Packers mock draft roundup: Cornerbacks and edge rushers

We’re just under a month away from the NFL Draft, so what better time to peruse the World Wide Web to look and see which prospects various esteemed draft gurus have in mind for the Green Bay Packers.

We’ll start with Matt Miller’s latest mock draft over at Bleacher Report, which has the Packers addressing the cornerback position with the 14th overall pick.

From Miller:

An offseason of change has the Green Bay Packers looking like a new team heading into the draft. But that new team still has holes to fill at pass-rusher, wide receiver and cornerback.

Iowa's Josh Jackson didn't help his cause with a 4.56-second 40-yard-dash at the combine, but his play shows a cornerback with ball skills, technique and toughness. He's a natural fit in defensive coordinator Mike Pettine's scheme, and he and Kevin King give them one heck of a young cornerback duo.    

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. sees the Packers going with edge rusher Marcus Davenport out of Texas-San Antonio.

From Kiper:

Cornerback is a need for Green Bay, but Davenport would be hard to pass up. He's the second-best pass-rusher in this class and a 6-foot-6, 264-pound quick-twitch athlete with a high ceiling. The Packers need to get younger at outside linebacker -- Clay Matthews will be 32 this spring -- and Davenport could be a part-time player while he gets up to speed at the NFL level. Davenport also fits as a defensive end with his hand in the dirt in a 4-3.

Sticking with the idea of a first-round edge rusher, Luke Easterling has a seven-round mock draft for DraftWire that sees the Packers selecting Harold Landry out of Boston College.

Peter Bukowski looks at the possibility of the Packers trading back into the bottom of the first round and coming away with two Day 1 selections.

Bukowski sees the Packers grabbing Marcus Davenport at 14, and then trading with the Carolina Panthers to grab Josh Jackson.

From Peter:

When the Packers made a similar move to get Clay Matthews, they have to give up well above when the traditional trade chart says they should have. But they got a Pro Bowl edge rusher. In this scenario, the Packers deal their second, third, and fourth-round picks to get here. They may have to give up more, but again, they have the picks to make this work.

Getting the top pick in the fourth and fifth round in the Randall-Kizer trade as part of a pick swap could prove eminently valuable in trades.

In this case, the Packers trade back into the first for Josh Jackson, one of the only corners in the top of the draft who fit their athletic profile for cornerbacks.

Signing Tramon Williams and apparent interest in re-signing Davon House would be a short-term boost for the secondary, but Jackson would offer a long-term solution.

NFL Media’s Lance Z has the Packers looking at a versatile athlete to join their secondary in Alabama’s Minkah Fitzpatrick:

From Lance:

The Packers are thrilled to see Fitzpatrick still on the board at No. 14. He's a versatile defensive back with the ability to handle slot coverage duties or play safety. He's productive, experienced and talented.