The Green Bay Packers are putting the final touches on their 2026 NFL Draft preparations.
Barring a trade, they will have to wait an extra day to make their selection since they don’t own a pick in the first round. On Friday the Packers will hit the clock at No. 52 overall, and with it they can address a variety of different positions. Defensive line, both on the edge and in the interior, could very well be the direction Green Bay goes.
Green Bay Packers Warned to Avoid Texas Tech DT Lee Hunter With No. 52 Overall Pick
GettyTexas Tech defensive tackle Lee Hunter
Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report recently named a draft prospect that each team should avoid. Since Hunter has often been mocked to the Packers this offseason, Ballentine sent a warning that Hunter doesn’t seem like a good scheme fit.
“Barring a trade up the Packers will have to wait until pick 52 to make their first selection in the draft. In all likelihood, they are looking at defensive reinforcements who can either boost the pass rush or help in the secondary. Lee Hunter is an interior defender that has been connected to them in mock drafts as a second-rounder. He’s the 40th-ranked prospect on our big board so getting him at No. 52 would seem like a steal. The problem is that Hunter’s athleticism doesn’t line up with the Packers philosophy of drafting.
“They tend to target defenders with high relative athletic scores and Hunter’s testing was below average with a relative athletic score of 4.07. Hunter is a nose tackle based on his size, but he has some habits that are going make it difficult to thrive as a run defender in the league. ‘A little late off the ball with a habit of playing too high, preventing him from collapsing the pocket as a bull-rusher consistently,’ Matt Holder wrote in his scouting report. Also, Hunter can cause him to concede some ground against double-teams and combo blocks.’ Hunter makes some sense on paper, but just doesn’t align with what the Packers should be looking for in a defensive line prospect.”
Examining the Current State of Packers’ Defensive Front 7
GettyPackers EDGE Micah Parsons
The Packers traded away Colby Wooden and Rashan Gary, both of whom leave behind a lot of snaps to be played. They also lost rotational Kingsley Enagbare to free agency, who was a solid rotational player. Green Bay signed veteran DT Javon Hargrave to a two-year contract, and has Devonte Wyatt, who made 10 starts last season.
The Packers will likely add some depth at DT, with the goal of acquiring someone who can replace Hargrave in a couple of years. They will be counting on Lukas Van Ness in a big way to step up and be a consistent force off the edge. The 2023 first-round draft pick has been disappointing thus far.
Micah Parsons is rehabbing from the torn ACL he sustained in mid-December. It will be a close call on whether or not he makes it back in time to start the regular season. Regardless of when he returns, he will need some help. Green Bay will surely use at least one pick on an edge rusher, and it could be with the 52nd selection.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Packers Warned to Avoid Prospect That Has Been Often Mocked to Them appeared first on Heavy Sports.