/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/66703456/1189675825.jpg.0.jpg)
It wasn’t the first round most of us were expecting, and to hear Brian Gutekunst tell it, the Green Bay Packers didn’t see this coming either. In his post-draft press conference, Gutekunst mentioned picks in the 20’s, likely receivers, that drained the top of their board. They didn’t like their options at other positions and they believed Jordan Love was a franchise quarterback, the kind of player they couldn’t pass on given the position’s value to a team.
Love won’t be the preferred starter, barring injury, for several seasons, leaving Day 2 as the day for Gutey and Co. to find an impact player or two to help the Packers chase a Super Bowl in 2020.
Six receivers went off the board in the first round, yet there are seven more top-50 caliber pass catching talents, plus Jonathan Taylor, Antonio Gibson and J.K. Dobbins. Add tight ends Cole Kmet, Hunter Bryant, and Donovan Peoples-Jones if we include all the players with second-round grades or better. In short, there will be a ton of skill talent left on the board when the Packers pick at 62.
Day 2 also brings a strong field of linebackers, defensive linemen and offensive linemen, all positions where Green Bay has long-term question marks. By my board, there are still more than a dozen legitimate first-round grades, including six of my top-20 players. If the Packers were to entertain a trade-up one of those potential impact starters make sense.
Here’s a list of the 40 best guys left on the board before Round 2 starts.
- Josh Jones OT Houston
- Trevon Diggs CB Alabama
- Tee Higgins WR Clemson
- Ezra Cleveland OT Boise State
- Zach Baun LB Wisconsin
- Antoine Winfield Jr. S Minnesota
- A.J. Epenesa DE Iowa
- Michael Pittman Jr. WR USC
- K’Von Wallace DB Clemson
- Jake Fromm QB Georgia
- Kristian Fulton CB LSU
- Xavier McKinney DB Alabama
- K.J. Hamler WR Penn State
- Jack Driscoll OT Auburn
- Denzel Mims WR Baylor
- Jonathan Taylor RB Wisconsin
- Chase Claypool TE/WR Notre Dame
- Josh Uche LB Michigan
- Laviska Shenault WR Colorado
- Prince Tega Wanogho OT Auburn
- Bryan Edwards WR South Carolina
- J.K. Dobbins RB Ohio State
- Antonio Gibson RB Memphis
- Terrell Lewis EDGE Alabama
- Grant Delpit S LSU
- Lucas Niang OT TCU
- Bryce Hall CB Virginia
- Darrell Taylor EDGE Tennessee
- Cole Kmet TE Notre Dame
- Akeem Davis-Gaither LB App. State
- Jeremy Chinn LB/S Southern Illinois
- Hunter Bryant TE Washington
- Justin Maduibuike DT Texas A&M
- Yetur Gross-Matos EDGE Penn State
- Troy Dye LB Oregon
- Julian Okwara EDGE Notre Dame
- Cam Akers RB Florida State
- Raekown Davis DT Alabama
- Willie Gay Jr. LB Mississippi State
- Donovan Peoples-Jones WR Michigan