Everything you need to know about Packers first-round pick Jordan Morgan

There had been plenty of speculation about what the Green Bay Packers would do in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

The end result came as a surprise to some, with Green Bay selecting former Arizona offensive tackle Jordan Morgan at No. 25 overall.

So, who is Morgan? What are his strengths and weaknesses? And how exactly does he fit on the Packers' offensive line?

What can Packers expect from first-round pick Jordan Morgan?

Background

Coming out of Marana High School in Arizona, Morgan was regarded as a talented athlete. He played on both sides of the trenches, whilst also competing in shot put, discuss, and javelin. 247Sports rated him as a three-star offensive tackle recruit and he committed to his home state Wildcats over offers from a number of other schools, including USC and Arizona State.

Morgan played a limited role through his first two seasons of college football, starting a total of four games at left tackle. His opportunity as a starter arrived ahead of the 2021 season when he went on to feature in 11 games.

He followed this up with a breakout 2022 season that saw him concede a paltry 17 pressures in 10 games. Morgan elected to return for a fifth and final season in 2023 and was voted a First Team All-Pac-12 member.

Strengths

The first and most obvious thing working in Morgan's favor is his athletic ability. He is an easy mover who has ideal first step quickness. Morgan ran a 1.7 10-yard split at the Combine, putting him in the 90th percentile amongst offensive tackles.

This allows him to get real depth out of his stance and hold his own against speed rushers off the edge. It shows up in the running game too. Morgan is incredibly effective when asked to play out in space, either as a puller or when working reach blocks on wide zone runs.

Morgan also does a tremendous job of playing with a consistent wide base in pass protection. This allows him to absorb power effectively without ceding too much ground to his opponent. That sort of skill is crucial when translating collegiate offensive line performance to the NFL.

This core strength is combined with big and powerful hands. Morgan measured in with 11-inch hands, putting him in the 96th percentile amongst offensive line prospects. He knows how to use them to his advantage and plays with an aggressive demeanor in all phases of the game.

This combination of traits helps to make Morgan one of the most effective pass-protecting offensive linemen in the 2024 NFL Draft. During his last two seasons at Arizona he conceded just 31 pressures on his 920 pass-blocking snaps.

Weaknesses

One of the concerns with Morgan is his arm length. At just 32.8 inches, they rank in the ninth percentile for offensive tackles. It is very difficult to find recent examples of players who have been able to hold down a starting tackle role at the NFL level with sub-33 arms. As things stand, there are only two starters in the league who fall below that threshold.

The other worry with Morgan will be his issues with lateral quickness, specifically when asked to redirect. Whilst he has a good first step and can create good depth out of his stance, he did look a little more clunky when attempting to redirect laterally to account for stunts or to react to inside counters.

With all of this in mind, there may be a temptation to move Morgan inside to guard. The worry here will be that every single one of his 2,404 career college snaps were spent at offensive tackle and that he has no in-game experience working on the interior.

The other issue that Morgan will need to clean up is his hand placement. Whilst he does show good strength when landing his punches, he is often errant with his placement and can land too wide. This has seen him be called for 11 penalties in his three seasons as a starter.

Where does he fit with the Packers?

Morgan's easy movement skills make him a perfect fit in a Packers offense that loves to get its offensive linemen out in space. The team has run an increasing number of gap scheme concepts in recent years and he can be a real asset as a puller, whilst also excelling on their patented wide zone runs.

So, where exactly along the offensive line does he fit? When reading out the pick, Roger Goodell announced Morgan as an offensive tackle. Whether he stays there in Green Bay is a different story.

The Packers have drafted 29 offensive linemen over the past two decades. Seven of those fell below the 33-inch arm length threshold, but importantly, none of them played tackle in Green Bay.

With that in mind, we can expect Morgan to kick inside to guard in the NFL, giving the Packers some much-needed reinforcement at a position of weakness. His experience at tackle will also ensure that the Packers have a backup plan for Jordan Love's blindside, depending on how things go with Rasheed Walker in 2024.

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