INDIANAPOLIS — Contrary to an online narrative that has picked up steam this offseason, the Packers won’t hold their first-round pick tighter just because the NFL Draft is in Green Bay this year.
Team president Mark Murphy is aware of that train of thought and recently joked with general manager Brian Gutekunst that he’s allowed to trade pick No. 23 (he wasn’t technically joking).
The Packers only hold seven picks, one in each round, and Gutekunst was asked about not having as many picks as in recent years.
“Yet,” the eighth-year general manager said. “Yet.”
So with limited picks, that means Gutekunst certainly won’t trade his first-rounder for an edge rusher, right?
“Depends who that edge rusher would be,” Gutekunst said in a sitdown with local reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday morning.
A reporter asked Gutekunst if they could throw around some names to see what Gutekunst thought of each.
“If they’re on other teams, no,” Gutekunst said with a smile.
While it isn’t clear whether the Packers have a legitimate shot at acquiring the Browns’ Myles Garrett, the Raiders’ Maxx Crosby or the Bengals’ Trey Hendrickson, it’s clear the Packers could use a player like those three to boost what was an inconsistent pass rush in 2024.
Here are nine other things of note that Gutekunst touched on in his nearly 40 minutes with Green Bay media in Indianapolis.
Tush push ban?
The Athletic’s Dianna Russini first reported Monday that the Packers were the team to propose a tush push ban to the league’s competition committee. Gutekunst clearly didn’t spearhead that decision. Asked about the Packers opposing the Eagles’ signature play, Gutekunst said he “hasn’t really put much thought into it.”
😂 https://t.co/6wDj1oVmwD
— Lane Johnson (@LaneJohnson65) February 24, 2025
Speaking out
Running back Josh Jacobs made waves during Super Bowl week when he told everyone with a microphone on Radio Row that the Packers need a proven No. 1 wide receiver despite being encouraged by the potential of Green Bay’s young wideouts. Gutekunst had no problem with what Jacobs said, though he didn’t exactly admit to agreeing with Jacobs.
“I appreciate Josh,” Gutekunst said. “The one thing I do know is Josh desperately wants to win, and I really do appreciate that about him. I think he’d like to have as many good players as we can get … I talked to Josh before and after that about our football team. So yeah, things in the media, I don’t pay too much attention to unless it’s something that’s detrimental to our football team, which that wasn’t.”
While acknowledging one of the Packers’ current wideouts could become their true No. 1, Gutekunst also left open the possibility of acquiring a player to fill that role.
Key injury updates
Gutekunst offered injury updates on the Packers’ top three wide receivers, all of whom dealt with ailments ranging in significance at the end of the season and didn’t finish the playoff game against the Eagles.
Christian Watson had his ACL surgery and is expected back around the midway point of the 2025 season.
“He’s a freak in many ways as far as that goes,” Gutekunst said. “Doing well. He’s got a lot in front of him, but I expect him to attack it like he does everything else … everything so far’s been really good. He’s been through this before, so he knows what to expect. It’s a big injury. It may take some time, but he’s got the right mindset, positive attitude toward it.”
Despite Romeo Doubs suffering multiple concussions in the second half of the season, including one that required trainers to physically turn him over on his back in Philadelphia while he wore a Guardian Cap, Gutekunst said he doesn’t think he has any long-term concern over Doubs’ head health.
“Any time a guy has a couple concussions back-to-back, there’s some concern there, not necessarily his long-term liability or anything, just for him,” Gutekunst said. “I would expect him to bounce back and be at his best.”
Jayden Reed said on locker cleanout day that he tore his labrum against the Eagles. Gutekunst said he might be limited during the offseason but should be fine come training camp.
Alexander’s future
Cornerback Jaire Alexander’s future in Green Bay remains uncertain. The two-time second-team All-Pro has played in 16 of a potential 37 games the last two seasons because of four different injuries and a one-game suspension. He enters the 2025 league year with the third-highest cap hit on the team behind quarterback Jordan Love and defensive end Rashan Gary. Cutting or trading Alexander, who just turned 28, would free up about $6.8 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap.
Could Jaire Alexander’s tenure with the Packers soon come to an end? (David Banks / Imagn Images)
Gutekunst has talked several times with Alexander’s agent, John Thornton, who is also in Indianapolis this week.
“We’ll see,” Gutekunst said when asked if Alexander will be on the team next season. “We’re working through that. He certainly could be, but I think we’ll work through that as we go. We’ve got to get him out there now. I think obviously, we’ve talked about (how) there’s been a lot of frustration on his part. He wants to be out there badly and not being able to be out there at his best has frustrated him and that has frustrated our football team, too, because we’re better with him. But we’ll see.”
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Kicker stability
The Packers appear to have found their answer at kicker in the form of their oldest player, Brandon McManus. In 10 games with the Packers after joining them in Week 7, the veteran made 21-of-23 field goals (3-of-3 from 50-plus) and all 31 extra-point attempts. McManus is set to be an unrestricted free agent, but may not even reach free agency.
“We’d love to,” Gutekunst said of bringing McManus back. “We’re working towards that end. We’ll see where that goes.”
Walker’s contract
Don’t be surprised if the Packers reach an extension with linebacker Quay Walker this offseason. The fifth-year option deadline is approaching and exercising Walker’s would result in a guaranteed salary of approximately $16.5 million in 2026, according to Over the Cap. Only three off-ball linebackers make more than that annually. Gutekunst doesn’t sound like he wants to pay that much for the soon-to-be 25-year-old, but he certainly sounds like he wants Walker around for the foreseeable future.
“The linebacker for the fifth-year option is a little wonky because there’s so many edge guys that are part of that, which drives up that number, which probably isn’t great,” Gutekunst said. “But yeah, we’d like to find a way to keep Quay around here long-term, whether that be an extension or something.”
First-round receiver?
Whether to compensate for the loss of Watson or simply to add competition, could this finally be the year Green Bay drafts a wide receiver in the first round? The Packers haven’t done so since 2002 with Javon Walker, though at this point it’s a rather meaningless storyline since the team has found the likes of Davante Adams, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, Greg Jennings, James Jones, Reed, Watson and Doubs on Days 2 and 3.
“I will say this: in no time in my 20-some years within this organization, whether it was Ron (Wolf) or Ted (Thompson), did I hear them talk about that as a philosophy,” Gutekunst said of avoiding first-round receivers. “I know Ron talked a lot about being mad he didn’t take Randy Moss, you know what I mean? … I never really looked at it that way. I don’t think we’d ever hesitate to take a receiver in the first round if the right one was there. We certainly talked about it at different times in the last seven years since I’ve been in this spot, trying to make that happen (the Packers wanted Brandon Aiyuk in the 2020 first round before drafting Jordan Love), so I don’t really look at it as a philosophical thing. I will say we’ve hit on a lot of second-round receivers. There’s been a lot of guys that we’ve taken in that group that have become really, really good players for us. Not only us, but throughout the league.”
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Is Nixon really CB1?
Keisean Nixon made noise on locker cleanout day when he said he was done returning kickoffs because he was tired of the new kickoff rule rendering him less effective and also that No. 1 cornerbacks don’t return kicks. The two-time first-team All-Pro kick returner spoke with head coach Matt LaFleur shortly after those comments and LaFleur told reporters that if the Packers want Nixon returning kicks, he’ll do just that. Gutekunst said he wants multiple options at kick returner.
As for anointing himself the team’s No. 1 cornerback, Nixon drew better reviews from his GM on his play at outside cornerback than fans would give him after his first season at the position.
Keisean Nixon returns a kickoff against the Eagles in the NFC wild-card game in January. (Bill Streicher / Imagn Images)
“I think he played really, really well,” Gutekunst said. “I think he really fit what Jeff (Hafley) was trying to do. First of all, he’s an outstanding competitor. I didn’t blink when we asked him to do that, but I just think his athleticism and his ability … with his eyes and his ability to tackle served us well out there. For me, he may not have the length that some of those guys on the outside have, but his awareness and ball skills make up for that.”
So yes, Nixon will be on the team next season and it appears he’ll be starting at outside cornerback again, whether Alexander is on the team or not.
O-line moves
Though the Packers liked Zach Tom best at center coming out of Wake Forest in 2022, the college left tackle/center received the third-most All-Pro votes at right tackle last season behind Philadelphia’s Lane Johnson and Detroit’s Penei Sewell. And despite a potential need at center with Josh Myers set to be an unrestricted free agent, Gutekunst said Tom will probably stay at right tackle in 2025.
It’s clear after the Packers’ playoff loss to the Eagles that they need better from their offensive line, specifically off the bench but also in the starting lineup.
“I feel good about our offensive line,” Gutekunst said. “We’ll always continue to address it because it’s such an important part of what we do. But I like the versatility of our guys. We’ve got a lot of guys that can play four spots, a couple guys who can probably play all five. So we work really hard on the guys that we bring into that building to have the versatility to do that, whether that’s because we have injuries or we have to shuffle the lineup to get the best five guys out there.”
(Top photo: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)
