The Green Bay Packers haven’t shied away from making splash trades over the last few years. Of course, those trades were headlined by Davante Adams in 2022 and Aaron Rodgers in 2023. Rasul Douglas being traded for a third-round pick during the middle of the 2023 season was also fairly significant.
While the Packers didn’t trade Aaron Jones this off-season, they moved on from him and immediately signed Josh Jacobs. However, now that the dust has settled, the Packers landed a total of six players in their franchise-altering Aaron Rodgers trade.
The Green Bay Packers Got The Most Out Of Their Aaron Rodgers Trade
Four draft picks were acquired by the Packers from the Jets in April 2023:
- 2023 first-round pick (13th overall)
- 2023 second-round pick (42nd)
- 2023 sixth-round pick (207th)
- 2024 second-round pick (41st)
John Breech of CBS Sports did an incredible job of breaking down each draft pick the Packers ended up acquiring in the Aaron Rodgers trade:
- 2023 first-round pick (13th overall): LB Lukas Van Ness. The Packers ended up using this pick on Van Ness, who saw action in all 17 games during his rookie season. Although he wasn’t a starter, he did manage to rack up four sacks, which was the fifth-highest total on the team.
- 2023 second-round pick (42nd): TE Luke Musgrave. The tight end missed six games due to a lacerated kidney, but when he was on the field in 2023, he was a pretty solid weapon for the Packers. In his 11 games of action, he caught 34 passes for 352 yards and a touchdown. Those numbers translate to 52.5 catches for 544 yards over a 17-game season.
- 2023 sixth-round pick (207th): K Anders Carlson. The rookie kicker got off to a strong start in 2023 by hitting nine of his first 10 field goals, but he fell apart after that. Carlson missed at least one kick — field goal or extra point — in six of Green Bay’s final seven games and he’s now on thin ice heading into 2024. Due to his struggles, the Packers brought in some stiff competition for him this year in the form of Greg Joseph, which means Carlson could be out of a job after just one season.
- 2024 second-round pick (45th): Edgerrin Cooper. The Packers ended up trading back from 41st overall to 45th overall in a deal with the Saints that also gave Green Bay the 168th and 190th overall picks. With the 45th pick, they selected linebacker Edgerrin Cooper out of Texas A&M. We gave that pick a ‘B+’ in our annual draft grades.
- Added pick (168th). OL Jacob Monk. CBSSports.com draft guru Chris Trapasso absolutely loved this pick for the Packers. Trapasso gave it an ‘A-‘ and here’s why: “Hyper-experienced, legitimately versatile blocker who probably plays center or guard at the next level. Athleticism and acceleration off the snap instantly stand out,” Trapasso wrote. “Classic Packers pick. He’ll be a useful depth option for a while.”
- Added pick (190th): S Evan Williams. OK, so this is where things get a little confusing. The Packers took the 190th overall pick and packaged it with the 126th overall pick (which wasn’t part of the Rodgers trade) to make a trade for the 111th overall pick. The Packers then used that selection on safety Evan Wiliams out of Oregon. That pick earned a ‘B-‘ in our draft day grades.
The trade has now been fully completed. After trading Rodgers a year ago, the Packers now have their full return on investment. Ultimately, six players were signed, and two of them have already established themselves as solid role players.
The Packers can say they “won” this trade if at least two of the three players taken in 2024 end up being key contributors. Jordan Love took the first step toward becoming a superstar in 2023. If he continues to pan out, it will have been an extremely successful trade overall.
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