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Best available players for the Packers heading into Day 2 of the NFL Draft

Brian Gutekunst didn’t address any pressing 2020 issues in the first round of the draft, so who are the players he could tab on Day 2 who could do that?

By Peter_Bukowski
Washington v Colorado
Laviska Shenault brings the kind of movable chess piece Matt LaFleur would love.
Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

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.

  1. Josh Jones OT Houston
  2. Trevon Diggs CB Alabama
  3. Tee Higgins WR Clemson
  4. Ezra Cleveland OT Boise State
  5. Zach Baun LB Wisconsin
  6. Antoine Winfield Jr. S Minnesota
  7. A.J. Epenesa DE Iowa
  8. Michael Pittman Jr. WR USC
  9. K’Von Wallace DB Clemson
  10. Jake Fromm QB Georgia
  11. Kristian Fulton CB LSU
  12. Xavier McKinney DB Alabama
  13. K.J. Hamler WR Penn State
  14. Jack Driscoll OT Auburn
  15. Denzel Mims WR Baylor
  16. Jonathan Taylor RB Wisconsin
  17. Chase Claypool TE/WR Notre Dame
  18. Josh Uche LB Michigan
  19. Laviska Shenault WR Colorado
  20. Prince Tega Wanogho OT Auburn
  21. Bryan Edwards WR South Carolina
  22. J.K. Dobbins RB Ohio State
  23. Antonio Gibson RB Memphis
  24. Terrell Lewis EDGE Alabama
  25. Grant Delpit S LSU
  26. Lucas Niang OT TCU
  27. Bryce Hall CB Virginia
  28. Darrell Taylor EDGE Tennessee
  29. Cole Kmet TE Notre Dame
  30. Akeem Davis-Gaither LB App. State
  31. Jeremy Chinn LB/S Southern Illinois
  32. Hunter Bryant TE Washington
  33. Justin Maduibuike DT Texas A&M
  34. Yetur Gross-Matos EDGE Penn State
  35. Troy Dye LB Oregon
  36. Julian Okwara EDGE Notre Dame
  37. Cam Akers RB Florida State
  38. Raekown Davis DT Alabama
  39. Willie Gay Jr. LB Mississippi State
  40. Donovan Peoples-Jones WR Michigan

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