Packers Take Brian Branch-Style Defensive Back in New NFL Mock Draft

The Green Bay Packers entered the offseason with enormous questions surrounding their cornerbacks.

A new mock draft by CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson provided an interesting conundrum. With Green Bay up at No. 23, Texas’ Jahdae Barron and East Carolina’s Shavon Revel were available.

Barron is a bit undersized and perhaps more of a slot than a pure corner, but the Texas star won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back and is a proven playmaker against big-school competition.

Revel is 6-foot-3 and a pure perimeter corner, which might be the bigger priority for the Packers. He played lockdown coverage in 2023 and had two interceptions in the first three games in 2024. However, he played at East Carolina, meaning matchups against lesser quarterbacks and receivers, and is coming off a torn ACL.

Wilson sent Barron to the Packers at No. 23 while Revel went to the rival Minnesota Vikings at No. 24.

“This may sound rich,” Wilson said, “but, at times, Barron flashes in a way that reminds me of Brian Branch; he's one of the smartest players on the field, he's always around the ball and if you need a play, he consistently shows up. He can line up in the box, in the slot or outside, is an effective blitzer off the edge and is an asset in the run game.”

Branch was projected as a first-round pick in 2023 but wound up going to the Detroit Lions in the second round. It was the same story in 2024 for Cooper DeJean, who helped the Philadelphia Eagles win the Super Bowl.

Could Barron fall out of the first round, as well?

“I’ve had the conversation with a team about this very subject,” NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah said in a pre-Scouting Combine Zoom call with reporters on Thursday. “I’m higher on Barron than just about every team I’ve talked to. I love the way that he plays.

“This is what I’ve said to teams. I’m, like, ‘Look, you blew it on Branch. You let Branch fall to the second round. The league collectively blew it on Cooper DeJean and let him fall to the second round. Is this going to happen again? Are we going to let Barron fall because we’re not going to give credit to someone who is going to be on the field the whole game as someone who is going to be a nickel or going to play in that different role, he can play and be your dime linebacker, your nickel?’”

Barron played mostly in the slot in 2022 and 2023 and mostly at cornerback in 2024. He burst onto the scene in 2022, when he had two interceptions and 12 tackles for losses. He thrived outside in 2024, when he allowed a 54.4 percent completion rate, according to Pro Football Focus, with five interceptions and 16 passes defensed.

Perimeter cornerback is one of the Packers’ biggest needs. Jaire Alexander probably won’t return and Eric Stokes, Corey Ballentine and Robert Rochell are headed to free agency. Only Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine are under contract through 2025. Down the stretch in 2024, Nixon and Valentine were the corners and rookie second-round pick Javon Bullard played the slot.

“I think he could survive outside if you needed him to,” Jeremiah said of Barron. “That’s not going to be where his specialty is, but somebody that is a sure tackler, that has instincts, that takes the football away, that’s an outstanding blitzer.”

Looking at the playoff teams, Jeremiah pointed to the Eagles with DeJean, the Chiefs with Trent McDuffie and the Chargers with Derwin James as clubs that won games with dynamic slot defenders.

“I think he’s a great player,” Jeremiah said of Barron. “I don’t necessarily understand the lack of value there for him around the league, but I guess we’ll have to see what shakes out there.”

Defensive tackle Kenneth Grant and pass rushers Mike Green and Jack Sawyer and receivers Matthew Golden and Emeka Egbuka were among the players who went after Barron.