Packers land perfect Eric Stokes replacement in 2025 NFL mock draft

As things stand going into Week 15, the Packers are in the thick of a playoff fight. They still have two of their (arguably) toughest road games ahead of them – this weekend in Seattle and then the penultimate game of the year in Minnesota – and will have to play better than either the Rams or the Commanders over the final month of the year.

RELATED: Updated NFL playoff picture for Packers heading into Week 15

This is all just to say: we're quickly approaching the most exciting part of the NFL season. So with that in mind, could I interest you in one (1) single arbitrary mock draft?! That seems like exactly the thing everyone wants to read about right now.

The bad news is that I now have to talk about the mock draft. This wasn't just some unfunny rhetorical bit. The good news is that CBS Sports – who recently published the full first round mock – did the Packers a solid and found them a replacement for cornerback Eric Stokes.

CBS Sports has Packers drafting Texas CB Jahdae Barron in the first round

This may sound rich but, at times, Jahdae Barron flashes in a way that reminds me of Brian Branch; he's one of the smartest players on the field, he's always around the ball, and if you need a play, he consistently shows up. He can line up in the box, in the slot or outside, is an effective blitzer off the edge, and is an asset in the run game.

As far as comps go, Branch is a pretty good one. I have no idea how accurate CBS' scouting is, but this all sounds great. Smartest player on the field! Always around the ball! I'm sold.

The Packers could certainly use the help, too. Stokes has been bad this season: his overall grade from Pro Football Focus (53.2) is pretty awful, and it's the 4th straight year that it'll end up worse than the season before. The analytics site ranks him as the 98th best cornerback in the NFL this year (out of 118) and he's far-and-away the worst graded corner on the Packers roster. Green Bay will have to decide what they want to regarding his rookie contract 5th-year option this offseason, though it seems like everyone's kinda on the same page about what's going to happen there. But if you're a Packers fan who also loves Texas, you're in luck. I'd also love to hear more about how that happened.