Much of the attention in the Land of Cheese is on the Green Bay Packers’ four picks in the top 60 of the draft. However, the middle rounds are just as crucial. Going with Jeremy Ruckert could define this draft class for the Packers in the years to come.
The tight end spot remains a mystery for the Packers in many areas.
Robert Tonyan will be back, but at what capacity? After tearing his ACL during the 2021 season, it’s unknown whether he’ll be ready for the early stages of the 2022 season or what sort of impact he’ll have.
Tonyan had an eye-popping 2020 season in which he scored 11 touchdowns and racked up nearly 600 yards. However, that year is still an outlier in his career. Putting all the eggs into that basket wouldn’t be wise, and it’s hard to imagine Green Bay won’t address the tight end spot in one way or another before training camp rolls around.
Marcedes Lewis will be back for another run, and Josiah Deguara is still in the mix but carries with him a lot of unknowns.
Enter Ruckert.
Ruckert may not have been a standout star at Ohio State, but there were a lot of mouths to feed at wide receiver during his time with the Buckeyes. But when they targeted Ruckert, he capitalized on those opportunities and became a more than reliable target for Ohio State’s offense.
His fit with Green Bay could come in the run-blocking game that Matt LaFleur utilizes.
When the Packers drafted Deguara, they knew they were getting a more blocking-orientated tight end. When they signed Lewis a couple of years ago, they knew the same was true for him in the latter stages of his career. Therefore, Green Bay should target a tight end who they can utilize more in the passing game. However, they can be the best of both worlds with Ruckert.
Ruckert’s run blocking is tremendous when stacking him against the other tight ends in this draft class. Therefore, he shouldn’t be punished for Ohio State’s embarrassment of riches on offense during his four years there. It’s not that Ruckert isn’t good as a pass-catching option. He just wasn’t a top priority at Ohio State for that. On the other hand, Green Bay needs weapons.
Having a tag team of Tonyan and Ruckert could do wonders for the Green Bay offense. It isn’t time yet to give up on Deguara, and Lewis will be in the mix in 2022 because of his run blocking. But this Packers team needs pass-catchers if they want to finally get over the hump in the NFC. Wide receiver will likely be a point of emphasis early in the draft, but they shouldn’t stop there. Getting a tight end like Ruckert later on would add another nice wrinkle.
Lance Zierlein of NFL.com‘s comparison for Ruckert is Dallas Cowboys tight end Dalton Schultz, who just so happens to be coming off of a massive year. Zierlein wrote up quite the review on Ruckert.
“Muscular move tight end on the collegiate level who should be able to find a home as an in-line worker. Ruckert should test well, creating a favorable height-weight-speed profile that could push him up draft boards. He blocks with good aggression but can be a little inconsistent at the point of attack for now. He’s not as explosive in his route-running as his testing might indicate but will catch what is thrown his way even though he might never be much of a volume target. He has TE2 potential and could become an average NFL starter.”
Green Bay needs impact guys who are ready to roll in 2022. While it would be naive to expect Ruckert to come in and wow everyone by hauling in 50 passes, he can contribute right away. Learning behind the likes of Lewis would only allow him some time to settle in.
Everyone wants to talk wide receiver when it comes to the Packers, and that’s a conversation worth having. But it isn’t the only skill position on the offense Green Bay needs to look at. Prioritizing the wide receiver is a must, but taking Jeremy Ruckert later on in the draft could help piece the puzzle together.
