Packers 2022 draft preview: Should tight end be a priority?
Is tight end a position of need for the Green Bay Packers entering the 2022 NFL Draft?
Robert Tonyan, Marcedes Lewis, and Josiah Deguara will all be back this season, but is that enough? Do the Packers need an upgrade? And will they enter the draft with an eye on the future?
Up next in our Packers 2022 draft preview is a look at the tight end position.
Free agency recap
Green Bay re-signed Robert Tonyan to a one-year deal worth $3.75 million, per Spotrac. It’s a team-friendly contract for Tonyan, who is recovering from a torn ACL.
Need in the draft?
Possibly.
Even with Tonyan back, Lewis still on the roster, and Deguara entering year three, it would come as no surprise if the Packers drafted a tight end.
Draft outlook
Who is the Packers’ starting tight end in Week 1? There’s a possibility it won’t be Tonyan, who is still recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last season. Tonyan could be back in time for the start of the regular season, but only time will tell.
When he’s back to full strength, will Tonyan be able to recapture his 2020 form? He caught 52 passes for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns and was one of Aaron Rodgers’ go-to targets that year.
However, Tonyan had made a slow start to the 2021 season before his injury.
The Packers do a good job of drafting players a year or two before they are needed to replace a free agent. Think drafting AJ Dillon in 2020 a year before both Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams were set to become free agents.
Next offseason, both Tonyan and Lewis are free agents. Green Bay may decide to draft a tight end early this year, both to give Aaron Rodgers another pass-catcher to target this season, but also with an eye on the future.
Colorado State’s Trey McBride could be an early-round option. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein noted that “McBride is solid in all phases and should appeal to every team looking for a combination tight end with early starting potential.”
The Packers need to add a wide receiver, but another way they can help the offense is to draft a tight end who can help the passing game early on. McBride can do that.