Packers and ‘The Beast’: Seven NFL Draft hidden gems to watch for Green Bay

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While there has been online uproar in recent years about Brian Gutekunst’s ability to strike gold in the first round of his seven NFL Drafts in charge, there’s no denying the Green Bay Packers general manager knows how to find hidden gems on Day 3.

He’s selected reliable starters or important role players such as offensive lineman Jon Runyan Jr., linebacker Isaiah McDuffie, right tackle Zach Tom, left tackle Rasheed Walker, wide receivers Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks, safety Evan Williams and cornerback Carrington Valentine, among others, in rounds 4-7 of the last five drafts.

Would fans like his hit rate on his most premium picks to be higher? It seems that way, and understandably so. But even that isn’t entirely abysmal, with cornerback Jaire Alexander, defensive end Rashan Gary and quarterback Jordan Love impressive notches on the first-round rap sheet (safety Darnell Savage Jr., cornerback Eric Stokes and, so far, defensive end Lukas Van Ness balance out that success rate).

Impact players are impact players, however, no matter where they’re found. Plenty more diamonds in the rough will hear their names called on Saturday in Green Bay a couple of weeks from now.

With the help of “The Beast,” the exhaustive draft guide authored by The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, let’s identify seven hidden gems in the 2025 NFL Draft who may be Gutekunst’s next impressive late-round discovery.

Dont’e Thornton Jr., WR, Tennessee

If the Packers don’t land a wide receiver in, say, the first two rounds who might one day become a true No. 1, they at least need a big-play threat to help compensate for the loss of Christian Watson. Even if they take an Emeka Egbuka or Matthew Golden in Round 1, they might still target a specialist-type player in the later rounds since Watson, Green Bay’s top field-stretcher, will miss at least half of the 2025 season recovering from a torn ACL. Head coach Matt LaFleur said at the league meeting that receivers Jayden Reed and Bo Melton, among others, can stretch the field with speed in place of Watson. And they can, but that was Watson’s specialty.

That’s what Thornton does. He’s 6 foot 5, ran a 4.3 40 (second fastest among wide receivers in the draft) and led the FBS with 25.4 yards per catch last season. Brugler projects him as a fifth- or sixth-round pick.

“Thornton lacks versatility,” Brugler wrote. “But his gliding speed and ability to find another gear downfield could make him a big-play threat in a specified vertical role.”

Dont’e Thornton Jr. with a 4.30U!

HE’S 6’5 by the way! 🤯

(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/sSLmT3iqq0

— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) March 1, 2025

Korie Black, CB, Oklahoma State

If the Packers don’t bring back Alexander, their top three returning cornerbacks will be a 2019 undrafted player (Keisean Nixon), a 2021 fifth-round pick (Nate Hobbs) and a 2023 seventh-round pick (Valentine). There’s talent to be found at the position late in the draft or even after it, and the Packers need depth after Stokes, Robert Rochell and Corey Ballentine all signed elsewhere in free agency.

Black stands a shade over 6 feet tall and is projected as a fifth-round pick by Brugler. His team-leading 12 passes defensed and three interceptions were a rare bright spot on an underwhelming Oklahoma State defense.

“Black is a rangy cover man who can work underneath routes in zone or squeeze receivers outside in man-to-man,” Brugler wrote. “Nuanced route runners cross him up, though, and he lacks the elite recovery agility to easily get back on track. Overall, Black needs to improve his eye discipline to better stay in phase, but NFL teams will like his physical attitude and length to match up in coverage or as a tackler.”

Esa Pole, OT, Washington State

David Bakhtiari, Corey Linsley, T.J. Lang, Josh Sitton, Tom and Walker are just a handful of offensive linemen the Packers drafted on Day 3 who turned into reliable starters or better. They don’t need starters, but Gutekunst will never bypass an opportunity to bolster the depth on his offensive line.

Pole told The Athletic’s Matt Barrows that he has an upcoming pre-draft visit to Green Bay. Brugler projects him as a sixth- or seventh-round pick despite Pole not playing organized football until 2021. He didn’t allow a sack last season.

“A former basketball player, Pole moves with light feet for a human his size,” Brugler wrote of the 6-7, 319-pounder. “That talent is evident in pass protection, an area in which he took a major jump between his junior and senior seasons. He shows the basic understanding of how to use his hands in all areas, but the muscle memory is still new as he figures out how to counter or recover from compromised situations.”

Rylie Mills, DT, Notre Dame

For all the offseason talk about the Packers needing an edge rusher, they might need an interior pass rusher even more (T.J. Slaton signed with the Bengals in free agency). Gutekunst’s comments at the league meeting make it seem like he’s content with his edge rusher group, anyway, with the GM saying, “We can do everything we need to do through the players we have on our roster right now.”

Mills missed the last three games of Notre Dame’s run to the national championship with a knee injury, but he still led the team in sacks and tackles for loss and can play inside or on the edge at 6-5 and 296 pounds. Brugler projects him as a fourth- or fifth-round pick who deserves a spot in an NFL rotation.

“As a pass rusher, Mills plays a tad high and tight and makes himself a large target, but he launches out of his stance with purposeful hands to generate pressure using various push-pull maneuvers,” Brugler wrote. “In the run game, he flashes the ability to stack and shed at the point of attack, but he too often gets lost in traffic and is late to rally.”

Every Rylie Mills sack (17.0) 👀💪

The best of @ryliemills99 ➡️ https://t.co/tBCRILE4Eh#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/kdxRT6F6c5

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) March 21, 2025

Riley Leonard, QB, Notre Dame

The Packers don’t need a starting or backup quarterback, but Gutekunst likes drafting and trying to develop at the position. Malik Willis has one year left on his rookie deal and will likely price himself out of Green Bay and potentially compete for a starting job elsewhere next year. Gutekunst might want to backload the quarterback room this month and develop a Day 3 pick for a year before he takes over as Love’s backup in 2026.

Leonard’s offensive coordinator at Notre Dame was Mike Denbrock. When Denbrock was Notre Dame’s offensive coordinator in 2014 before stops at Cincinnati and LSU, who was his quarterbacks coach? None other than Matt LaFleur. That relationship played a role in the Packers drafting tight end Josiah Deguara out of Cincinnati in 2020, and perhaps Denbrock could vouch for another mobile backup quarterback in Green Bay.

“Leonard has an interesting upside because of his athletic passing tools and elite makeup, but it will take time for him to develop NFL-caliber field vision and pocket rhythm,” Brugler wrote. “He projects as a backup in a scheme that leverages his mobility.”

Ahmed Hassanein, Edge, Boise State

It’s understandable for fans to detest the Packers using a first-round pick on an edge rusher who takes years to develop, especially with their proximity to NFC North contention. Supporters of the team might be scarred, too, from how long it took Gary and Van Ness to break out (in Van Ness’ case, the Packers are still waiting). Drafting a project with low risk and potentially high reward on Day 3 is more understandable and the Packers could always use more bodies at the position to keep everyone fresh.

Hassanein, the top-ranked CrossFit athlete in Egypt as a teenager, seems to be the definition of a prospect who might take a couple of years to blossom. As a 22-year-old Day 3 pick, that wouldn’t be a bad thing for Green Bay.

“Hassanein is an easy player to appreciate because he is productive (115 pressures over the past two seasons were third most in the FBS over that span) and his nonstop motor stresses blockers,” Brugler wrote. “However, his run-game awareness and immature pass-rush sequencing are underdeveloped. The missed tackles are bothersome, too. … Given his meager football experience, NFL teams are intrigued by his untapped upside.”

Oronde Gadsden II, TE, Syracuse

Tucker Kraft is Green Bay’s clear-cut No. 1 tight end of the future, but he needs a 1B to his 1A or even a reliable 2. Largely because of injuries, Luke Musgrave hasn’t yet become that after a promising start to his rookie season. This will be a vital year for the 2023 second-round pick, but it might be worth taking a flier on another intriguing tight end this year in case Musgrave never amounts to what we thought he would for a Packers passing attack that needs as many aerial threats as possible.

Gadsden, 21 years old and projected as a fourth-round pick, ran the second-fastest 40 of any tight end for whom Brugler has a first-through-seventh-round grade. He caught 73 passes for 934 yards and seven touchdowns last season en route to first-team All-ACC honors and offers intriguing positional versatility, though he’ll have to improve as a blocker if he wants to get on the field in a LaFleur offense.

“Gadsden was a joker tight end in offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon’s pro-spread system (58.3 percent of his snaps aligned in the slot, 32.6 percent inline, 8.7 percent wide in 2024),” Brugler wrote. “Gadsden is an athletic pass catcher with the adjustment skills and catch radius to be a possession target in an NFL offense, although his average frame and marginal ability to sustain blocks create questions about his role. He projects best as an F tight end who can be flexed across the formation and should continue to get better.”

(Top photo of Dont’e Thornton Jr.: Angelina Alcantar / Imagn Images)

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