For years, Green Bay Packers fans wanted the front office to draft a wide receiver in the first round for their star quarterback, Aaron Rodgers.

But, for years, the front office used their first round draft capital on defensive players or offensive linemen.

Now, of course, Jordan Love is the starter, and when asked during Super Bowl week which position he thought Green Bay would target in the 2025 NFL Draft, he said, “Knowing the Packers, probably defense.”

But he was wrong. On Thursday night, for the first time in 23 years, Green Bay took a wide receiver in the first round of the NFL Draft. Matthew Golden of Texas became the Packers’ first first-round wideout since Javon Walker, who was drafted while Brett Favre was still at the helm of Green Bay’s offense and Rodgers was playing at Butte Community College.

And while most fans loved the Golden pick, they bemoaned the selection of offensive tackle Anthony Benton in the second round and wide receiver Savion Williams in the third. Many believed that Green Bay should have taken a cornerback or edge rusher with these picks.

The Green Bay Packers Are Building Their Offense Around Jordan Love

During his end of season press conference, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said that there is a “sense of urgency,” and that it is high time Green Bay start competing for Super Bowl titles rather than just making the NFL Playoffs year after year.

Many took this to mean that he would be aggressive in the free agent market, perhaps signing a number one wide receiver, lockdown cornerback, or dominant pass rusher.

And while the Packers did sign cornerback Nate Hobbs, their other two notable free agent signings were left guard Aaron Banks and three-time Super Bowl Champion wide receiver Mecole Hardman, who barely cracked the Kansas City Chiefs’ roster.

Indeed, Gutekunst did take an edge rusher, Barryn Sorrell, in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and he did add a cornerback, Micah Robinson, in the seventh round. But he did not focus on those positions early, instead adding more offensive talent around his new quarterback.

And in doing so, his message is clear: Love is being given everything he needs to lead Green Bay back to Super Bowl contention. The defense must improve on its own.

Aaron Rodgers Had a Good Situation When He Took Over the Green Bay Packers

While many fans bemoan the fact that Rodgers never got a first round wide receiver during his time with the Packers, it is also true that Green Bay never needed to use that kind of capital on a wide receiver. When he took over as the starting quarterback in 2008, he already had proven veterans Donald Driver, Greg Jennings, and James Jones on the team. The Packers also used a second round pick on Jordy Nelson.

Additionally, Rodgers had future Packers Hall of Famer Chad Clifton entrenched at left tackle.

In other words, he walked into a situation in which he had arguably two number one wide receivers in Driver and Jennings, as well as a future number one in Nelson.

Throughout his 15 seasons as Green Bay’s starter, Rodgers benefited from the Packers focusing on getting him offensive weapons after the first round. As Nelson started to get older, Davante Adams was drafted to provide depth at the position. Of course, he developed into one of the best wideouts in franchise history.

After Clifton retired, a two-year stint with Marshall Newhouse proved that Rodgers needed better blindside protection, so the Packers found David Bakhtiari on Day Three of the 2013 NFL Draft.

The fact of the matter is that, for the vast majority of his time as the Packers starting quarterback, Rodgers had a great left tackle and at least one go-to wide receiver to work with.

Love, in his two years as the starter, has not.

Rasheed Walker has been an adequate left tackle since Bakhtiari’s knee failed him (again), but he also has not been the dominant force his predecessor was. As a result, the Packers used their 2024 first round pick on Jordan Morgan and their second round pick this year on Benton.

The message: they are going to find Love that dominant left tackle, one way or another.

When Love took over as the Packers starter, he did not have a Driver or a Jennings, two Pro Bowl wide receivers. He had a group of first and second year pass catchers. While Green Bay hoped that one of Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, or Dontayvion Wicks would step up and claim that role, none of them have yet.

And so, they used their first round pick on Golden.

The message: they are going to get Love a number one wide receiver.

Despite their public claims that they do not need a bonified number one, it is clear that they want Love to have one anyway.

As for the defense, they are counting on the players they spent premier draft capital on in the past to prove that they were worthy of that. They are now entering their second season with Jeff Hafley as defensive coordinator, so the training wheels, so to speak, are off. They are out of excuses.

The hope is a new defensive line coach in DeMarcus Covington, himself a former defensive coordinator, will improve the pass rush and take pressure off of their secondary.

That is the urgency Gutekunst spoke of. Green Bay’s current players have been put on notice. It is time to produce to the level they were expected to when they were drafted. If they cannot, well, he has already begun looking for replacements, and he started with finding his franchise quarterback some new weapons.

Hopefully, these weapons are as productive as the ones Rodgers enjoyed throughout his time with the Packers. If they are, a Super Bowl could be in the team’s future very soon.