Green Bay leaves the draft with six total picks, including two cornerbacks. The general manager made sure to attack most of the roster needs and showed urgency to round out the team.
Oct 4, 2025; Pasadena, California, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton (33) warms up before the game against the UCLA Bruins at Rose Bowl.
Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
Usually, you see complaints because the Green Bay Packers took projects who won’t impact the team soon or did not address immediate needs. Well, you can’t whine about that this year. General manager Brian Gutekunst had a clean draft class, attacking everything the roster needed to be a real contender in 2026.
Now, we have to wait for the results. But in terms of process, the combination of value and needs made this a highly intriguing draft class — the only reason to be mad is the final pick, when the team traded up to draft a kicker.
Cornerback was the biggest need on the roster, and Brandon Cisse was the 45th player on the consensus big board. Solving a major roster issue while generating strong value in the draft process is good business. There were still several good players available, so a trade down could have been an option, but overall there’s little reason to complain.
Grade: B+
McClellan was a big reach based on the consensus big board, where he was the 233rd-ranked overall prospect. In terms of the trade up, it was not an expensive deal. Usually, trade ups are risky. But in this case, the Packers still have another fifth-rounder acquired in the Dontayvion Wicks’ deal (No. 153), and the value is just right to move up a few spots and address another position of need. Not the soundest process, but a reasonable move to improve the defensive front.
Grade: B
An exceptional athlete with a 9.96 RAS (ninth all-time among DEs), he fits a depth need for the Packers and has the perfect profile for their style of defensive player. Even better, Dennis-Sutton was the 73rd player on the consensus big board. The combination of draft value and attacking needs, plus taking a player from a premium position, is exactly how the Packers can maximize a class even without a first-round pick.
Grade: A
The Packers picked a versatile interior offensive lineman, and that’s the biggest need along the offensive line. However, Brian Parker II was still available. Burton moves well and has a polished technique, so he can contribute relatively soon for a fifth-round o-lineman.
Grade: B-
Jackson is not necessarily a high upside pick, but he helps the depth in the cornerback room and has special teams ability. That’s mostly what you can expect from a sixth-round prospect. And if he can deliver that, the pick will have been a success.
Grade: B
Drafting a kicker usually isn’t smart business. Now, the Packers traded two seventh-round picks to move up in the draft and take a kicker. Hopefully they will be able to generate good results with a bad process, but it was a bad process.
Grade: D
Green Bay Packers News
Here is the Green Bay Packers’ 2026 NFL Draft class
The Packers complete the draft with six total picks, including two cornerbacks. General manager Brian Gutekunst addressed most of the team’s needs.
2026 NFL Draft Grades Packers Draft
