The Green Bay Packers’ first two selections of the 2021 NFL Draft were cornerback Eric Stokes and interior offensive lineman Josh Myers in the first and second rounds. This offseason, the only two additions the Packers made were Aaron Banks, an interior lineman, and Nate Hobbs, a cornerback.
Adding Banks and Hobbs in free agency is a direct response to missing on Stokes and Myers. The Packers gave Banks, who had a 65.4 PFF grade (51st), a four-year, $77 million contract. Banks will slot in at left guard for Green Bay while they move their elite left guard, Elgton Jenkins, to center.
You don't like overpays? Then draft better and stay out of free agency where you pay premium prices on players their teams are willing to let go. 🤷♂️ https://t.co/qAMNEFOuTP
— Ken – Packers Cap (@KenIngalls) March 12, 2025
The Myers pick looked bad at the time, and it hasn’t gotten better the more we’ve seen him play. Furthermore, the Kansas City Chiefs selected Creed Humphrey one pick after the Packers took Myers in the second round.
Humphrey signed a four-year, $72 million extension with the Chiefs. They gave him an $18 million signing bonus, over $50 million guaranteed, and an $18 million average annual salary. The Oklahoma product is a three-time Pro Bowler and a two-time All-Pro. Oh, and he hasn’t missed a single game in his time in the NFL.
On the other hand, the Packers didn’t retain Myers. He signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the New York Jets that doesn’t guarantee he makes the roster.
A pretty stark contrast for one costly mistake.
Now the Packers are giving the money they should be paying Humphrey to Banks and shuffling their offensive line around — all because of one wrong pick in the 2021 draft.
Meanwhile, the Packers took Stokes out of Georgia in the first round. While Stokes showed promise during his rookie year, injuries derailed his career, and he signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in the offseason.
Stokes may have had first-round talent, but injury luck brought his time in Green Bay to a disappointing end. Ultimately, linebacker Isaiah McDuffie is Green Bay’s only player from that class, whom they just re-signed for two more years.
That leads to Green Bay’s disappointing free-agency cycle.
Suppose the Packers had made the right selection with Humphrey, and injuries had not wrecked Stokes’ career. They could have used their cap space to add other players in free agency instead of overpaying for a guard and adding a cornerback.
We saw the Packers miss out on a few edge rushers in free agency. Josh Sweat signed with the Arizona Cardinals, and Dayo Odeyingbo went to the Chicago Bears on deals that were all less than Banks’s contract.
Green Bay’s misfires in the 2021 draft created needs in this free-agency cycle. Had they hit on these picks, they probably would have brought in more productive free agents this year.