locked in as a game-changer when he comes back from injury. But Van Ness is entering the final year of his rookie contract with the chance the Packers won’t exercise his fifth-year option. While Green Bay could reach a cheaper one-year deal as they did with Jordan Love when his rookie contract ended, his limited production in his first three seasons could have him looking for a new team after this season. Cox has had some success in his first few years and Sorrell and Oliver are relative unknowns after their rookie season.
If Dennis-Sutton lives up to his pre-draft evaluation, there is a path for him to have a much larger role. If he does that, the Packers will benefit greatly and perhaps add an impact player to their defense at a time when most teams are looking for depth.
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