Best & Worst Packers Draft Picks of the SB Era

Best & WORST

PACKERS DRAFT PICKS OF THE SUPER BOWL ERA

By: MARK ECKEL

Whether it was under Ron Wolf, Ted Thompson, or now Brian Gutekunst, the Green Bay Packers have done well in the NFL draft. Then again, even the best general managers miss at times, and there was also the Mike Sherman era in between Wolf and Thompson. Here is a round-by-round list of the best and worst Packers picks of the Super Bowl Era.

First Round

Best: Aaron Rodgers, QB, Cal, 2005 (24): You surely know the narrative by now. Rodgers and Utah’s Alex Smith were considered the top two quarterbacks in the ’05 draft. Smith went No. 1 to the San Francisco 49ers, and Rodgers dropped and dropped and dropped right into Ted Thompson’s lap at No. 24. With a future Hall-of-Fame quarterback in Brett Favre already on the roster it was not the team’s primary need, or even a need at all, but the GM couldn’t resist. It also wasn’t a very popular pick among the fans. Or Favre. Rodgers repaid the GM with three regular-season MVP awards, a Super Bowl MVP nod, and a ticket to Canton five years after he retires. It’s hard to top this as the best No. 1 pick in Packers history.

Runner-Up: James Lofton, WR, Stanford, 1978 (6): Green Bay’s leading receiver in 1977 was Barry Smith, with 37 receptions. Wide receiver was certainly a need in 1978, and the team found a future Hall of Famer in Lofton. He led the team in receiving as a rookie and in the next eight years that followed. Lofton still ranks fifth all-time on the Packers lists for receptions (530) and second in yards (9,656).

Honorable Mention: Sterling Sharpe, WR, South Carolina, 1988; Clay Matthews, LB, So.Cal, 2009; John Brockington, RB, Ohio St., 1971. Worst: Tony Mandarich, T, Michigan St., 1989 (2): The hype around the selection may have been worse than the pick itself. It all started when the Packers won their last two games of the 1988 season over Minnesota and Phoenix to finish 4–12 and fall from the No. 1 overall pick to the No. 2 overall pick. Dallas, at 3–13, grabbed the No. 1 pick and selected quarterback Troy Aikman of UCLA, although some critics thought the Cowboys should have taken Mandarich. The Packers did, and the tackle who was going to change the game lasted just three unremarkable seasons in Green Bay. What really makes this pick the worst is four of the top five players picked in that ’89 draft—Aikman, running back Barry Sanders, linebacker Derrick Thomas, and cornerback Deion Sanders—are all in the Hall of Fame. And then there’s Mandarich.

Runner-Up: Rich Campbell, QB, Cal, 1981 (6): This may actually have been the worst pick. Looking for a quarterback to replace the aging and battered Lynn Dickey, the Packers used the No. 6 pick on Campbell over linebacker Hugh Green and safety Ronnie Lott. The only quarterback taken in the first round of the ’81 draft, Campbell wasn’t even that good in college. He threw 42 interceptions to 35 touchdowns in three years at Cal and had a 6:11 ratio his senior year. He played just seven games for Green Bay and completed 31-of-68 passes with three touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Dishonorable Mention: Bruce Clark, DT, Penn St. 1980; Jerry Tagge, QB, Nebraska 1972; John Michels, T, So. Cal, 1996.

SECOND Round

Best: LeRoy Butler, CB, Florida St., 1990 (48): The cornerback reference isn’t a mistake. Butler was drafted out of Florida State as a corner and started there for Green Bay in 1991. He moved to safety in 1992, and his career blossomed. Not that he was a bad corner; he had six interceptions in two years. At safety he became one of the best to ever play the position. He finished his career with 38 interceptions, 13 forced fumbles, 10 fumble recoveries, and 20 1/2 sacks. He was also durable. From 1991 to 2000, he missed just four games. A Hall of Fame finalist the past two years, there’s no logical reason he’s not enshrined in Canton.

Runner-Up: Davante Adams, WR, Fresno St., 2014 (53): There were those of you, and you know who you are, who wanted to dump Adams after a subpar, injury-plagued sophomore season. Now, he’s become Aaron Rodgers’ favorite receiver, one of the best receivers in the league, and one of the best in Packers history. Already he ranks fourth in team history in both receptions (546) and touchdowns (62), and he’s far from finished. That’s a pretty good second-round pick by Thompson.

Honorable Mention: Chad Clifton, T, Tennessee, 2000; Jordy Nelson, WR, Kansas St., 2008; Elgton Jenkins, OL, Mississippi St., 2019 Worst: Josh Jones, S, North Carolina St., 2017 (61): For some reason, Thompson wanted a safety (Morgan Burnett and HaHa Clinton-Dix were coming off decent 2016 seasons) and reached for Jones. He never became a full-time starter, was more of a liability than an asset when he did play, and, after two undistinguished seasons, he was released. He did start for Jacksonville in 2020, and the Jaguars went 1–15. What made the pick worse: the two players taken just after Jones were wide receiver JuJu Smith-Shuster by Pittsburgh and offensive lineman Dion Dawkins by Buffalo.

Runner-Up: Jason Spriggs, T, Indiana, 2016 (48): Spriggs was one of those players who worked out better than he actually played in college, which increased his draft stock. And the Packers bought high. Expected to at least be a swing tackle behind David Bakhtiari and Bryan Bulaga, Spriggs wasn’t even that. He struggled on both the left and right sides when he did play and spent his final season (2019) on injured reserve.

Dishonorable Mention: Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville, 2008; Quinten Rollins, CB, Miami (Ohio) 2015; Dave Bradley, T, Penn State 1969.

THIRD Round

Best: Antonio Freeman, WR, Virginia Tech, 1995 (90): Through a series of trades, Ron Wolf ended up with four third-round picks in the ’95 draft, and all four were pretty good. Freeman, the fourth of those picks, was the best. He spent his rookie year as the return man and was adequate. By his second season, he was the team’s leading receiver for a Super Bowl champion and then put up three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons from ’97–99, leading the league in ’98 with 1,412 yards.

Runner-Up: Brian Williams, LB, USC, 1995 (73): Taken 17 selections ahead of Freeman, Williams would also make a list of the most underrated Packers of all time. He wasn’t a splash player and didn’t have to be on that Packers defense that featured the likes of Reggie White, Sean Jones, and LeRoy Butler. Williams did all the little things right, took tight ends out of the game, and was as solid as they come in the run game.

Honorable Mention: Robert Brooks, WR, South Carolina, 1992; Earl Dotson, T, Texas A&M, 1993; Morgan Burnett, S, Georgia Tech, 2010. Worst: B.J. Sander, P, Ohio State, 2004 (87): This pick might sum up Mike Sherman’s ill-fated stint as a general manager. Not only did Sherman take a punter in the third round, he took a bad punter in the third round. And he traded up to get him! Upset with incumbent punter Josh Bidwell after he punted into the end zone late in the “4th-and-26’’ playoff loss to Philadelphia, Sherman drafted Sander to replace him. Except the former Buckeye didn’t win the job in ’04; it went to journeyman Bryan Barker. Sander did punt in ’05, his only year with the team, and his 39.2 average was the worst in a 20-year span.

Runner-Up: Joey Thomas, CB, Montana St., 2004 (70): Sherman’s ’04 draft is as bad as any in team history. In between taking Ahmad Carroll in the first round and trading up for the punter in the third, Sherman took Thomas with an early third-round pick out of that football factory Montana State. Thomas lasted exactly a year and six games with the Packers before he was let go.

Dishonorable Mention: Brett Conway, K, Penn St., 1997; Bill Stevens, QB, Texas El Paso, 1968 (67); LeShon Johnson, RB, Northern Illinois, 1994.

FOURTH Round

FIFTH Round

Best: David Bakhtiari, T, Colorado, 2013 (109): Just look at the runners-up and the honorable mentions; the Packers have done very well in the fourth round. But never better than getting the best tackle in football with the 109th pick. Thompson always did well with offensive linemen in the middle rounds and found a star in Colorado. Bakhtiari became an immediate starter at left tackle as a rookie—Bulaga was supposed to switch sides but tore his ACL and missed the season—and has been there ever since. He developed into an All-Pro and was rewarded with the best contract for a tackle ever this past season.

Runner-Up: Mike Daniels, DT, Iowa, 2012 (132): Green Bay’s first six picks in the ’12 draft were all on defense. Daniels was the fourth of the six and the second defensive lineman. He turned out to be the team’s best pick of the draft. Considered undersized to play end in a 3-4 scheme, Daniels was a key backup his first two years before taking over as a starter for Johnny Jolly in his third year. He held that spot for the next five years and became a leader of the defense on and off the field.

Honorable Mention: Josh Sitton, G, Central Florida, 2008; Edgar Bennett, RB, Florida St., 1992 (102); T.J. Lang, G, Eastern Michigan, 2009 (109). Worst: J’Mon Moore, WR, Missouri, 2018 (133): Gutekunst’s first draft featured a trio of wide receivers taken in Rounds 4, 5, and 6. Moore, taken in the fourth, was the worst of the trio. He had good size at 6’3”, 205, and 4.3 speed, but he couldn’t catch. That was the rap on him at Missouri, and it stayed with him in Green Bay. Moore returned a few kickoffs as a rookie but never caught a pass and was gone before his second season started.

Runner-Up: Vince Biegel, LB, Wisconsin, 2017 (108): This was the pick Green Bay received from Cleveland, the first pick of the fourth round (along with the first pick of the second round, for passing on T.J. Watt in the first round). Biegel, a teammate of Watt’s at Wisconsin, never did a thing with the Packers. Despite the team’s dearth at linebacker, he lasted just one forgettable season.

Dishonorable Mention: Carl Bradford, LB, Arizona St., 2014; Dan Knight, T, San Diego St., 1986; Jermane Smith, DT, Georgia, 1997.

Best: Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, DE, San Diego St., 2000 (149): If you thought the fourth-round picks were good, take a look at some of these fifth-round picks. KGB gets the slight nod as the best. He spent most of his rookie year on the Packers practice squad before emerging as a pass-rushing threat his second year with 13 1/2 sacks. From 2001–04 he recorded 49 of his career 74 1/2 sacks, which still ranks second-most in team history. It’s hard to find good pass-rushers even in the early rounds, so give Wolf a lot of credit for this pick.

Runner-Up: Dorsey Levens, RB, Georgia Tech, 1994 (149): The Packers backfield in 1993 was shared between second-year man Edgar Bennett and first-round bust Darrell Thompson. Levens came aboard the next year but didn’t make his mark until ’95, when he became Bennett’s backup and a third-down back. It remained that way in the Super Bowl season of ’96, but Levens took over for an injured Bennett in ’97, ran for 1,435 yards, caught 53 passes, and scored 12 touchdowns. He had another 1,000-yard season in ’99.

Honorable Mention: Aaron Kampman, DE, Iowa, 2002; Corey Linsley, C, Ohio St., 2014; Aaron Jones, RB, Texas El Paso, 2017. Worst: Jim Stillwagon, LB, Ohio St., 1971 (124): Stillwagon was a star at Ohio State. He was a two-time All-America selection, won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman, and was the first Lombardi Award winner as the nation’s best player. Green Bay might have gotten a steal in the fifth round, except Stillwagon never signed with the Packers. Instead, he went to Toronto of the CFL and became a three-time Canadian League All-Star.

Runner-Up: Willie Wilder, RB, Florida, 1978 (126): Wilder averaged six yards per carry and scored 16 touchdowns in his college career for the Gators. But as Stillwagon did seven years prior, he spurned Green Bay for the CFL and signed with Sasakatchewan. His career didn’t go as well, as he lasted just one year with the Roughriders.

Dishonorable Mention: Bryan Thomas, RB, Pitt, 1983; Darrell Reed, LB, Oklahoma, 1988; DeMond Parker, RB, Oklahoma, 1999.

SIXTH Round

SEVENTH Round

Best: Mason Crosby, K, Colorado, 2007 (193): Ryan Longwell left as a free agent after the 2005 season, and the Packers struggled with Dave Rayner, who was just 15-for-23 on field goal attempts of 30-plus yards in 2006. Thompson took Crosby in the sixth round in ’07, and the team hasn’t had to worry about its kicker since. Crosby owns almost every Packers kicking mark, including longest field goal and most consecutive field goals, and is also the team’s all-time leading scorer with 1,575 points.

Runner-Up: Mark Chmura, TE, Boston College, 1992 (157): The ’92 draft certainly improved the Packers at the skill positions. Wide receiver Robert Brooks came in the third round, running back Edgar Bennett in the fourth, and Chmura in the sixth. It took him a few seasons, but Chmura emerged as not just a good blocking tight end but a reliable and big-play receiver as well. From 1995–98, Chmura caught 167 passes for 2,020 yards and 17 touchdowns.

Honorable Mention: Bryce Paup, LB, Northern Iowa, 1990; Marco Rivera, G, Penn St., 1996; James Starks, RB, Buffalo, 2010. Worst: Ricky Elmore, LB, Arizona, 2011 (197): At 6’5”, 255, Elmore had the perfect size and build to be a linebacker in the Packers’ 3-4 scheme and appeared to be a sixth-round steal for the team. It never materialized. Elmore never made it past practice squad status and was released. He did spend a year with Cleveland but didn’t see action for the Browns, either.

Runner-Up: Don Woods, RB, New Mexico, 1974 (134): This one might be more on the team than the player. Green Bay released Woods on the final cutdown day and he signed with the Chargers. He gained 1,162 yards and rushed for seven touchdowns on his way to Rookie of the Year. An injury the following year slowed him, and he never regained his rookie form, but he was a solid backup for the Chargers for four more seasons.

Dishonorable Mention: Willie Marshall, WR, Temple, 1987; Dee Miller, WR, Ohio St., 1999; Joe Garton, G/C, Colorado, 1991.

Best: Donald Driver, WR, Alcorn St., 1999 (213): This wasn’t tough. When you get the franchise’s all-time leader in receptions (743) and yards (10,137) in the seventh round, that’s some pick. Driver, who also has the team record with a catch in 133 consecutive games, didn’t come into his own until his fourth season when he broke out for a 70-catch, 1,064-yard, nine-touchdown season. He went on to have six more 1,000yard seasons and rewrote the team’s record book.

Runner-Up: Matt Flynn, QB, LSU, 2008 (209): Aaron Rodgers was ready to take over for Brett Favre as the starting quarterback, but the team needed a backup. That was supposed to be second-round pick Brian Brohm. Instead, Flynn beat him out. He served as Rodgers’ backup for four years, left as a free agent, and returned to help the Packers make the playoffs in 2013 in place of an injured Rodgers.

Honorable Mention: Scott Wells, C, Tennessee, 2004; Adam Timmerman, G, South Dakota St., 1995; Keith McKenzie, LB, Ball St., 1996. Worst: DeAndrew Rubin, WR/KR, Central Florida, 2003 (253): Rubin wasn’t very productive at UCF (18 receptions, 357 yards in 2002), but when he ran a 4.31 40 and had a 35 1/2-inch vertical in his workouts, he opened eyes. That speed and athletic ability never translated, and he never played an NFL game.

Runner-Up: Bart Purvis, T, Maryland, 1974 (168): Green Bay did OK drafting players named Bart late, but not this Bart. Purvis was a three-year starter at Maryland, but at 240 pounds he just wasn’t big enough for the NFL and was released at the end of camp. The Packers drafted another tackle, eight rounds later in ’74, out of Pitt named Dave Wannstedt. He didn’t make it, either.

Dishonorable Mention: Bill Bushong, DT, Kentucky, 1972; Bell Tipton, G, Baylor, 1977; Edwin Watson, RB, Purdue, 1998.