Green Bay Packers: Free agency shifts Packers’ draft priorities

This year’s free agency has been one of the most impactful in recent memory for the Green Bay Packers. The effect will be most obvious in regards to the NFL Draft, coming up in a month’s time.

These are the three holes that free agency really opened up on the Packers’ roster.

1. Edge Rusher

While I used to think that cornerback was the Packers’ biggest need, the signing of Davon House has made me push that to #2 on the list behind edge rusher. Though losing Micah Hyde hurts, I think House has the potential to be a much more effective outside cover corner than Hyde.

The Packers’ #1 need now? Edge rusher.

Thompson made a wise, though pricy, move by signing Nick Perry to a five-year, $59 million contract. Perry is the best edge defender on the team, and he’s proven himself worthy of his first-round pick with availability, exceptional run defense, and a strong pass rush.

But the Packers did see the departure of Datone Jones and Julius Peppers. Jones led the team in pressures last season, while Peppers notched 7.5 sacks. But both Jones and Peppers are more natural fits as ends in a 4-3 defense, which is where they’ll be playing next year in Minnesota and Carolina, respectively.

Kyler Fackrell could be part of the plan to replace these two players, but he is far smaller and weaker than both Jones and Peppers. With Clay Matthews set to roam around the defense next season, it’s clear that the Packers need to select a player in the early rounds to compete for playing time opposite Perry.

Thompson loves selecting front seven players in the first round, and it should surprise nobody if that’s the direction he goes in this year.

2. Guard

Just two years ago, the Packers had the best pair of guards in the entire NFL with Josh Sitton and T.J. Lang. Following the shocking release of Sitton at the end of last year’s training camp and the lucrative contract signed by Lang with the Detroit Lions, though, this situation looks very different.

Lane Taylor was a sufficient replacement for Sitton last year, but there’s no obvious substitute for Lang already on the roster. J.C. Tretter could have been an option, but he was a more natural fit at center and is now a Cleveland Brown.

Ted Thompson doesn’t value the interior of the line nearly as highly as he does the offensive tackle position. He has’ however, been able to find value in the mid to late rounds. Sitton, Lang and Tretter were all fourth-round picks, while Corey Linsley was selected in the fifth round.

So don’t expect the general manager to find Lang’s replacement in the early rounds. Instead, Thompson will likely select a guard to compete for the starting right guard spot with the existing roster talent (Lucas Patrick, Kyle Murphy, and potentially others) in the third to sixth rounds of the draft.

3. Running Back

Eddie Lacy signed with the Seattle Seahawks on a one-year contract, leaving the Packers with scarce options in the backfield.

Ty Montgomery has proven that he should be a starting NFL running back. But it’s still questionable whether he can hold up with a season’s worth of carries, and his pass protection left a lot to be desired last season.

Resigning Christine Michael was a great move by Thompson, as he’s a cheap insurance policy and an explosive backup.

Still, though, Thompson needs to draft at least one running back. It would be egregious to enter the season with a converted running back, a castoff from Seattle, and a fullback as the offense’s primary options out of the backfield.

It may not happen in the first few rounds, but it would be an absolute shocker if the Packers left Philadelphia without having drafted a halfback.

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