Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst answered questions for roughly 18 minutes after making one trade and four picks on Day 2 of the NFL draft. The Packers added two additional Day 3 picks and then drafted linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, safety Javon Bullard, running back MarShawn Lloyd and linebacker Ty’Ron Hopper.
Here’s some highlights of what Gutekunst said on Friday night:
— “We added really good football players and really good people to this roster.”
— Despite taking a linebacker and safety, Gutekunst believed he was able to stay “best player available” in each spot. Need does help break ties on players.
— Deal to trade back was done before the Eagles traded up to get Cooper DeJean. Goal was to add picks in case he wanted to trade up later in the second or third rounds.
— Packers wanted to find linebackers who can “run and hit” in the new 4-3 base. Cooper and Hopper both fit the bill. Said both will be excellent special teams players as well.
— On Cooper and Bullard: “A lot of speed. They bring a lot of speed. These guys can run and hit…We got a lot faster, which is what I wanted to do this weekend.”
— Bullard: “Very versatile, can play the nickel, can play safety…Big time leader for that football team at Georgia.”
— On Cooper: “The speed he brings to the table at the linebacker position is rare.”
— On Lloyd: “His ability to make people miss, he’s got a little juice in him. He’s 220 pounds, he breaks tackles.” Thinks he has some return ability too. “He’s pretty put together.”
— On linebackers: “Speed is the name of the game now. These guys have to be able to run.”
— On Bullard’s versatility: “He can play the post, he can come down in the box, he can jump into the nickel. He can do a lot of these, he has done a lot of things in a pro style defense. Very versatile player. We’ll probably start him at safety. He’s versatile enough to do all the things we ask back there.”
— On Lloyd’s fumbles: “We think it’s correctable.” No correlation between hand size and fumbles.
— On Georgia defensive players: “It’s a very successful program…they are getting the top talent.” Not intentional. “It’s a nice phone call asking them if they want to keep that ‘G’ on their helmet.”
— Said there are programs that if a player survives for 2-3 years, you probably know what you’re going to get. Georgia is one of those programs.
— On Hooper: “He’s really physical, he can run, and his stopping power when he takes on ball carriers is impressive…serious minded guy, really helped change that defense.” … “His stopping power as a tackler is really impressive.”
— On Bullard and Xavier McKinney: “X is a dynamic player, and we want to move him around.” Needs Bullard to do things that allow McKinney to move around.
— On Lloyd: “He’s got serious speed, very elusive, great balance. He’s a little different than the backs we have in our depth chart right now.”
— On Hopper’s speed: “We had him in the high 4.5s for us. Explosive athlete. He ran fast on tape, ran fast on the watch.”
— Believes both Cooper and Hopper can be off-ball blitzers that can affect the quarterback. Cooper had 8.0 sacks in 2023; Hopper had 9.5 sacks and 65 pressures in his career. Likes the length of both linebackers to affect passing lanes too.
— “We have a great locker room, we have an excellent cultures…all five of these guys we acquired over the last two days fit what we have going on in there.”
— Comfortable making eight picks on Day 3. “Our numbers have held up strong.” Said they have an ability to move around, maybe pick up extra picks for next year. Eight more picks would create even more competition/potential growth.
— Said he was tempted to move up a few times for players. Glad he was patient.
LIVE: GM Brian Gutekunst speaks to the media following Day 2 of the #NFLDraft.@amfam | #PackersDraft
📺: 2024 #NFLDraft NFLN/ESPN/ABC https://t.co/GOXhDMwkQI
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) April 27, 2024
