Mel Kiper thinks the Green Bay Packers get a major need in round one
The Green Bay Packers need to add pass catchers ahead of quarterback Jordan Love’s first season starting. The Packers are down to a trio of sophomores to start at wide receiver next season. Tight end Robert Tonyan is with the Chicago Bears, and Marcedes Lewis has not been re-signed. ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper has the Packers addressing the need at pass catcher in his latest mock draft.
Head coach Matt LaFleur has said the Packers need to get a veteran in the mix. But that shouldn’t stop the team from taking a wide receiver or tight end in the first round. The Packers haven’t seen a wide pass catcher taken in the first round since Javon Walker arrived in Green Bay in 2002. They took a tight end, Bubba Franks, in the first round two drafts earlier. Franks was a hit for the Packers early in his career, as he went to the Pro Bowl three straight seasons (2001-03).
Kiper has the Packers taking the “best pass-catching” TE
Kiper released his latest mock draft on Tuesday morning. He predicts the Packers draft tight end Dalton Kincaid with the 15th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft:
“Take a look at the Green Bay depth chart and tell me this: Who is going to catch passes from quarterback Jordan Love in 2023? OK, outside of second-year wideouts Christian Watson and Romeo Dobbs? There’s just not much there, and Josiah Deguara, who had 13 catches last season, is now the team’s No. 1 tight end. Kincaid is the best pass-catching tight end in this class.
He had 16 touchdown receptions over the past two seasons. He can stretch the seams in the middle of the field, and he can create easy connections for Love. This is the pick to help a young signal-caller.”
The Packers would probably be better served to take Dalton or Notre Dame tight end Michael Mayer here. The Packers need help on the defensive line and secondary, but the value they can get for an EDGE or defensive tackle at 15 might not be high enough to skip out on one of the best tight end classes in memory.
