The Green Bay Packers Find Three New Toys For Jordan Love And Their Offense

Fifteen years ago, Aaron Rodgers was getting ready to take the reigns as the Green Bay Packers’ starting quarterback.

Rodgers was already surrounded by terrific weapons such as Donald Driver, Greg Jennings and James Jones. But on the second day of the NFL Draft, then-general manager Ted Thompson added wideout Jordy Nelson and tight end Jermichael Finley to that impressive stable.

Both turned into elite players and helped the Packers win the 45^th Super Bowl.

Today, Jordan Love is getting ready to take over as Green Bay’s new starting quarterback. And on Friday night, general manager Brian Gutekunst mirrored Thompson’s approach and gave his new quarterback a plethora of pass catchers on the second day of the draft.

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If Gutekunst’s selections come close to matching the success that Thompson’s did, Green Bay’s mediocre offense could quickly become dynamic.

Gutekunst selected Oregon State tight end Luke Musgrave in Round 2 with the 42^nd overall selection. Gutekunst then traded back twice, held his breath, and took Michigan State wideout Jayden Reed with the 50^th overall pick.

Finally, Gutekunst went back to the tight end tree and took South Dakota State’s Tucker Kraft midway through the third round.

While Nelson and Finley needed a year, or so, to break out, Musgrave, Reed and Kraft will be given every chance to be big-time contributors from the start.

“I think any time you’re going to have a quarterback that’s under center for the first time, you want to surround him with playmakers,” said Jon Eric-Sullivan, Green Bay’s co-director of Player Personnel. “So that was definitely part of the conversation. It fell to us that way. We stayed true to the board and it was exciting to get the opportunity to surround Jordan with … guys we really like.”

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After ignoring offense in Round 1 and taking Iowa edge rusher Lukas Van Ness, the Packers desperately needed to add pass catchers on Friday.

Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs — Green Bay’s projected starting wideouts — have a combined 83 career catches. The top two tight ends — Josiah Deguara and Tyler Davis — have combined for 47 career catches.

That’s not exactly a Dream Team for Love to go to battle with.

But his group of playmakers looked a whole lot better Friday night than it did when the day began.

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Musgrave is a player whose production hasn’t matched his immense potential. The Packers are optimistic that’s about to change, though.

Musgrave (6-6, 253) was a part-time starter in 2020-‘21, then played just two games in 2022 when he needed MCL surgery.

Musgrave finished his career with 47 catches for 633 yards, shined at the Senior Bowl, then received medical clearance from doctors during the NFL Combine. He followed that by running a blazing 4.61 40-yard dash at the Combine.

“I did the Senior Bowl probably against the vision of maybe doctors. It might have been a little soon, but I was ready to get into football and I wanted to play football and I love football,” Musgrave said. “That was kind of the longest I’ve been away from the sport since college. So it was important for me to just play in the game, and obviously perform well and do well at the combine.”

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Since the Super Bowl-era began in 1967, the Packers have taken just three tight ends higher than Musgrave. Rich McGeorge was the 16^th pick in 1970, Gary Lewis was pick No. 35 in 1981 and Bubba Franks went 14^th overall in 2000.

So expectations will be sky high for Musgrave from the get-go — and the Packers certainly believe he’ll meet them.

“We feel like where he is now and where he can go is exciting,” Sullivan said of Musgrave. “There’s a lot of growth to be had there and think he’s going to come in and help us right away and think he will only grow and get better as time evolves.”

The Packers feel the same about Reed, who was highly productive at Michigan State.

Reed (5-11, 187) caught 114 passes for 1,662 yards and 15 TDs his final two seasons at MSU. He also returned a pair of punts for touchdowns and caught a game-winning pass against Wisconsin in overtime last season.

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Reed could be a dynamic slot man, but also has the ability to play outside. In addition, the Packers rated him as the best return man in the draft.

“You guys will be excited to see me back there,” Reed said of his return skills. “That’s what I do right there. That’s what helps me, that’s what adds value to my game, and just get ready to see a lot of that. Get ready to see a lot of house calls.”

The Packers have had remarkable success with second round wide receivers under general managers Thompson and Gutekunst.

Greg Jennings. Jordy Nelson. Randall Cobb. Davante Adams. Christian Watson.

They were all plucked in Round 2 and either had tremendous success or are in the middle of it.

Can Reed be next?

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“The name of the game is football,” said Reed, who celebrated his 23^rd birthday Friday by becoming a Packer. “I’m a football player. I’m not just a receiver. I can do a number of things on the football field. I can play outside, inside. I can return kicks, I can run down on gunner. That’s where I add value that I can do so many different things to help the team win. When you’re multi-dimensional that definitely adds value instantly.”

Kraft (6-5, 255) was a big fish in a small pond at South Dakota State. Now he hopes to make a major splash in Green Bay.

Kraft (6-4 ½, 254) runs well enough (4.73) and blocks extremely well. He also tied for the most bench press reps of 225 pounds in this year’s tight end group (23).

Kraft, who comes from a rural, farming community, had several opportunities to leave South Dakota State for lucrative NIL deals, including one at Alabama. Instead, he stayed and finished his three-year career with 99 receptions for 1,218 yards and nine TDs.

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“He is a powerful runner,” one scout said. “He makes people tackle him. He’s not the sharpest guy, so he needs some individual coaching. But he’s got real potential to become something in a year or so.”

Love and the Packers needed a night like Friday.

Green Bay ranked 17^th in total offense last year and 14^th in scoring — and that was with a Hall of Fame quarterback. The Packers also lost wideout Allen Lazard and tight end Robert Tonyan in free agency, and don’t expect veterans Randall Cobb or Marcedes Lewis back.

On Friday, they needed to get younger, faster and deeper.

Check, check, check.

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Now, Gutekunst will cross his fingers and hope his Day 2 picks produce like Thompson’s did back in 2008.