The Green Bay Packers selected Jordan Morgan, an offensive tackle from the University of Arizona, with the 25th pick in this year’s draft. By taking Morgan, the Packers addressed a position of need. However, Gutekunst could have gone after a skill position and then worried about linemen later, because the best offensive linemen were already off the board.
The big names entering the draft were Notre Dame’s Joe Alt, Alabama’s JC Latham, and Penn State’s Olumuyiwa Fashanu. Everybody knew Alt would be taken early, and he went fifth to the Los Angeles Chargers. On the other hand, Latham and Olumuyiwa were realistic picks to slide down closer to Green Bay’s spot on the board. Unfortunately, that did not happen. Latham went seventh to the Tennessee Titans, and the New York Jets took Olumuyiwa 11th.
Six offensive tackles were selected before Green Bay had their pick, so they nabbed Morgan from Arizona. Morgan is 6’5”, 311 lbs. The Packers drafted him to replace David Bakhtiari, but there is some room to experiment with him.
Bakhtiari spent almost all of last year injured, and Rasheed Walker played outstandingly in his absence. Therefore, the Packers may not immediately move Morgan to tackle. He has shorter arms, which could hurt his outside protection, so he could play a lot of left guard during the upcoming season to help with his physicality and ease him into the tackle role.
Regardless of where the Packers put him, Morgan is reliable in both run and pass blocking. He’s a smooth protector who doesn’t get beat with speed. Still, he can get overpowered by dominant pass rushers. However, only a few offensive linemen can hold their own against players like Joey Bosa and Aidan Hutchinson.
Injuries are also a concern for Morgan. He tore his ACL in 2022, recovered, and returned to his peak form last year. But who knows if that injury could linger and possibly cost him some productive seasons in the future, like what happened with Bakhtiari?
Many fans are satisfied with this pick because Green Bay needed to address the offensive line. It’s also only the second time that Gutekunst has picked an offensive player in the first round (the only other was Jordan Love in 2020). He would go after defensive players when the fanbase was begging for a receiver. However, given the circumstances of the previous picks, Green Bay could have gotten more value by getting a skill-position player and then addressing the O-line.
Given the number of linemen in the draft, Gutekunst probably would have been wise to select an impact-position player and then take care of the O-line in the second round once the top-five tackle prospects had been taken.
Xavier Worthy, a standout wide receiver from the University of Texas, was still on the board. Gutekunst could have taken Worthy to improve Green Bay’s young, flashy receiving corps and give Jordan Love another young weapon. He could have waited until the mid- to late-second round to take an offensive tackle or even traded up for another pick to nab Morgan or someone else.
Before the start of the second round, Notre Dame’s other tackle, Blake Fisher, Washington’s Roger Rosengarten, and BYU’s Kingsley Suamatia were all still available. Green Bay also entered the draft with more picks than any other team, so they could have traded up for an early second-rounder or another late first-rounder and grabbed a tackle. Green Bay’s receiving corps is already young and promising, but nobody knows how injuries or future free agency could impact it. Therefore, the Packers had an opportunity to draft a dynamic wide receiver but missed it.
Ultimately, Brian Gutekunst addressed a position where Green Bay needed depth, and the Packers drafted an excellent offensive tackle in Jordan Morgan. Morgan is a good prospect who needs to develop some strength. However, he shows a lot of promise with his comparisons to David Bakhtiari and what he achieved at the University of Arizona.
