So this has been an interesting draft so far. No one expected the Packers to go with three offensive players with their first three picks this year. How these plays fit will be interesting. The Packers added another offensive tackle in Anthony Belton…or did they? (more on that later). Belton is the biggest offensive lineman they have drafted since before Ted Thompson. They also added a wide receiver/gadget player in Savion Williams. After the Golden pick on Thursday no one was expecting them to draft another receiver until maybe late day three. They are now stacked at wide receiver.
What Does This Tell Us?
Lets start with Belton first. What this tells us is they want to get bigger and more physical on the offensive line. As mentioned before Belton is the biggest offensive lineman that they have drafted in about 20 years. They are also not satisfied with their depth, especially after the playoff game against the Eagles.
With Williams it tells us they are not happy with their wide receiver room and the development of their receivers. Also that they want to create more explosive plays and getting guys in space and letting them work. They may also have wanted to bring in their own Deebo Samuel.
How Do They Fit In 2025?
There was a lot of confusion on the Belton pick because he was a left tackle only at North Carolina State and the Packers just drafted a left tackle in Jordan Morgan and of course Zach Tom has right tackle locked down. Both Gutekust and Jon-Eric Sullivan made statements that Belton could play either tackle or guard spot. All five starting spots are basically already set for 2025. So, where does he fit? likely Belton is a swing player in 2025 and provides depth in case of injury.
With Savion his likely role with Watson being out for most of the year will be as the 4th receiver and used on the occasional gadget, running back and jet sweep type plays. Basically get the ball in his hands in space and let him go to work. Although he didn’t do it in college he could also be used as a kick/punt returner because of his explosiveness and quick twitch.
What Is The Plan Going Forward
Now the biggest part of all this is what do these draft picks tell us about the Packers future plans like how they want to build this roster going forward in 2026 and beyond. Lets again start with Belton. Again the confusion with where they plan to play him wasn’t cleared up post draft with all the comments about him being able to play almost any spot on the offensive line (outside of center). Of course Gutekunst did clarify that Jordan Morgan was a left tackle. But as far as Belton this did not give us any clarification.
But one thing Gutekunst did say that gives us a view into how they see Belton fitting in with the Packers is he said that they wanted to “reset the line of scrimmage” and brought up two former Packers specifically. TJ Lang and Josh Sitton. The part about this that clues us into their plan is both Lang and Sitton played tackle in college like Belton and of course both transitioned to guard in the NFL. This tells us that this is the likely plan for Belton as well. Sean Rhyan is a free agent after 2025 and Belton still has some techincal flaws he needs to work out. Likely he takes over at right guard in 2026.
Now of course with Savion Williams the down the line plan with him and how he fits in the offense is a little muddied. Williams might have the highest pure athletic upside of any of the receivers on the roster, but he is also an older prospect. So the question is can or will he develop much more? If he can improve as a route runner and become more technically refined he could shoot all the way to the top and be the Packers #1 receiver. Of course the odds are against it, but he has a chance to develop into at least a #2/#3 receiver. The Packers decided to take the gamble and see if they can develop him.
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