As the countdown to the draft continues, teams around the league are finalizing their strategies for Day 1 in particular. Those which are flush with draft capital are generally among the ones to watch with respect to a trade up the board, but in the case of the Packers such a move may be unlikely. 
[RELATED: Packers Planning Late QB Draft Addition]
Green Bay has 11 total selections in 2024, tied for the most picks in the league this year. Coming off a surprise run to the divisional round of the postseason, the Packers’ first-rounder currently sits at No. 25. A trade-up maneuver is of course something which will be considered, but general manager Brian Gutekunst recently expressed hesitancy on that front.
“I think it’s very expensive to do that,” Gutekunst said of an aggressive move up the order (via ESPN’s Rob Demovsky). “From what you have to give up to go that far up, you’re giving up a lot. So unless it’s a quarterback or a rare, rare player, I think you have to be careful there. You guys know the numbers, what it takes to get from back in the 20s up into the top 10, you’re giving up quite a bit, and you may think at the time that it’s the right thing to do.
“But to give up the kind of picks you’re going to have to do, which are probably going to be future picks and you don’t know what’s going to transpire down the road and what you might need, it’s never really made a ton of sense for me.”
The Packers own two selections in each of the second and third rounds owing to the Aaron Rodgers and Rasul Douglas trades. That capital could help the team jump ahead of others slated to pick in the middle of the first round, or at least pull off a small move higher in the 20s. The latter type of deal is one being considered by the Buccaneers – who own the 26th selection – but Gutekunst’s comments suggest Green Bay (a team which is positioned to continue its youth movement this April) is less likely to surrender Day 2 or 3 capital.
In other Green Bay draft news, a linebacker addition appears to be in play after Round 1. ESPN’s Jordan Reid reports that finding a new starter to pair with Quay Walker (with De’Vondre Campbell having been released) “seems to be high on the priority list.” No LB prospects in this year’s class are expected to hear their names called on Day 1, but a number of options after that point will be available for Green Bay, especially if no first round trade-up takes place. Reid names Texas A&M’s Edgerrin Cooper and Kentucky’s Trevin Wallace as players who could be on the Packers’ radar.