The Green Bay Packers only added six players in the 2026 NFL Draft. GM Brian Gutekunst traded up twice to select specific players, which meant the team gave up two of its initial eight picks. Despite the small number of players added, there are still returning players who will be adversely affected by the new draftees. They may now have to fight for their starting jobs or in some cases, even their roster spots. Here are five Packers players who face bigger challenges after the 2026 NFL Draft.

Five Packers Who Face Bigger Challenges After the 2026 NFL Draft, Number Five: OL Jacob Monk

Before this year’s draft, Jacob Monk was considered the top backup along the interior offensive line. He no longer holds that distinction after the Packers added Jager Burton in the fifth round. Burton played both center and guard in college.

While Burton may not be ready to be the top backup along the interior offensive line from day one, he will be competing with Monk moving forward.

In two seasons with the Packers, Monk has played only 57 total snaps on offense. He now faces more competition for his job as the team’s swing interior offensive lineman.

Number Four: CB Keisean Nixon

The situation for Keisean Nixon is different than Monk’s. Nixon will still enter training camp as team’s number one cornerback. But the addition of Brandon Cisse in the second round and to a lesser extent Domani Jackson in the sixth round, makes it more likely that 2026 will be Nixon’s final season in Green Bay.

Nixon will enter the final year of his current contract in 2026. He will also turn 30 next June. The Packers don’t give many players third contracts. Gutekunst usually reserves those for a few elite players who are integral parts of the team. Nixon just doesn’t reach that level of play, at least not as a cornerback.

Cisse was considered a steal when he fell to the Packers at 52. He has the potential to become a starter after a little seasoning. Nixon will likely be departing Green Bay after the 2026 campaign.

Five Packers Who Face Bigger Challenges After the 2026 NFL Draft, Number Three: DL Devonte Wyatt

Devonte Wyatt enters the 2026 season playing on his fifth-year option. The Packers already signed Javon Hargrave as a free agent and then traded up in round three to add defensive tackle Chris McClellan with the 77th overall pick.

The thing that both Hargrave and McClellan can do is rush the passer from the interior of the defensive line which is the strength of Wyatt’s game.

Wyatt will turn 29 in March, and the Packers may not feel he’s worth bringing back on a multi-year contract at such a high salary. Wyatt will have to stay healthy and be productive this season to have a chance to return in 2027.

Number Two: CB Carrington Valentine

Like Nixon, Carrington Valentine will be impacted by the addition of two rookie cornerbacks in this year’s draft. Valentine has more to lose right away. He was already set to battle free agent addition Benjamin St-Juste for the starting job opposite Nixon this season, now he has to also battle Cisse.

Valentine will likely see a smaller role on defense this season barring injuries or a big jump forward in his performance in training camp and during the preseason. He is also entering the final year of his current contract and will need a solid performance to return to Green Bay after this season.

Five Packers Who Face Bigger Challenges After the 2026 NFL Draft, Number One: K Brandon McManus

The Packers didn’t just use a draft pick on kicker Trey Smack on Saturday they traded away two picks in the seventh round to move up to get him.

Incumbent Brandon McManus struggled through an inconsistent and injury-plagued 2025 campaign. He hit just 50 percent of his kicks from 40 yards out or more. In the modern NFL, the expectation for kickers is to be almost automatic inside 50 and to hit more than half their kicks from 50 yards out or more.

While drafting a kicker doesn’t guarantee success, the odds are that any tie between McManus and Smack will go to the rookie because of the investment the team made in him. McManus faces an uphill climb to keep his job in Green Bay this season.

 

 

 

Follow Gil Martin on Twitter @GilPackers

Click here for more great Packers coverage

Check out our YouTube channel here