With the 2025 NFL Draft hightailing it up to Green Bay, Wisconsin in the coming week, the Green Bay Packers are left needing to address a few areas on the roster that were lackluster in 2024 and that so far have less-than-certain outlooks beyond 2025.

As Lukas Van Ness looks to fulfill his development in year three, the interior defensive line looking to tap into a source of dominance, the cornerback room needing to add some more long-term top-of-depth chart options, and the wide receiver group eying up a bounce-back season with contract decisions looming, there are a few ways the Packers could go at pick 23.

However, despite all the smoke screens teams put out, as late hype builds around players, profiles are rounded out, and final boxes are checked in top-30 visits, it's becoming more clear who could be sitting atop the Packers draft board.

Derrick Harmon, DT, Oregon

The hype around Derrick Harmon has only grown stronger as the draft approaches. And rightfully so.

Flick on Harmon's tape, and it won't take more than a few plays to realize his quick first step, tenacious play style, ability to disengage off blocks, and true disruptor abilities that have locked him into hearing his name called on night one.

Harmon is the type of player who could immediately remedy the Packers lack of a real presence or any type of dominance from their interior defensive line last season. Maybe it was a factor of the previous defensive line coaching or scheme asks that held back more production from the group. But it would certainly seem the Packers have quality pieces in place at DT already with Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt, and Karl Brooks.

Regardless, by adding Harmon, he would step in as arguably the most complete player in the group with as high of an upside to generate chaos in the face of the quarterback as any pass rusher in the draft.

Harmon enters the draft not only as a stout run defender but with the most pressures generated among defensive tackles by a wide margin last season (55), 2nd second-highest pressure rate (10.7%), and his 86.3 PFF pass rush grade led all DTs with atleast 300 pass rush snaps. In true pass rush sets, Harmon's 91.2 PFF grade perfectly matches the tape, leaving no question about it: he is the most dominant pass rush force in the entire group.

Derrick Harmon go vroom pic.twitter.com/NH81WNWwrW

— Billy M (@BillyM_91) April 14, 2025

If the Packers plan to get their defensive line back on track, with help from technique guru and new defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington, they need to establish a true game-breaker up the middle.

While Clark is no sure bet to be around after this season and Wyatt hasn't secured a long-term position in Green Bay, the Packers could add Harmon to consume the left-behind snaps of TJ Slaton in year one and step into a prominent starter role for the next decade after that.

As Harmon brings a more complete game than the likes of Wyatt or Brooks, he'd battle for a big role on day one and would nonetheless play an important part in an improved Green Bay pass rush, no matter his depth chart listing early on.

As defensive tackle evolves back into an increasingly important position to get right in modern NFL defenses, with numerous examples of the immense impact of a game wrecker up the middle across the league, the Packers have to make sure they have a competitive plan in place to establish their own presence. Harmon satisfies that need and more.

Maxwell Hairston, CB, Kentucky

There's been some inherited concerns with Maxwell Hairston around his weight and ability to hold up in the NFL if he doesn't add to his frame, which, in theory, could potentially write him off the Packers' board in round one. But to say the Packers haven't deviated from their exact prospect mold or thresholds in the past would be incorrect.

Regardless, Hairston has apparently had no problem tacking on weight after a 179-pound showing at the Senior Bowl, recently posting a picture at 193 pounds. At this point, putting many size concerns to bed and validating that he's able to fill out his build.

In the case of Hairston, he's not just another typical athletic profile the Packers love to pursue. While the 4.28 40 time to lead the NFL Combine this year is a wildly impressive start to his profile, long-time draft expert Todd McShay also considers him the most prolific athlete in the draft behind the rare athletic phenom that is Travis Hunter. Unquestionably, landing him very high on the Packers' draft board for that reason alone.

Been pounding the Maxwell Hairston to the Packers propaganda since February. Talked about him with @AndyHermanNFL on why he’d be a great early pick.

All it took was 5 extra pounds and now it’s a very serious conversation. Great deets from @McShay13 pic.twitter.com/uojzf4UCki

— Austin Krueger (@AustinKrueger_) April 14, 2025

Hairston's talents also extend far beyond his athletic traits, and to simply compare him to any form of Eric Stokes is to refuse the tape and data that tell the story of Hairston's play.

What separates Hairston from his peers in this draft class is his scheme versatility. As a converted wide receiver early in his college career, he's displayed impressive competence in both man and zone coverages.

Versatility, specifically, is a trait the Packers hold dear when roster-building. Regardless of the coverage, Hairston has flexed ball-hawking skills with six interceptions in the last two seasons, a high IQ to anticipate routes well, and a knack for knowing when to jump routes.

Despite an impressive three forced fumbles across only 20 starts, Hairston needs to regain tackling confidence to return to his pre-injury tackling form from 2023. But he's always managed to punch above his weight class and never lost an uncanny ability to stay sticky in coverage with effortless fluidity to adjust.

As the draft approaches, the hype around Hairston's potential to land in Green Bay has gained late steam across connected media sources, including Nate Tice of Yahoo Sports, who mentioned "they like Hairston" on a recent episode of the NFL Daily Podcast. 

A similar situation last unfolded with Quay Walker when the momentum connecting him to the Packers suddenly spiked in the week before the draft, and Hairston just accepted an invitation to walk the stage on draft night in Green Bay.

Kenneth Grant, NT, Michigan

Kenny Clark isn't getting any younger, his contract isn't getting any friendlier, and the Packer's current slate of young defensive tackles doesn't include a true nose tackle who can maul directly over the center.

Enter Kenneth Grant.

Whereas Devonte Wyatt and Karl Brooks are more effective 3T defensive tackles who can slide out to line up over the tackle, after the Packers let Slaton walk, they have yet to replace his snaps with another monster-sized human to be a force in run defense.

With Grant, his game clocks in polished and well-rounded, with eight sacks in the last two seasons and top-of-class run defense grades in the most ground-and-pound conference in college football (Big Ten).

At 6'3, 340 pounds, Grant has off-the-charts "first guy off the bus" size and stature. And despite not posing top athletic testing numbers among the DT group, he posted freakish numbers for a human his size that also show up on game day.

I guarantee they show this clip of Kenneth Grant when he gets drafted in April 〽️

In previous 2 seasons at Michigan:

- 8 sacks
- 50 pressures
- 39 run stops
- 87.5 Run D grade in 2024

He is 6'3", 340 pounds and moves like a running back 🤯
pic.twitter.com/WFFIsD1aIr

— SleeperCFB (@SleeperCFB) February 24, 2025

Grant often makes playing a true nose tackle position look easy, with numerous examples of displacing centers immediately back into a quarterback or seamlessly winning hand fights to beat a block. 

It is also not to be overlooked that a player can draw as many double teams as Grant did and still post 50 pressures in two seasons, lining up almost exclusively over center. Which is an area where the Packers lacked any type of disruption from last season and would benefit immensely from having a game wrecker up the middle.

Especially as Clark's time in Green Bay nears its end, Grant carries about as high of an upside as imaginable from a true nose tackle and will be ready to step into a big role in his second year.

Most of the NFL's top defensive tackles hit stride into their second season, which is great news for Grant, who can polish his craft in a complementary role while also picking up most of the left-behind snaps from Slaton in obvious run-down situations where his game already excels.

Grant's name has been regularly tied to teams inside the top 20, so for him to land in Green Bay's lap at 23 would be an extremely enticing option for the Packers to fill a big gap for next season and beyond.

Don't Be Surprised If: Emeka Egbuka (WR - Ohio State), Mykel Williams (EDGE - Georgia)

Ohio State's all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards, Emeka Egubka is a very serious candidate to break the Packers' streak of not drafting a first-round receiver since 2002, especially after a recent top-30 visit. Not only because he plays the position with as much finesses, refinement, and ball skills as any great Ohio State receiver to be drafted in the first round, but because he also willingly looks to block like a madman. The Packers, more than most teams, ask a lot out of their receivers as run blockers, and rarely is there a first-round talent who brings the effort like Egbuka in that regard to complement an otherwise elite skillset and size (6'1, 200) to be as effective an outside receiver as a slot weapon. There isn't a more pure route runner in the 2025 class, and from a sure-handedness perspective, it's almost unrealistic to ask for much more. In fact, comparisons to Amon Ra St. Brown are (rightfully) common for Egbuka. For the Packers facing some long-term uncertainty around their receiver room after 2025, it wouldn't be a bad idea to bring in what would be one of the most polished receivers in any draft class with Egbuka.

Mykel Williams checks as many boxes for the Packers as anyone in this class will be able to. Albeit he draws mixed opinions on how "raw" he still is, his pop, athleticism, versatility, and build (6'5, 260) are scary to think about as he continues to develop his game after spending 2024 overcoming an ankle injury that he admitted held him back from ever playing at 100%. The Packers are prone to drafting players with a less productive final season compared to the season before (i.e., Jordan Love), and Williams may very well land in their lap due to his ankle injury that diminished what was very evidently becoming a top-10 pick lock after 2023. Even so, he still notched absolutely dominant outings, including notching four sacks in two games vs. a top-ranked Texas last season. His slippery speed rush would add a refreshing compliment to the power-focused group the Packers have otherwise built up at edge, and the speed at which Williams plays will pair with the type of player Green Bay builds their defense with (see: Edgerrin Cooper). It doesn't hurt that he's also remained effective and reliable against the run, with over an 80 PFF run defense grade each of the last two seasons.