GREEN BAY, Wis. – In case you’ve forgotten, here’s the history lesson:
The Green Bay Packers haven’t used their first-round draft pick on a receiver since 2002. Before that, it was 1988.
However, none of the Packers’ young receivers took a step forward in 2024, Christian Watson (ACL) and Romeo Doubs (concussions) have injury questions, and the free-agent market is weak.
So, perhaps Cam Mellor’s new NFL mock draft for College Football Network, in which he sent Ohio State receiver Emeka Egbuka to the Packers with the 23rd overall selection, isn’t totally preposterous.
“With WR1 skills and the versatility to excel from any alignment, his elite ball skills and unmatched body control make him a game-changer who can thrive in any offense, offering an immediate impact with his ability to dominate from the line of scrimmage,” Mellor wrote.
While he might not be a “proven … No. 1” receiver, like Josh Jacobs said the Packers need, he could be the missing piece needed for a passing attack that was inconsistent throughout 2024 and will start 2025 without Watson.
In four seasons, Egbuka caught 205 passes for 2,868 yards and 24 touchdowns, with most of that production coming over the final three seasons. In 2022, he caught 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns. In 2024, he caught 81 passes for 1,011 yards and 10 more touchdowns.
“Emeka can do so many things,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said at Big Ten Media Days. “Whether it’s on punt, punt return, he can take a handoff, he can catch a bubble, he can block, he can run a deep route, there’s not much Emeka can’t do.
“When I think of Emeka, I think about someone who’s strong. Strong as a player, strong mentally and strong in his faith. He’s somebody that’s a warrior and somebody we’re going to count on this year in big spots.”
Despite excellent production, Egbuka was somehow lost in the shuffle of Ohio State’s brilliant receivers, which included former first-round picks Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Marvin Harrison and Jaxon Smith-Njigba and future first-round pick Jeremiah Smith.
Still, he left Ohio State as the school’s career leader in receptions.
“Numbers come and go, but the way you make people feel echoes in eternity,” Egbuka said before the national championship game. “That’s a saying that Coach Hart [Buckeyes receivers coach Brian Hartline] hammered home to us since I was a freshman, so really trying to leave my legacy other than just the numbers that I put up.”
Egbuka is the No. 25 overall prospect, according to NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah. He envisions Egbuka as an “impact slot receiver” similar to Smith-Njigba. About 80 percent of his passing-game snaps in 2024 came in the slot.
Leave a Reply