- The open market will be examined thoroughly for potential acquisitions.
The Packers have made big early splashes in free agency each of the last two years, but whether another one is coming remains to be seen.
Gutekunst stressed the lack of a first-round draft pick won’t force him into making a major move to compensate. Pursuit will be dictated by who’s available, which will include cap casualties from other clubs.
“Every free agent class is different and I think you have to be careful of chasing things that aren’t there,” he said. “Pretty soon here, we’re probably going to have an influx of players that are going to get released, and that’ll change it, as well. We’re looking at that pretty extensively.”
- The Packers are cognizant of gaining compensatory draft picks in 2027 for lost free agents, but that’s not driving their decisions.
Pending free agents like quarterback Malik Willis, left tackle Rasheed Walker, receiver Romeo Doubs and linebacker Quay Walker could earn the Packers comp picks in ’27 should they depart for other teams.
Any free-agent signings this year also could cancel out those comp picks for next year.
While Gutekunst is aware of all those implications, they’re more back of mind than top of mind.
“It’s about winning now,” he said. “If there’s players who we can sign that give us the opportunity to win now more so than holding out for a compensatory pick in 2027, that’s the decision we’re going to make.
“It’s a factor, but the most important thing is our ability to win in 2026.”
- Willis is generating interest in the QB market.
The Packers’ productive backup the last two seasons is in line for a starting opportunity in free agency, and former Green Bay personnel executive Jon-Eric Sullivan – now Miami’s GM – has no doubt he’s on multiple teams’ radars.
That list includes the Dolphins, with Sullivan and new coach Jeff Hafley working through a difficult QB cap situation with Tua Tagovailoa.
“Any team that is potentially in a needy quarterback situation, if they tell you they’re not talking about Malik Willis, that would be a lie,” Sullivan said.
“Very happy for Malik on a personal level, the situation he’s put himself in. It’s a testament to him and how he played in the opportunities he got … I wish Malik the best. A lot of like for the human being. He’s a great kid.”
- More Packers personnel execs could get their shots to be a GM, too.
It took multiple years of interviews for Sullivan to land his first GM gig after two decades with the Packers, and he expects some of his former colleagues to be next.
“I tell you what, Green Bay is full … they’ve got a lot of really good people up there in that front office,” Sullivan said. “When you look at Milt Hendrickson, John Wojciechowski, Richmond Williams, Lee Gissendaner, all those are very capable of sitting in this chair.
“They all bring a lot to the table. Different personalities, different skill sets, but all will have an opportunity I think in time to do this.”
One of those GMs from the Green Bay pipeline, Eliot Wolf, just led the Patriots to a Super Bowl appearance, and now he’ll be competing regularly against Sullivan in the AFC East.
“He and I started with the Packers in the same year in 2004,” said Wolf, who left Green Bay in 2018. “I’ve stayed close with him. Just really excited for his opportunity. A little disappointed it’s in our division, but I’m excited to try to beat him twice a year.”
- Green Bay’s ultimate focus remains finding the right players to succeed in the most important moments.
There’s no escaping how the Packers’ season ended, with a blown playoff lead representing the third winnable game down the stretch that got away, and it’s serving as a reminder of mental makeup factoring into evaluations of potential player additions.
“You’re always looking for those guys that are wired a certain way,” Gutekunst said. “Because in the National Football League, whether you’re up by two touchdowns and things start snowballing on you, whether you’re behind by two touchdowns … you have to have the kind of guys in your locker room that can handle all those situations whenever they’re thrown at you.
“I think we have a ton of ’em, but that’s really important as we move forward, making sure that what happened to us really over the last couple years doesn’t happen to us anymore.”
