Every year as the NFL draft draws nearer, the puzzle of how the first round will come together usually becomes clearer. Yet there are always names that enter the mix late and become a big factor in how things shake out. For the Green Bay Packers, that name seems to be offensive lineman Tyler Smith from the University of Tulsa, who would make a lot of sense for Brian Gutekunst to select.
With two first-round and two second-round picks, the Packers have many options to bring in the premier talent in this draft class. The most glaring need is at wide receiver, of course. Suppose a player like Jameson Williams, Chris Olave, or Treylon Burks is sitting there when Green Bay is on the clock. In that case, you’d have a very hard time imagining Gutekunst passing on a top-tier weapon for Aaron Rodgers.
Yet as much as the need for an immediate-impact player exists, Gutekunst will always have at least a small part of his attention focused a few years down the road. That’s why a player like Smith makes a lot of sense. As a 6’5”, 324 lb. redshirt sophomore, he has a blend of youth and experience that Gutekunst may fall in love with. In their final mock draft, Pro Football Focus has a breakdown of why he’s risen up the draft boards, becoming the player they have mocked to Green Bay at 22.
His PFF grade has improved every year of his career, and he tested in the 90th percentile in 10-yard split (1.71) and 40-yard dash (5.02) at just 20 years old.… Smith is exactly the type of offensive line prospect Green Bay covets and shouldn’t come as a surprise when he’s drafted inside the first 32 picks.
That type of athleticism is paramount for what the Packers like to do. It is one of the reasons that Green Bay also really likes the potential of a guy like Yosh Nijman. With David Bakhtiari back on the left side, Elgton Jenkins still to return from his ACL injury, and Nijman as the leading candidate to man the right tackle position, there’s still a need along the offensive line.
Spending the No. 22 pick on a player who would likely start out as a swing tackle would be a hard pill for many Packers fans to swallow. Selecting a player like Smith at No. 28 after Green Bay has already selected Chris Olave or Treylon Burks would be easier to process. Or it would help calm the inevitable collective freakout in the hour or so between their two first-round picks if the team doesn’t take a wide receiver first.
The Packers hosted Tyler Smith for a pre-draft workout over the weekend, and Mike Spofford from Packers.com had an interesting blurb about Smith in his Prospect Primer series:
He’s been projected to be drafted anywhere from late in the first round to late second or early third. Opinions differ on whether his best pro position will be at tackle or inside at guard, where his power as a run blocker could be featured.
Obviously, getting a potential first-round talent a bit later in the draft is preferable, especially if you can also hit on those earlier picks. Drafting Smith with their second pick of the second round would be a home run for the Packers, but only if they already selected two wideouts and an edge rusher. So why is selecting Smith in the first round still potentially a good idea?
Because as tantalizing as a wideout prospect is, fortifying the offensive line and helping to establish Green Bay as a run-first team is still the most likely way that the Packers are going to be a Super Bowl contender. There’s no chance (ok, a very, very, very slim chance) that Green Bay can replace the production that a guy like Davante Adams brought.
But drafting a player like Smith, especially if he can show some Elgton Jenkins-like versatility in his ability to play multiple positions, could be exactly what this offense needs. There’s no doubt there will be attrition, especially in the trenches. The Packers know that better than anyone. On paper, a lineup of Bakhtiari, Jenkins, Nijman, Josh Myers, Jon Runyan Jr., and Royce Newman is solid to above-average, but you can’t assume all of those guys will stay healthy all season long.
Taking a player like Tyler Smith, who could be a nice combination of a serviceable plug-and-play option that blossoms into much more, makes a whole heck of a lot of sense. It would be a pick that helps address an immediate need while also planning for the future. Exactly where a prospect like Smith will be selected remains to be seen, but the Packers would be wise to find a way to bring him into the fold this week.
