Packer Central

100 Days of Mocks: Packers Pick Versatile Safety in ESPN Mock

The Green Bay Packers could have a huge void at safety, depending on what happens in free agency. That void is filled by ESPN.com’s Matt Miller.

Bill Huber

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GREEN BAY, Wis. – Noting Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst is “allergic” to using a first-round draft pick on a receiver, ESPN.com’s Matt Miller went with Alabama defensive back Brian Branch for the team’s first-round pick in his Monday morning mock draft.

“Branch is exactly what Green Bay misses in the secondary,” Miller wrote in part of his summation. “He's highly instinctive on the football field and has handled slot, outside corner and safety duties for Nick Saban, which is a pretty high honor. Branch is an impressive all-around football player at 6-foot and 194 pounds, which is why he grabbed two picks, had seven pass breakups, recorded three sacks and ended up with 89 tackles (12 for loss) in 2022.”

Safety could be a major need for the Packers. Three of their top four at the position are headed to free agency with steady starter Adrian Amos, key backup Rudy Ford and special-teams standout Dallin Leavitt. While starter Darnell Savage will return under the fifth-year option, he is coming off a dismal season.

We hit on Brooks earlier in this series. He earned first- and second-team All-American honors in 2022. Along with ranking third on the team in tackles, he was second on the team in tackles for losses. In the final game of his career, against Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl, Branch dominated with one interception, one sack, four tackles for losses and a career-high 12 tackles.

In each of Branch’s three seasons, most of his snaps came from the slot.

“He is so sneaky athletic that people don’t realize it,” linebacker Henry To’oto’o said about Branch’s versatility. “He is one of the key guys on our defense that makes so many plays. I don’t think he gets the recognition that he deserves. We appreciate BB, and if you are listening BB, ‘we love you, and keep doing your thing.”

He is a superb tackler, with only three misses in 2022.

“I take a lot of pride in it,” Branch said of his ability to wrap up defenders. “Coming from high school, that’s one area where I wanted to focus on in my game. I think I've come a long way in that area.”

Every NFC North team went defense in Miller’s mock.

100 Days of Mocks

Starting Jan. 17, when there were 100 days until the start of the NFL Draft, we started our mock-worthy goal of 100 mock drafts in 100 days. Here’s the 100-day-countdown series.

81 days: Aaron Rodgers traded in three-round mock

82 days: Seven mocks, including NFL.com

83 days: Two pass-catchers in first-round mocks

84 days: Aaron Rodgers traded for extra first-round pick

85 days: PFF picks a pass rusher

86 days: Tight end in NFL Draft Bible Mock

87 days: Packers trade back, get extra second-rounder

88 days: Sorry, vacation day.

89 days: A “Eureka!” moment in two-round mock

90 days: Playmaking cornerback at PFF

91 days: Three defensive backs in seven-round mock

92 days: Kiper takes a tight end

93 days: Safety first for Bucky Brooks in NFL.com mock

94 days: College Football News mocks Mayer

95 days: Two firsts if Rodgers is traded

96 days: NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah goes back to Georgia

97 days: This pick would break a long drought

98 days: Stud tight end

99 days: Trading for outside linebacker

100 days: First-round quarterback?

More Packers Offseason News

Davante Adams makes his push for Aaron Rodgers official

Huge flip in Aaron Rodgers’ next-team odds

New Rodgers suitor emerges at sportsbook

Two Packers make list of top 100 free agents

One word shifts Rodgers’ next-team odds

Packers’ opponents have quarterback questions, too

Packers depth charts without free agents

Top five in The Players’ All-Pro Team

Packers must consider Aaron Rodgers’ big-game failures

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.

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