GREEN BAY — The Packers’ top priority last season was determining whether Jordan Love could be their next franchise quarterback.
Check.
Their top priority now is ensuring that Love remains upright as much as possible for the next decade-plus.
“If you can protect your quarterback, particularly one like we have,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said, “you have a chance to win the football game.”
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The Packers’ only long-term certainties on the offensive line are 28-year-old left guard Elgton Jenkins and 25-year-old right tackle Zach Tom, both of whom can play all five positions. Center Josh Myers, who has been inconsistent over his first three years but drew praise last season from the coaching staff, is entering the final season of his rookie contract. Incumbent left tackle Rasheed Walker, a 2022 seventh-round pick, appears fit for the job but probably isn’t a lock to start. Sean Rhyan, who split right guard snaps with now-Giant Jon Runyan Jr. last season, will compete for the job there.
Though Thursday’s selection of Arizona left tackle Jordan Morgan at No. 25 came as a surprise, especially with Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean still available, it makes sense given what the Packers value in offensive linemen, how important it is that they protect the new face of their organization and where the biggest questions lie up front.
“Really feel like he could probably play four positions for us,” Gutekunst said on Thursday night. “Two-time team captain, just our kind of guy … He’s got left tackle feet, very athletic kid, very sturdy, strong lower body and he did 27 (reps), I think, on the bench, as well, so he’s a very strong athlete. When you move inside there, things move a little bit quicker and you’ve got to handle a little bit more power and he certainly has shown the ability to do that.”
Bill Belichick showering Jordan Morgan with praise after the Packers picked him on @PatMcAfeeShow tonight https://t.co/n6MfQBt3h8
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) April 26, 2024
Morgan started 33 games over the last three seasons at Arizona, all at left tackle. He tore his ACL toward the end of the 2022 season — he was planning to enter the 2023 draft — and returned to school after the injury while turning himself into a late first-round pick. Gutekunst said it was “remarkable” how well Morgan played early last season after such a significant injury as he helped lead the Wildcats to their winningest season since 2014.
“Just a strong character guy, going through the adversity of the ACL and coming through the other side of it,” Gutekunst said. “The way the people at Arizona speak of him, just the right kind of guy for our locker room. I think he’ll fit in great. Whenever you’re picking this high, that gives you a comfort level that whatever his ultimate potential is, he’s got the work ethic to get there and kind of put the team above himself. That was something that was obviously very appealing to us.”
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The Athletic’s Dane Brugler says Morgan can survive at tackle in the NFL but his skillset projects far better inside. Morgan’s arms aren’t particularly long at 32 7/8 inches, but Gutekunst noted that the Packers have fared just fine with offensive tackles who don’t feature prototypical arm length and that Morgan makes up for it with his quick feet and athleticism. Bill Belichick, talking on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Thursday night, said with conviction that Morgan is an NFL left tackle.
“I’ll play anywhere that they put me,” Morgan said. “I’m good at adapting to anything. Put me at guard, playing tackle, it wouldn’t matter … I’ve been playing it my whole career. It’s something that’s already second nature to me. I can get out there and do whatever I need to do. The arm length is no problem for me. I use my arm length pretty well and I’m very athletic.
“I know everything happens quicker in the inside. I’m athletic enough and flexible enough to do that type of thing.”
The Packers have proven capable over the years, dating back to the late Ted Thompson’s prolific run as general manager from 2005-2017, to find standout offensive linemen on Day 3 of the draft. That’s when they selected left tackle David Bakhtiari, center Corey Linsley, guards T.J. Lang and Josh Sitton and the current right tackle Tom. Not since 2011, the draft after which the Packers won their last Super Bowl, had they taken an offensive lineman in the first round (Derek Sherrod).
Let’s go!!!! Good luck to Jordan Morgan. Represent the position, town, and G with pride. #gopackgo #pac12guy
— David Bakhtiari (@DavidBakhtiari) April 26, 2024
Gutekunst said he had multiple options to trade back from No. 25, both to later in the first round and out of it entirely, and that he realized early in the night that he wouldn’t trade up because several players the Packers identified as trade-up targets didn’t fall far enough. With Morgan still available and where the Packers would’ve traded back to, Gutekunst didn’t feel comfortable retreating and instead grabbed his guy, sticking with one first-round pick at his original spot for only the second time in seven drafts as general manager.
“Obviously it’s a premium position,” Gutekunst said when asked how much the run on offensive tackles factored into the decision to take one at No. 25. “For me, there’s only so many big guys, usually, in each draft and you realize that they’re going to go early and they’re going to go quick and if you don’t get one, you might be out of luck. There’s some of that. But again, where we had him valued, this was a pretty easy decision for us.”
Despite being a first-round pick, there’s no guarantee Morgan starts. It’s entirely possible that Walker starts at left tackle and Rhyan at right guard. Even then, Gutekunst would find value in his selection because Green Bay’s offensive line badly lacked depth. At tackle, the Packers recently signed Eagles 2019 first-round pick Andre Dillard, who flamed out in Philadelphia and started 10 games for the Titans last season, to compete for the swing tackle job left vacant by Yosh Nijman signing with the Panthers. On the interior, the only depth piece with experience is Royce Newman. Morgan, even if he doesn’t crack the Week 1 lineup and develops as a reserve before starting down the line, can provide much-needed depth both on the edge and inside.
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“The injury rate in our league is very high, right? You can’t have guys that can only play one spot. That’s very hard to do,” Gutekunst said. “It just puts a lot of stress on your group. Having guys that can play multiple spots that are not only athletic enough to do it and strong enough to do it but smart enough to do it, as well, I think it just gives you a lot of comfort understanding that over the course of a 17-game season … you’re going to have to figure out ways to put it together. Again, we’re hopeful we stay healthy and there’s no issues, but that’s just not usually the case. That’s one, and then I just think particularly with what we ask our offensive linemen to do, not only in the run game but in pass pro, there’s some similarities throughout the line that we’re asking these guys to do. That’s part of it.”
Shortly after Bakhtiari tweeted his congratulations to Morgan, the newest Packer said he’s studied the five-time All-Pro and former Packers left tackle for a while. If Morgan can replicate even half of what Bakhtiari accomplished over his 11 years in Green Bay, no matter the initial shock of the pick to some, the Packers and their fans will come away from this one feeling just fine.
(Photo: Jordon Kelly / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
