Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst speaks to the press at the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
GREEN BAY, WI (WSAU) – The Green Bay Packers had a busy day three at the 2024 NFL Draft, selecting players to help up their secondary and offensive lines as well as adding a new quarterback to compete for the backup job behind Jordan Love.
The full third day included the Packers trading twice, once to get Oregon safety Evan Williams and another to get Duke center/guard Jacob Monk. Williams transferred to Oregon last season from Fresno State, where, as a fifth-year senior and as team captain, he played in 12 games for the Ducks and played a total of 698 snaps, logging 62 tackles, 16 assists, and making 34 stops. As for Monk, he was also a fifth-year senior for the Blue Devils. He saw action in 13 games and played a total of 704 snaps, allowing just 10 QB hurries, 3 QB hits, and one sack while playing the majority of his snaps at right guard and the rest at center.
S Evan Williams, Oregon
5-11, 206
22 years old
Fresno State transfer
45-game starter
Over 300 career tackles
Two-time All-MWC, one-time All-Pac 12
4.59 40
Almost 500 career special teams snaps
Blocked punt and XP
Dane Brugler's No. 15 safety pic.twitter.com/SwCpVMEjhV— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) April 27, 2024
The Packers weren’t done taking Oregon State safety Kitan Oladapo, who was a fan favorite among many around the league. Scouts at NFL Draft Buzz note that Oladapo is a “willing and capable hitter in run support and closes fast to make plays against quick screens” and was first among Power-5 safeties last season in run defense grade at 91.3, according to Pro Football Focus. Green Bay used their next selection at 202nd overall to take Georgia State offensive tackle Travis Glover, who started 57 career games with 35 of those at left tackle, to compete for a backup position with second-year players such as Kadeem Telfort.
S Kitan Oladapo, Oregon State
— 6-2, 216
— 23 years old
— 39-game starter
— Three-time All-Pac 12
— 27 pass breakups, 3 INTs
— 15.5 TFLs, 6.5 sacks
— Senior Bowl
— 4.58 40
— 8.18 RAS
— Strong safety/special teams pic.twitter.com/yla9mqXHGn— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) April 27, 2024
Green Bay had a while in between 7th-round picks but then made a splash at 245th overall, selecting former Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt, who many thought was likely to be taken in the 4th or 5th round. Pratt is a mobile quarterback who has been one of the most dominant players in college football in recent years, making 44 career starts for the Green Wave and throwing for 5,171 passing yards and 47 touchdowns over the last two seasons, on top of running for 843 yards in the same period. The Packers currently have Sean Clifford backing up Love, but the Packers will likely give the former two-time All-AAC star strong consideration for the job during training camp.
The last selection was also a player many thought would go sooner, former Penn State cornerback Kalen King, after three strong seasons for the Nittany Lions. King was named to the Pro Football Focus All-Big Ten first team and received third-team All-Big Ten honors in 2023, starting all 12 games and making 29 tackles (20 solo) to go along with 1.5 tackles for loss and two pass breakups in 2023. The Packers took starter Carrington Valentine in the 7th round of the 2023 NFL Draft, so it’s likely King will get the same opportunity to stand out in Green Bay.
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