Acme Packing Company
Every Green Bay Packers fan wants two new starters at cornerback in 2026. I want Sauce Gardner and Patrick Surtain playing outside for my team, too. But it won’t happen this year because of the team’s cap situation and the fact that they’re out of a first-round pick (and will be in 2027, too). The Packers also don’t really play rookies, as even first-round picks have only started an average of six games since the draft-and-develop mantra was reestablished in Green Bay more than two decades ago.
What I think is more likely to happen this draft cycle is that the Packers look forward to 2027, when the contracts of starters Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine are set to expire and Nate Hobbs could be a potential cap casualty. I’d bet they come out of this draft with a starting cornerback (at least one that they’ll let push for a job in 2027), but I doubt he will be a 2026 starter.
So who could that cornerback (or cornerbacks) be? Well, let’s take a look at current draft projections — including who the Packers aren’t even expected to have access to, considering their first draft choice will be 53rd overall in 2026 — and Green Bay’s historical trends to avoid drinking water through a firehose. Ultimately, I settled on 9 of the top 20 cornerbacks in the class having a decent chance of being a Packer.
As of now, seven cornerbacks are expected to be drafted before the Packers go on the clock in 2026, per the consensus board. Obviously, things could look different on draft day, but do not assume these players will be available. The lowest-ranked among these seven, Keith Abney II of Arizona State, expected to be taken 10 slots before Green Bay’s second-round selection, is also notably small for the position (which matters a lot to the Packers, historically). Abney is around 5’9”-flat and 185 pounds, per sources in the scouting world.
The last thing that the Packers need is to add another nickel defender to their secondary. They already spent a second-round pick on Javon Bullard, signed Nate Hobbs to a $48 million deal last offseason, moved Keisean Nixon from the slot to outside cornerback and have another slot option in Kitan Oladapo under contract for two more years.
Both Keionte Scott and Treydan Stukes were already moved into the slot at the college level. Last season, Scott played 553 nickel snaps to just 5 at outside cornerback. Stukes played 321 nickel snaps to 5 outside cornerback snaps. I believe (not know) that the team will specifically be in the outside cornerback market, so you...
