Green Bay Packers

StaTuesday: Best Packers draft picks ever

Published Apr. 25, 2017 4:50 p.m. ET

There is no tried and true method in determining the best NFL players.

But pro-football-reference.com has one scientific option: Approximate Value.

Is this a perfect way to determine, say the best all-time draft picks for a certain team? Maybe, maybe not, but it seems like a decent way to go. There are flaws to this methodology, such it really begins in 1960 and perhaps you don't agree with the computations. For more on the Approximate Value you can read much more about it here.

For our purposes, we're going to use Weighted Career Approximate Value (described as "100% of the player's best season, plus 95% of his 2nd-best season, plus 90% of his 3rd-best season, plus 85% of his 4th-best season" and so on).

To determine the best draft picks in Green Bay history, we ordered it by the Approximate Value only for when that player appeared in a Packers uniform. For example, Mark Brunell has the fourth-highest Career AV of any Packers player drafted, but he appeared in all of two games with Green Bay, resulting in an AV of 0.

Another caveat: While pro-football-reference says Approximate Values have been assigned back to the 1950s, really 1960 is a more realistic beginning. Thus, that does leave out some old-time Packers greats like Paul Hornung and doesn't give the full picture of someone like Bart Starr, but this is the hand we're dealt (and besides, this does keep it to more of a "modern" football feel).

So, with that out of the way, here are the top draft picks in Packers history, according to their time spent playing for Green Bay:

Player	Pos	Year	Rd	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Aaron Rodgers	QB	2005	1	21	124	124
Herb Adderly	DB	1972	1	12	106	95
Ray Nitschke	LB	1958	3	36	94	94
LeRoy Butler	DB	1990	2	48	90	90
Bart Starr	QB	1956	17	200	90	90
Forrest Gregg	T	1956	2	20	89	87
Jim Taylor	RB	1958	2	15	84	81
Donald Driver	WR	1999	7	213	76	76
Jerry Kramer	T	1958	4	39	76	76
Josh Sitton	T	2008	4	135	78	74
Boyd Dowler	FL	1959	3	25	75	73
Clay Matthews	LB	2009	1	26	73	73
Chad Clifton	T	2011	2	44	72	72
James Lofton	WR	1978	1	6	101	71
Sterling Sharpe	WR	1988	1	7	69	69

Perhaps surprisingly, of the top-15 draft picks of all-time, only one-third were chosen in the first round. And maybe LeRoy Butler should be getting some Hall of Fame consideration, yes?

Despite our above caveat, Starr makes the list and is perhaps one of the greatest draft picks in NFL history, based on what round he was chosen. The Packers have done quite well finding gems, with four of the top 15 coming in the fourth round or later. As we'll see, Green Bay found plenty more, too.

For reference, here are the top picks in each round from 1-7, with anyone from round 8 or on (the NFL moved to a seven-round draft in 1994) included in one batch. Since quarterbacks are more likely to have a higher value, we've included the top non-QB as well, when applicable. Also, when an AFL player was the highest-rated, we've also included the highest NFL-rated draft pick in that round.

Round - Player, AV

1 - Peyton Manning, 177; Ray Lewis, 160
2 - Brett Favre, 156; Mike Singletary, 121
3 - Fran Tarkenton, 149; Terrell Owens & Jason Taylor, 119
4 - Jahri Evans, 108
5 - Tarkenton (AFL); Zach Thomas, 118
6 - Tom Brady, 164; Greg Lloyd, 93
7 - Bobby Bell (AFL), 103; Tom Nalen, 102
8-plus - Johnny Unitas, 9th round, 114; Paul Krause, 12th round, 113

Here's the top-five picks by the Packers in every round since their inception, using Career AV rather than the AV just with the player's time in Green Bay:

First Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Aaron Rodgers	QB	2005	21	124	124
Herb Adderly	DB	1972	12	106	95
James Lofton	WR	1978	6	101	71
Dave Robinson	LB	1963	14	81	66
Clay Matthews	LB	2009	26	73	73

Second Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
LeRoy Butler	DB	1990	48	90	90
Forrest Gregg	T	1956	20	89	87
Darren Sharper	DB	1997	60	89	49
Jim Taylor	RB	1958	15	84	81
Chad Clifton	T	2011	44	72	72

Third Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Ray Nitschke	LB	1958	36	94	94
Boyd Dowler	FL	1959	25	75	73
Antonio Freeman	WR	1995	90	64	60
Mike McKenzie	DB	1999	87	50	29
John Rowser	DB	1976	78	49	5

Fourth Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Josh Sitton	T	2008	135	78	74
Jerry Kramer	T	1958	39	76	76
Aaron Brooks	QB	1999	131	65	0
Lionel Aldridge	DE	1963	54	58	54
Ken Ellis	DB	1970	93	58	49
Tim Harris	LB	1986	84	58	46

Fifth Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Mark Brunell	QB	1993	118	96	0
Aaron Kampman	DE	2002	156	57	55
Max McGee	E	1954	51	57	57
Dorsey Levens	RB	1994	149	54	47
Mike Douglass	LB	1978	116	50	50

Sixth Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Matt Birk	C	1998	173	84	65
Matt Hasselbeck	QB	1998	187	88	0
Marco Rivera	G	1996	208	73	61
Ken Gray	G	1958	62	68	0
Bryce Paup	LB	1990	159	64	23
Doug Evans	DB	1993	141	56	33

Seventh Round

Player	Pos	Year	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Bobby Bryant	DB	1967	167	71	71
Adam Timmerman	G	1995	230	81	21
Jim Ringo	C	1953	80	78	49
Donald Driver	WR	1999	213	76	76
Scott Wells	G	2004	251	65	55
Mark Tauscher	T	2000	224	59	59

Eighth Round Plus

Player	Pos	Year	Rd	Pick	CarAv	DrAv
Jerry Mays	DE	1961	11	141	81	0
Bart Starr	QB	1956	17	200	90	90
Daryle Lamonica	QB	1963	12	168	76	0
Timmy Brown	RB	1959	27	313	66	0
Larry McCarren	C	1973	12	308	57	57
Mike Bass	DB	1967	12	314	56	0

Among active Packers, Jordy Nelson (67 AV) is on the precipice of joining the top-five second-round pick group while maybe David Bakhtiari (41) could make the fourth-round quintet someday.

Players like Bryan Bulaga (1st round, 43 AV), Randall Cobb (2nd, 47), Mason Crosby (6th, 22), Mike Daniels (4th, 25) and Corey Linsley (5th, 20) have a ways to go.