A First-Round Trade-Up Makes No Sense For the Packers

Brian Gutekunst has a history of trading up in the first round. In 2018, he moved from No. 27 to No. 18 in a deal with the Seattle Seahawks to draft Jaire Alexander. In 2019, he again traded with Seattle, jumping from No. 30 to No. 21 to select Darnell Savage. A year later, the Green Bay Packers moved up with the Miami Dolphins to draft Jordan Love.

Gutekunst hasn’t traded up in the first round in any of the last four drafts, and that shift in strategy has paid off in significant draft capital. Green Bay made an NFL-high 35 picks over the past three drafts – 11 in 2024, 13 in 2023, and 11 in 2022. That influx of young talent has been key in helping the Packers quickly rebuild their roster after pushing down the salary cap in a final attempt to make a second Super Bowl run with Aaron Rodgers.

The Packers have made the playoffs in consecutive seasons with the league’s youngest roster and are maybe only a few additions away from legitimate contention. They are also in a comfortable cap position for 2025. However, the long-term outlook of the roster and salary cap suggests Gutekunst would be wiser to stay patient on Day 1 – and, if anything, consider trading down in the first round rather than moving up.

Gutekunst addressed the media during the 2025 scouting combine. When Packers.com’s Mike Spofford referenced the team’s reduced number of draft picks, he quickly cut in with a one-word response:

“Yet.”

The Packers enter the 2025 draft with only eight picks, the fewest in any draft under Gutekunst. The long-term picture is even more pressing: Green Bay only has 29 players under contract for 2026, tied for the eighth-fewest in the NFL. Among teams with fewer than 30 players signed, they also have the lowest projected cap space.

Green Bay's 2022 draft class will become unrestricted free agents next year. The Packers will likely make Zach Tom the highest-paid offensive lineman in the league. Moreover, if Rasheed Walker can deliver another solid season as Jordan Love's blindside protector, he will command top tackle money. Meanwhile, Sean Rhyan will face a make-or-break year to secure a second contract.

Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs will enter contract years in 2025. Watson, recovering from a torn ACL, will not return until December, while Doubs must recover from two concussions suffered in 2024.

Beyond 2025, Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks are the only receivers under contract who ranked among the top three in drop rate among wideouts with at least 40 targets last season. The Packers will have to decide on extending Doubs or Watson while also needing to add depth to the position.

Gutekunst has until May 1 to decide whether to pick up the fifth-year options for Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt. Walker’s option would guarantee him $16 million in 2025, a figure currently matched or exceeded by only four linebackers across the league. Walker is not a top-five player at his position, making it a poor use of cap space to commit that kind of money.

By contrast, Wyatt’s option would cost $13 million, which is affordable but still difficult to justify. He has recorded just 10 sacks over three seasons and missed 10 games last year. Given the cost and production, the most viable path for the Packers is to decline both fifth-year options.

Seven of Green Bay’s 22 starters could hit the open market next year. With limited cap space, the Packers will not be able to retain everyone, making it even more important to hold on to valuable draft assets. Given the depth of talent between picks 20 and 60, this is not the year to trade up. The smart move is to trade down and add more picks.

If Brian Gutekunst were to make a move in the first round, the most likely scenario would be a trade-down. Still, it is hard to imagine him moving out of the first round entirely, not because the draft is in Green Bay but because of the value associated with the fifth-year option attached to first-round picks.