Seven-Round Packers Mock Draft Shows Pros, Cons of Trading Up

Without a first-round pick, it might be a challenge for Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst to get an instant-impact player at a position of need. 

So, maybe he’ll get proactive. Rather than waiting until he’s on the clock with the 52nd overall selection, maybe he’ll trade up.

“I do feel like if, if the right player were there, that we would be able to go get him,” Gutekunst said on Tuesday.

Trading up, of course, comes with the considerable trade-off of having to give up draft picks. Using the Stick to the Model Simulator, I traded up from No. 52 to No. 44 in a deal with the Jets to fill a major position of need. The cost was Green Bay’s pick at No. 120 of the fourth round, which was a small win by the Bill Belichick-based trade-value chart.

Second Round, No. 44: Texas Tech DT Lee Hunter

No different in 2009, when they drafted B.J. Raji with their first pick, the Packers need a nose tackle as the centerpiece of their new 3-4 defense.

“I do think there’s probably a little bit more appetite for a pure nose because of some of the snaps we’re going to play,” Gutekunst said on Tuesday.

When Texas Tech’s Lee Hunter fell into the 40s, it was time to get proactive, though it cost them their fourth-round pick to move up eight slots. Hunter had a “30” visit with the Packers following a final season of three sacks and 11 tackles for losses.

He is the No. 41 overall prospect, according to NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah. He’d be an immediate force against the run, which is something the Packers needed even before trading Colby Wooden.