As wild as it is to believe, the 2026 NFL Draft is right around the corner, as Round 1 of this year's festivities in Pittsburgh is set for Thursday, April 23.
The Green Bay Packers—barring some sort of blockbuster trade, of course—won't begin their draft until Round 2, as they sent their first-round selection to the Dallas Cowboys last August in the trade that brought Micah Parsons to Titletown.
As such, Green Bay goes on the clock for the first time at No. 52 overall. The Packers haven't made this particular pick very often, doing so just six times since the draft was first implemented in 1936. The last time they picked from this position was exactly two decades ago in 2006, and the selection proved to be fantastic, as they landed one of the all-time great receivers in franchise history in Greg Jennings.
Greg Jennings ranks in the top 10 among Packers receivers in receptions, yards, and TDs
Coming off a horrific 2005 campaign in which the Packers went 4-12, marking the only losing campaign of the Brett Favre era, the organization went into the 2006 draft clearly needing a wideout to pair with Donald Driver.
They had other needs as well, of course, and used their first-round selection at No. 5 overall on linebacker A.J. Hawk. They owned a pair of second-round selections, their own pick at No. 36 and also the No. 37 selection, which they'd received from the Denver Broncos in exchange for Javon Walker, who was famously the last wideout taken by Green Bay in the first round (2002) until Matthew Golden in 2025.
That No. 37 pick was ultimately traded, with the Packers sending away second- and fifth-round selections (37th and 139th overall) to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for second-, third- and fifth-round selections (47th, 93rd and 148th overall). Green Bay used that No. 47 selection to take offensive tackle Daryn Colledge.
Read where Greg Jennings ranks among the Packers' greatest wide receivers here
And the No. 36 pick went to the New England Patriots, with the Packers getting second- and third-round selections (52nd and 75th overall) in return. And at that No. 52 slot, as mentioned, they landed Western Michigan wideout Greg Jennings, who'd been named a Third-Team All-American in his final season with the Broncos after posting 98 catches, which led all FBS players, for 1,259 yards and 14 touchdowns.
As the Packers had hoped, the Kalamazoo native slid in and quickly became the team's WR2 behind Driver, tallying 45 catches for 632 yards and three touchdowns as a rookie. And his career was off and running from there, as Jennings soon became Driver's equal, with the pair ultimately becoming one of the NFL's top duos once Aaron Rodgers took over as QB1 in 2008.
Jennings ultimately spent seven seasons in Green Bay, earning two Pro Bowl selections and helping the team to a Super Bowl title in 2010, before closing out his career with two years with the rival Minnesota Vikings and one final campaign with the Miami Dolphins.
In those seven years with the Packers, Jennings made his way into the top 10 in franchise history in each of the major receiving categories, ranking 10th in receptions (425), ninth in receiving yardage (6,325), and seventh in touchdowns (53).
One wouldn't think Green Bay would go wideout at No. 52 this time around, but it's nice to know that greatness can come from that pick.