An eventful week in Dallas is in the books following the conclusion of the Shrine Bowl, and after spending multiple days at practice before a 30-hour travel day(s) back home, I have circled a handful of 2026
NFL Draft prospects for Green Bay Packers fans to keep an eye on.
Practices are a great opportunity for media to get an up-close and personal look at prospects while talking to scouts and coaches about who is standing out to them. Those takeaways, plus the practice itself, have helped a few prospects generate some legitimate buzz ahead of the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
Here are a handful of names for Packers fans to monitor.
Darrell Jackson Jr., DT, Florida State
Believe me when I say that I spent the majority of my time in Dallas trying to watch nose tackles. Unfortunately, there were few true noses at the event, and one of the top ones to monitor in Cincinnati’s Dontay Corleone exited early due to an ankle injury.
The good news is that Florida State’s Darrell Jackson Jr. might be someone for Packers fans to keep an eye on. Easily the most physically imposing DL prospect at the Shrine Bowl, coming in at 6’5” and 328 pounds, Jackson also has 35-inch arms and was easy to spot all week.
Jackson gives great effort and has better stamina to stay on the field compared to most nose tackles, while doing a great job of utilizing his length to get extended and using his excellent upper body strength to control the point of attack. He’s not much of a gap-penetrating nose, but I would wholeheartedly trust him to plug up rushing lanes while giving at least a bit of juice as a pass rusher, thanks to some solid hand usage to disengage.
Brian Parker II, C, Duke
If the Packers can’t re-sign Sean Rhyan, then center quickly becomes one of the bigger needs on the roster, assuming that the team parts ways with Elgton Jenkins as a cap-saving move.
Brian Parker II might vault himself near the top of this year’s center class despite playing right tackle for the Duke Blue Devils. He showed up to the Shrine Bowl and made it abundantly clear that he wanted to compete exclusively at center to show he could kick inside.
That was a smart move by Parker. The snaps were solid for the most part, and he did a great job of stonewalling interior defenders consistently in one-on-ones. He also showed the ability to reach some tougher landmarks on reach blocks in team periods, and stacked days on top of each other throughout the week.
A strong combine could put Parker out of range for the Packers with their second-round pick, but he’s still someone to keep an eye on depending on Green Bay’s offseason plans at center.
Mason Reiger, EDGE, Wisconsin
Plenty of Wisconsin-based Packers fans are probably already aware of Wisconsin Badgers EDGE Mason Reiger, but the Shrine Bowl was my first exposure to him. He might have been the most pleasant surprise of any player at the event.
On top of a really strong week of practice, Reiger earned Defensive MVP honors during Tuesday night’s game after recording a pair of sacks and a forced fumble in the scrimmage. Those reps, along with his tape, show an agile and lengthy pass rusher who can generate pressure in a variety of ways.
EDGE might end up being an underrated need for this defense, depending on what happens with the likes of Rashan Gary and Kingsley Enagbare. The team might want to learn more about a pair of 2025 rookies in Barryn Sorrell and Collin Oliver, but if the coaching staff isn’t totally sold on those two, then a player like Reiger could bring some legitimate pass-rush juice while also being a reliable run defender.
Aamil Wagner, OT, Notre Dame
The Packers have started to steer away from their typical OL evaluations, opting instead to get bigger in the trenches and prioritize size over agility.
If they go back to their old ways, then Notre Dame tackle Aamil Wagner needs to be near the top of their list as a developmental swing tackle.
Scouts and media I spoke with in Frisco were very high on Wagner’s potential, and it’s easy to see why. His tape shows a player who is still working on technical refinement, but he has tons of length, fluidity, and movement skills to cover tons of ground in pass pro. Even when he’s beat, his length allows him to push defenders around the pocket to keep the QB clean.
Wagner’s 34 and 5/8” arms give him legitimate length, but he’s barely over 300 pounds, and that might not be what the Packers are looking for in this current era of the offense. That shouldn’t be a reason not take Wagner in the third or fourth rounds to serve as a potential swing tackle or Jordan Morgan replacement if the former first-round pick doesn’t live up to the hype at left tackle in 2026.
