Throughout his career as Packers GM, Brian Gutekunst has shown that he is always willing to make moves in the draft.
He’s traded up in the 1st round multiple times.
He also traded down in the 1st round in his first draft.
In short, he moves around to get the guys he wants.
This year, the Packers are starting with a new quarterback and have a lot of reloading to do. With needs on both sides of the ball and a lack of depth, the Packers could use help at wide receiver, tight end, defensive line, safety, and maybe even some positions like kicker that they haven’t looked at in a while.
The Packers have 10 picks in the upcoming draft, giving Brian Gutekunst plenty of options to move around for any players he may have his eyes on. In a draft that feels less top heavy than previous years, the Packers may benefit from trading down early to have more chances at picking a winner (check out the Packers options for trading up here).
So, what options to the Packers have for trading down in the 2023 NFL Draft?
Well, let’s start with an inventory of the Packers picks to see what they’re working with (all values are gathered from DraftTek’s Trade Value Chart):
- 1st round pick #15 overall: 1050 points
- 2nd round pick #45 overall: 450 points
- 3rd round pick #78 overall: 200 points
- 4th round pick #116 overall: 62 points
- 5th round pick #149 overall: 30.6 points
- 5th round pick #170 overall: 21.8 points
- 7th round pick #232 overall: 1 point
- 7th round pick #235 overall: 1 point
- 7th round pick #242 overall: 1 point
- 7th round pick #256 overall: 1 point
Given that, here are some potential trade options for the Packers where the math works out for a possible deal:
Green Bay’s 1st round pick #15 (1050 points) for Seahawks 1st round pick #20 (850) and 3rd round pick #83 (175)
The Seahawks already have the #5 overall pick after robbing the Broncos for a quarterback last year (like the Packers should have done). If they wanted to move up for another pillar to build on in the future, the Packers could pick up a 3rd pick just for sliding down 5 spots (maybe Gutekunst will do better with another team’s 3rd round pick than he has done with his own.
Green Bay’s 1st round pick #15 (1050 points) for Giants 1st round pick #25 (720) and 2nd round pick #57 (330)
The Giants present a very clear value trade off in this scenario. If the Packers are willing to wait, they could pick up an extra 2nd round pick if they Giants have their eyes fixed on someone.
Green Bay’s 1st round pick #15 (1050 points) for Eagles 1st round pick #30 (620), 2nd round pick #62 (284), and 3rd round pick #94 (124)
The Eagles already have the #10 overall pick (after trading with the Saints in last year’s draft). They came really close to winning the Super Bowl last year and may think they are just a player or two away from closing the deal. If they want an aggressive move, they can come away with two top-15 picks to try to get over the hump. Meanwhile, the Packers, who are in need of a talent influx, could hold 5 top-100 picks with this move.
Green Bay’s 1st round pick #15 (1050 points) for Steelers 2nd round pick #32 (590) and 2nd round pick #49 (410)
On paper, the Packers may be giving up a little value, but they would effectively be moving to the end of the 1st round (since the Dolphins lost their 1st round pick for tampering, the top pick in the 2nd round is #32 overall) and pick up a selection in the middle of the 2nd round, earning them 3 top 50 picks, which they could use to rebuild. The Steelers (who also have the 17th overall pick) would put them in a position to come away with two immediate contributors.
Green Bay’s 2nd round pick #45 (450 points) for Bills 2nd round pick #59 (310) and 3rd round pick #91 (136)
The Packers can trade down in 2nd round, too. The Bills could be a good partner. Aside from the pick values working out, Buffalo is competing for a Super Bowl this year – if they see a player slipping in the middle of the 2nd round that they think could be a difference-maker, they could pull the trigger, giving the Packers more draft capital to reload.
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So there are the most likely ranges the Packers could move down to if they weren’t in love with anyone when their pick came up and they wanted to add some extra picks.
We don’t know what the Packers are thinking or who might be available, but we do know that Gutekunst has a history of moving around and it is a key part of his draft strategy. With 10 picks for the Packers, this should be an exciting draft.
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Check out our PFTW 2023 Mock Draft Archive to see how simulated scenarios played out!
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