Packer Central

Packers Take Project Pass Rusher in PFF Mock Draft

The Green Bay Packers love high-upside pass rushers. They also love defensive players from Georgia. Those facts came into alignment in two new mock drafts.

Bill Huber

Georgia defensive lineman Mykel Williams runs at pro day on Wednesday.
Georgia defensive lineman Mykel Williams runs at pro day on Wednesday. / Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – Picture this: the Green Bay Packers address their defensive line by using their first-round pick on a defender from Georgia.

That’s what John Kosko did in his new NFL mock draft for Pro Football Focus, with the Green Bay Packers selecting Georgia defensive end Mykel Williams.

“The Packers' defensive line has slowly regressed the past couple of seasons, and they address the need with one of the youngest players in the draft class,” Kosko wrote. “Williams was an excellent run defender for Georgia but lacks refinement as a pass rusher. The Packers have shown they are content to draft athletic pass rushers with raw talent, so Williams fits the mold.”

He does, indeed. Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness had modest production in college when the Packers picked them in the first round.

Williams had 4.5 sacks and seven tackles for losses in 2022 and again in 2023. In 2024, he dealt with a high-ankle sprain for most of the season. He played through it and recorded five sacks and nine tackles for losses.

“Mykel battled through that all year, and it was really tough on him because he had one of the best fall camps that I've ever seen,” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said. “The good news is all the scouts saw that too, and I think that will pop up where he gets drafted at because, for a guy that's going to get drafted really high, he wasn't 100 percent all year. But they respect the fact that he pushed through and competed.”

Williams ran an unofficial 4.73 in the 40 at Georgia’s pro day last week.

“I want to prove to them, kind of prove to myself, that I can run at a high speed basically and I'm capable of running fast enough,” Williams said afterward. “I work more lateral and change direction type stuff than I've worked in linear straight lines. I feel like some of what I'm trying to relay to them is my work ethic and my mentality about work.”

At 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds and boasting 34 3/8-inch arms, Williams has a superb physical skill-set. More than just a pass rusher, his run-stopping ability would be inviting to a team like the Packers, who made a huge leap in run defense in Year 1 under coordinator Jeff Hafley.

As was the case with Gary and Van Ness, picking Williams would be a bet on talent and work ethic.

“I feel like I'm trying to get that point across because I feel like that's what I'm different from a lot of other people in this class,” Williams said. “I feel like I've got a different mentality about work and how I go about my work. The intensity that I do it at and the focus that I have while I'm doing it, that's what I feel like is different.”

At No. 24, the Vikings added a versatile offensive lineman. At No. 28, the Lions added to their pass rush.

What about the receivers? Texas’ Matthew Golden and Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka were available. So were defensive tackles Walter Nolen and Derrick Harmon.

Click here for the full mock.

Williams also was the pick for the Packers in The Draft Network’s latest mock.

“When he turns it on, Williams is right up there with Abdul Carter as far as his ability to take over a football game,” Ryan Fowler wrote. “Take a peek back at his tape against Texas in the SEC title game, where Williams amassed six pressures, four hurries, and two sacks against the likes of Kelvin Banks Jr. and Cameron Williams under a national spotlight.”

In this mock, the Vikings took a cornerback and the Lions took a pass rusher. Texas’ Golden went to the Chargers at No. 22 but Ohio State’s Egbuka was available. Cornerbacks Jahdae Barron of Texas, Azareye'h Thomas of Florida State and Trey Amos of Ole Miss went off the board after the Packers at 23.

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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.