2024 NFL Draft: Daniel Jeremiah drops 1st big board

Offensive line is clearly one of the stronger positions in this draft. Other needs for the Green Bay Packers are not as stocked.

NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah just released his first 2024 NFL Draft big board on Tuesday. In it, he highlights the great disparity between the high-end talent at some of the Green Bay Packers’ biggest needs.

Suppose you were to rank the Packers’ top four needs this offseason. In that case, you’d probably come up with some combination of running back, offensive line, linebacker and safety, with the ranking likely coming down to personal choice. Aaron Jones is in the final year of his contract with the Packers going into 2024 and backup running back AJ Dillon is set to be a free agent. The offensive line is a toss-up, due to the unknowns at left tackle and right guard going into the 2024 season, in part due to David Bakhtiari’s status. Linebacker could see an opening, as De’Vondre Campbell headlines a crop of potential cap casualties this offseason. Safety is a position where the Packers were already weak in 2023, and now last year’s starters are set to hit unrestricted free agency.

With three selections in the top 58 picks of the 2024 draft, the Packers should be able to address most of these, though, right? Not if you’re buying Jeremiah’s initial rankings.

In Jeremiah’s top 50, there were no running backs or safeties featured. Safety is a bit of a surprise, as he doesn’t seem to be a fan of Miami’s Kamren Kinchens or Minnesota’s Tyler Nubin, but the consensus draft board also doesn’t have a running back ranked in the top 50 players in April’s draft, either. For reference, the second-ranked running back on the consensus draft board is Texas’ Jonathon Brooks, who this time last year was coming off a season as the Longhorns’ third-string back and is currently recovering from a season-ending ACL tear.

Linebacker is another thin position, as Jeremiah only sees three players going in the first round-and-a-half of the draft. His third-ranked linebacker is Payton Wilson of North Carolina State, who will be 24 years old on draft day, has been in college for six seasons and has already had three season-ending injuries in his playing career, dating back to his high school days. He is also the brother of Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Bryse Wilson, for those who follow baseball.

Meanwhile, the offensive line position is absolutely loaded. Jeremiah ranked 11 offensive linemen in his top 37 players of the draft, ahead of all but one running back, linebacker and safety, combined. If you have any doubt that Green Bay will be able to find some value at the position this year, rest assured that the team will bring at least one more body into the room in April.

Below are the full rankings of Jeremiah’s top 50 players at all four of the Packers’ biggest needs:

Running Back

• None

Offensive Line

• #9, Joe Alt, Notre Dame
• #11, Taliese Fuaga, Oregon State
• #12, Olu Fashanu, Penn State
• #13, JC Latham, Alabama
• #16, Troy Fautanu, Washington
• #17, Tyler Guyton, Oklahoma
• #18, Amarius Mims, Georgia
• #31, Jordan Morgan, Arizona
• #33, Graham Barton, Duke
• #35, Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon
• #37, Zach Frazier, West Virginia

Linebacker

• #20, Edgerrin Cooper, Texas A&M
• #45, Junior Colson, Michigan
• #47, Payton Wilson, NC State

Safety

• None