The Green Bay Packers finished their first draft in decades without a first-round pick but still managed to address several roster holes. As they transition into the summer slowdown, with rookie minicamp and training camp still on the horizon, here are the biggest post-draft questions for the Packers.
Who is going to be Jordan Love‘s backup?
Many thought Green Bay would select a quarterback at some point in the draft. General manager Brian Gutekunst entered the draft with eight selections and exited with six new players after a couple of trade-up opportunities were too tempting to turn down. As a result, Gutekunst didn’t use any of their draft capital on a QB, although they scooped up Virginia Tech quarterback Kyron Drones as an undrafted free agent.
Drones is a great athlete and used his legs a ton with the Hokies. There are limitations with his arm in the passing game, which Green Bay will work to address. It would take some tremendous strides by the former Virginia Tech quarterback to win the backup job this summer. The most likely outcome for Drones is to end up on the practice squad, assuming Green Bay doesn’t keep three quarterbacks on the final 53-man roster.
That shifts the attention to Desmond Ridder and Kyle McCord.
Ridder has more experience, starting 18 games combined across three seasons. Of those 18 starts, 17 came in Atlanta, and one came in Las Vegas. The results weren’t all that inspiring. However, as was the case with Malik Willis in Tennessee, it’s worth considering what Ridder had — or, more specifically, didn’t have — to work with at both his previous stops.
Nobody thought Willis would develop into the caliber of player that he did when the Packers traded for him a couple of seasons ago. Take a survey right now on how many believe Ridder could end up being a solid starter in the NFL down the road, and there won’t be too many thumbs pointing up on that survey. As we’ve seen, that can change.
McCord has next to no experience, which leads us to believe that at this point, unless there’s a trade for Anthony Richardson or a veteran signing of some sort, Ridder has the best odds to be QB2 in Green Bay in 2026.
Who will be Green Bay’s kicker in Week 1?
Some fans have opted to downplay the selection of kicker Trey Smack, noting that Green Bay only parted with two seventh-round picks for him, including one that was a super late pick.
Let’s call a spade a spade, though. Green Bay traded up for a kicker, regardless of what point of the draft it happened in. Smack was also the only kicker drafted. Most teams that draft a kicker have every intention for him to become their No. 1 option immediately.
When Brandon McManus remained on the roster past a March deadline that triggered a $1 million bonus, it appeared to be a safe assumption that he would be the guy in 2026. Sure, $1 million isn’t a lot for an NFL organization in the grand scheme of things, but a $1 million roster bonus for a kicker is not insignificant.
Then Gutekunst traded up and drafted Smack. When asked about it, Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur tried to put out the flames by highlighting the benefits of competition.
It’s a load of baloney.
If things go according to plan, Smack will be Green Bay’s kicker.
Will Brandon Cisse be a Day 1 starter?
Let’s make one thing abundantly clear: Keisean Nixon will be a starting cornerback for the Packers in 2026. Nixon isn’t going anywhere, and neither is his starting label.
That leaves the second starting spot up for grabs between second-round pick Brandon Cisse, newcomer Benjamin St-Juste, and familiar face Carrington Valentine.
Unlike other positions, like wide receiver, the Packers won’t have as many reservations about starting a rookie at cornerback if Cisse is the best man for the job. Cisse will likely have all summer throughout camp and the preseason to show he has earned a starting job alongside Nixon.
Valentine brings starting experience, having started 30 games over three years for Green Bay. St-Juste is the veteran who started plenty early in his career but was a reserve for the Los Angeles Chargers last year.
Normally, you might expect that Valentine has the edge, given his familiarity with the Packers and the system. However, with the new defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, comes an entirely new system. In a sense, Green Bay’s defense will be starting from scratch.
It’s too early to definitively say if Cisse will be a Day 1 starter, but he should have every opportunity to win the gig outright this summer. That isn’t the case for all positions in Green Bay.
