5 Best & 5 Worst Packers Draft Picks Since 2000

As we all know, a first-round pick for teams is reserved for two types of players: potential stars in the making and players we know already to be stars. An NFL general manager's job is known for its duality; one side of the coin is the side that the audience sees as full of glamor and a sense of power few executives in sports ever feel; the other side is an often cutthroat and complicated profession where those who don't accomplish extraordinary feats swiftly find themselves out of a job. Twelve general managers throughout the league are on the warpath to bring their franchise their first championship. In contrast, the other twenty GMs are attempting to acquire the next trophy for the case.

This mission has been the yearly hurdle for the Green Bay Packers since the first NFL draft in 1936. That year their first-ever draft pick was Russ Letlow, a guard from the University of San Francisco that would go on to win two championships in his eight seasons with the team, including one in his rookie season. Since the first draft eighty-seven years ago, the Packers have had many great draft picks, while some picks have failed to live up to their potential. Today we'll take a look at the five best and the five worst draft picks in Packers history over the past twenty-three drafts.

Number 1 best: Aaron Rodgers

Starting off our list is a player that needs no introduction. Drafted as the backup to Brett Favre in 2005, Rodgers first saw significant action filling in for Favre in 2007, which happened to be the former MVP's final season in the green and gold. As the team's starting quarterback following Favre's departure in 2008, Rodgers began a legendary run rivaled only by the likes of Brady and Manning during the first quarter of the twenty-first century. A four-time MVP, super bowl champion, and the all-time leader in touchdown passes by a Packer, Rodgers has solidified himself as not merely the best draft pick in Packers history but perhaps the greatest Packers player of all time.

Number 2 best: Clay Matthews III

Drafted out of USC with the twenty-sixth pick in the 2009 NFL draft, Matthews had an immediate impact on Green Bays' defense. After a strong showing at the combine, it was clear the young linebacker had elite talent but could still use a mentor to better hone his skills. Hall of Fame pass rusher Kevin Greene was hired in 2009 to bring out Matthew's full potential. Eleven seasons and 91.5 sacks later, Matthews had more than lived up to his potential finishing his career with the Los Angeles Rams but not before earning the Packers' all-time sack record with 83.5 sacks, clearly cementing himself as one of the best to ever suit up for the Packers.

Number 3 best: Davante Adams

The first non-first-round pick on this list comes in at number three, and it certainly isn't for his lack of statistics. The fifty-third pick in the 2014 NFL draft, Adams had a mediocre first two seasons in Green Bay, tallying only 929 yards receiving and four touchdowns in 2014 and 2015 combined. Following two lackluster seasons, Adams exploded onto the scene scoring ten-plus touchdowns every year for the remainder of his time in Green Bay with 8,121 yards receiving to go along with it. After eight seasons with the Packers, Adams was shipped to the Las Vegas Raiders, where his production continued to flourish, scoring fourteen touchdowns alongside 1,516 yards in his first year in Vegas. Despite no longer playing in Green Bay, Adams's contributions to the franchise can not be understated, and he should certainly receive a spot in the Packers Hall of Fame along with a few of his teammates he went to battle with every game.

Number 4 best: David Bakhtiari

Coming in at number four is the best offensive lineman the Packers have had, debatably since the likes of Forrest Gregg and Jerry Kramer from the Lombardi-led teams in the 1950s and '60s. A fourth-round pick from Colorado in 2013, Bakhtiari was the ninth tackle taken in the draft yet has had arguably the most successful career of any left tackle taken in the draft, with the exception of the Eagles' Lane Johnson. Since the 2016 season, Bakhtiari has been selected to three pro bowls and received five all-pro nods. Injuries have hampered his ability to be on the field for the last few seasons, but when number 69 has been on the field, there has been no doubt who the leader of the men in the trenches is.

Number 5 best: Jordy Nelson

Finishing up our five best is one of the most surprising but prototypical players to suit up for the Pack. Drafted 36th overall in the 2008 NFL draft, Nelson, like Adams, began his career with a few unremarkable seasons before he broke out big time in his fourth season with 68 receptions for 1,263 yards and 15 touchdowns as the Packers went 15-1 in the regular season. Nelson would go on to become one of the most prolific receivers in Packers history, finishing with 69 touchdowns and 7,848 yards receiving, putting him behind only the recently mentioned Adams and the Hall of Famer Don Hutson in career receiving touchdowns.

Honorable mentions: Bubba Franks TE(2000), Chad Clifton OT(2000), Kenny Clark NT(2016), Randall Cobb WR(2011), Josh Sitton G(2008)

Number 1 worst: Jamal Reynolds

This list is less about what the men about to be named did with the Packers and more about what they failed to do, and if anyone is worthy of starting this list off, it's the above-mentioned Reynolds. Drafted 10th overall in the 2001 NFL draft out of Florida State, the Packers received the pick after trading future pro bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and the 17th pick to the Seattle Seahawks. It wouldn't take too long to figure out who won the trade. Reynolds, a college standout for the Seminoles, failed to transfer his talents to the pros, as he would only manage three sacks and sixteen tackles over two seasons with the team. After failing to make the Cleveland Browns roster in 2004, Reynolds would never play another down in the NFL, becoming one of if not the worst draft busts in Packers history.

Number 2 worst: Ahmad Carroll

Ahhh, Ahmad Carroll Packers fans hear the name and cringe... I know I do. Drafted out of The University of Arkansas in 2004, Carroll was picked 25th overall and was expected to be paired with future all-pro Al Harris. It took less than three full seasons to figure out that would not be the case. Recording a mere three interceptions in Green Bay, Carroll would be released in 2006

and bounced around the NFL and other football leagues until 2012, retiring after winning the 2012 Grey Cup in the Canadian Football League. Almost seventeen years since his release from the team, Carroll's name still draws ire from Packers fans for a good reason. His less than three-season tenure in Green Bay is rivaled in infamy only by the previously mentioned Jamal Reynolds.

Number 3 worst: Justin Harrell

Now we come to the tale of Justin Harrell, the 8th first-round pick of Green Bay in the twenty-first century; Harrell would end up being the third major bust in seven years. Immediately signaling the pain to come, Harrell showed up to his rookie training camp overweight and out of shape. A 2010 Super Bowl-winning team member, Harrell, played in a measly fourteen games through four seasons in Green Bay and proceeded to be cut. What the fans will remember the former first-round pick for is the constantly out-of-shape and injured Harrell, having more career injuries than sacks during his time in the NFL.

Number 4 worst: Derek Sherrod

Coming off their win in Super Bowl forty-five, the Packers held the 32nd pick in the draft. In an attempt to fortify their aging offensive line, the Packers selected Derek Sherrod out of Mississippi State to be the future blindside protector of Aaron Rodgers. Unfortunately, this would not happen after breaking his leg in late 2011; Sherrod would miss the entire 2012 season and wouldn’t return until November 2013. By then, it had become clear Sherrod's time in the NFL was about over; he would be released on November third, 2014, and attempted to make the Kansas City Chiefs but failed to crack the 53-man roster.

Number 5 worst: Brian Brohm

The last name on our list isn’t necessarily on the list due to poor performance on the field or off-the-field antics, but instead, the head-scratching and needless selection of Brian Brohm, 56th overall out of Louisville. Future pro-bowl players Jamaal Charles and Cliff Avril were available, and the team still picked the more capable backup Matt Flynn in the seventh round. Brohm failed to make the roster at any point and would never suit up in an actual game for the Packers. He was then picked up by the Buffalo Bills, where he would see his first and only action at the NFL level finishing his NFL career there with 252 yards passing and a touchdown to interception ratio of 0:5. I say again, this is not an indictment of Brohm’s character nor playing ability but rather the Packers needlessly drafting a quarterback with its second pick in the draft just for Brohm to be released and out of the NFL much less Green Bay within three years.

Dishonorable mentions: Terrence Murphy WR(2005), Pat Lee CB(2008), Jerel Worthy DT(2012), Datone Jones DT(2013), Jason Spriggs OT(2016)

As you’ve seen, the NFL is a complicated, crazy, beautiful, and sometimes genuinely manic thing; therefore, the draft process should be that way too. Since picking Russ Letlow in 1936 to the most recent selections of Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt last year, the Green Bay Packers have consistently drafted some of the league's best players. However, no team or player is perfect. Because of that, we’ve seen in this century alone, players such as Aaron Rodgers and

Clay Matthews III drafted that made immediate impacts while simultaneously drafting busts such as Jamal Russell and Ahmad Carroll. Now however, is the time to leave the past behind and focus on the 2023 season, as the draft is just a week away; it is an exciting time where, although there are no guarantees, the Packers may just be able to find the next great player to wear the Green and Gold.