The Green Bay Packers have Super Bowl aspirations, but they need a home-run offseason to get there.
Better injury luck will help, but you can't count on that. Even without a first-round pick, general manager Brian Gutekunst needs to find ways to upgrade at several positions of need.
Gutekunst has struck gold with various recent draft picks. Edgerrin Cooper and Evan Williams are rising stars. Matthew Golden can reach that level with more opportunities. But the Packers will only take the next step if they finally pay attention to their most important areas of concern.
The positions the Green Bay Packers must strengthen to become Super Bowl contenders
1. Offensive line
Disastrous offensive line play destroyed the Packers' playoff hopes at Soldier Field. Despite leading by 18 points at halftime, the Chicago Bears took control at the line of scrimmage in the second half. Green Bay had only one second-half rush longer than two yards (it went for six), and Jordan Love had precious little time in the pocket.
Left tackle Rasheed Walker and guard/center Sean Rhyan are free agents. Elgton Jenkins and Aaron Banks are potential cut candidates.
The New England Patriots just showed the world how struggling along the line can ruin your Super Bowl dreams. The Packers also learned the hard way. They need significant reinforcements up front.
2. Cornerback
Death, taxes, and the Packers ignoring the cornerback position.
Gutekunst said they don't require "wholesale changes" at the position, which is an alarming way to begin the offseason. Hopefully it was just coachspeak, but he has made similar comments in recent offseasons and meant it.
In 2023, the Packers passed on Christian Gonzalez, now a Pro Bowler and All-Pro with the Patriots. A year later, he turned down the opportunity to trade up a few spots for Quinyon Mitchell or to draft Cooper DeJean. Both became stars for the Philadelphia Eagles.
According to Pro Football Reference, Keisean Nixon allowed a passer rating of 105.1 this season. Carrington Valentine was even worse (121.2), and Nate Hobbs wasn't much better (111.1). Cornerback has to become a priority.
3. Defensive line
Gutekunst can be forgiven for trading Kenny Clark a week before the season. It's not every day that an all-world, generational pass-rusher like Micah Parsons becomes available. It's harder to justify letting T.J. Slaton walk in free agency and doing little to bolster the interior defensive line.
Devonte Wyatt became an irreplaceable starter at defensive tackle, but he was on his own.
That needs to change. Teams ran all over the Packers after they lost Wyatt and Parsons for the season. The Baltimore Ravens rushed for 307 yards and four touchdowns against them. Green Bay could also generate precious little interior pass rush. Wyatt had four sacks in 10 games, but the only other contributions from interior linemen came from Warren Brinson and Karl Brooks, who had half a sack each.
With new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon likely bringing a heavy dose of Cover 4 looks to Green Bay, bolstering the defensive line is a top priority.
4. Edge-rusher
The Packers recognized the need to improve their pass rush with their blockbuster trade for Parsons. But that only partially fixed a position they've gotten wrong for far too long.
Edge-rusher is less of a priority than the other positions we've discussed, but only slightly. Parsons can't do it alone, especially as he will likely miss the start of the 2026 season.
Kingsley Enagbare is a free agent, while Rashan Gary is a cut candidate after failing to make a sack in the final nine games of the regular season. It puts a lot of pressure on Lukas Van Ness, who showed promising signs but failed to truly take that next step in 2026. The Packers will also need second-year jumps from Barryn Sorrell and Collin Oliver, but they should temper expectations for the Day 3 picks.
Championship defenses require suffocating pass rushes. The Packers need to find a true No. 2 to partner with Parsons. Khalil Mack, anyone?