GREEN BAY — The Green Bay Packers addressed a position of need and departed from their usual strategy of targeting defensive players in the first round by selecting Arizona offensive tackle Jordan Morgan with the 25th pick in the NFL draft Thursday night.
This was only the second time in the last 13 drafts the Packers selected an offensive player with their first pick. The other instance came in 2020, when they traded up four spots to take Utah State quarterback Jordan Love at No. 26.
Morgan is the first offensive lineman the Packers have selected in the first round since they took Mississippi State tackle Derek Sherrod with the 32nd pick in 2011.
After tearing his anterior cruciate ligament late in the 2022 season, Morgan came back and earned first-team All-Pac 12 honors as Arizona’s starting left tackle last year. Morgan, who is 6-foot-5 and 311 pounds, allowed only two sacks in 787 snaps over 12 games last season.
The Packers needed to boost their offensive line after losing much of their depth there over the past month. They released left tackle David Bakhtiari, who played just 13 games over the last three seasons because of chronic knee problems, and lost guard Jon Runyan Jr. and reserve tackle Yosh Nijman in free agency.
Last year the Packers didn’t draft any offensive linemen for the first time since 2015. They had a pair of first-year starters at tackle last year with Rasheed Walker on the left side and Zach Tom on the right.
The Packers entered the draft with 11 selections, including five of the first 91 picks. They have an extra second-round pick from the 2023 trade of four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets and an additional third-round selection after sending cornerback Rasul Douglas to the Buffalo Bills at last year’s trade deadline.
Their picks Friday include the 41st, 58th, 88th and 91st selections.
The Packers went 10-9 and reached the NFC divisional playoffs last season while having the league’s youngest roster.