Brian Gutekunst has now been the Packers’ general manager for nearly a decade. 2026 will be his ninth draft as GM, and if you needed any more evidence that you’re getting old, here’s a sobering fact: the Packers have now completely cycled two full Gutekunst draft classes on and off the roster.
Last year the Packers said goodbye to the last remnant of the 2018 draft class when they released Jaire Alexander, the first of Gutekunst’s first round picks. Then, this offseason, the Packers released Elgton
Jenkins and traded Rashan Gary, closing the book on Gutekunst’s 2019 class.
And with the ink finally dry on the transactions that sent Jenkins and Gary out of town, let’s take a minute to review the 2019 class. How did Gutekunst do in his second draft with the Packers? Here’s a pick-by-pick look back.
1 (12th overall) – Rashan Gary – EDGE – Michigan
Gary was a traits-over-production project when he was selected, but he had the benefit of slotting in as the Packers’ third edge rusher as a rookie, filling in behind free agent acquisitions Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith. Over time, he blossomed into a productive pass rusher, and after Za’Darius Smith’s departure, took over as the Packers’ primary quarterback hunter.
He was on his way to a career year in 2022 when he tore his ACL, but came back strong to start the 2023 season. Unfortunately, things tailed off after he signed a big contract extension toward the middle of that season, gradually decreasing year by year until he was getting outsnapped by rotational defensive lineman in the playoffs last season.
2 (21st overall) – Darnell Savage – S – Maryland
Another high-traits pick, Savage had eye-popping testing numbers coupled with a fairly solid college background as both a slot defender and safety. The Packers played him mainly as a deep safety, and things got off to a fairly strong start. Though his overall play was up and down, he did make plenty of plays on the ball, recording eight interceptions and 26 passes defensed through his first three seasons.
But, like Gary, his play tailed off. Even though the Packers picked up his fifth year option, he was far from a sure thing in the secondary through his final two seasons in Green Bay. He went out with a bang, recording a pick-6 in the Packers’ 2023 playoff win over the Cowboys before departing for Jacksonville in free agency. He was released by the Jaguars midway through the 2025 season and spent the rest of the year with Buffalo and Washington. He signed with the Steelers this spring.
3 (44th overall) – Elgton Jenkins – OL – Mississippi State
In some ways, Jenkins’ Packers career is a complete circle. He was a center when the Packers drafted him, though he had plenty of positional versatility in college, making starts at guard and tackle, too. The Packers initially viewed him as a backup center with guard potential, and that’s the path he walked. He took over at left guard early in the 2019 season, then moved around the offensive line from there before finally ending up back at center for the 2025 season, his last in Green Bay.
4 (75th overall) – Jace Sternberger – TE – Texas A&M
Sternberger was a head scratcher from the jump. The recipe for success with drafting tight ends is looking for guys who profiled as big, athletic playmakers at the college level. Sternberger, who had one moderately productive college season, really wasn’t any of those things. And it showed! He finished his NFL career with just 12 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown.
Worse, the Packers took Sternberger one pick ahead of Terry McLaurin, who went on to make two Pro Bowls and record five 1,000-yard seasons for the Commanders. Even Sternberger himself ultimately agreed that was a bad choice.
5 (150th overall) – Kingsley Keke – DL – Texas A&M
Gutekunst returned to Texas A&M with his next pick, adding the slightly undersized Keke to his defensive line rotation. Keke had essentially the career you’d expect as an undersized day 3 defensive lineman, only lasting three seasons with the Packers. But he does have the odd distinction of having three multi-sack games to his credit: two sacks against the Saints in 2020, two more against the Eagles that same year, and then 1.5 sacks against Washington in 2021. Considering he only played 41 NFL games, that gives him a pretty high career percentage of multi-sack games. Also, between Keke and 2022 draft pick Kingsley Enagbare, 40% of the players named Kingsley to appear in an NFL game have done so for the Packers.
6 (185th overall) – Ka’Dar Hollman – CB – Toledo
Another high-RAS player, Hollman was primarily a special teamer for the Packers, lining up for 198 snaps on teams across the 2019 and 2020 seasons. He could never really translate his athleticism to a consistent role on defense and was traded to the Houston Texans for a seventh round pick prior to the 2021 season.
7 (194th overall) – Dexter Williams – RB – Notre Dame
Williams’ most significant claim to fame was that he overlapped with then-new head coach Matt LaFleur during LaFleur’s brief stint at Notre Dame. Those connections never really amounted to much. Williams bounced between the practice squad and active roster during two stints in Green Bay, but ultimately carried the ball just seven times for 19 yards in his NFL career.
8 (226th overall) – Ty Summers – LB – TCU
Summers was one of the first versions of what’s become a roster standby for Brian Gutekunst: the special teams linebacker. Undersized but athletic, Summers played 908 special teams snaps for the Packers from 2019-21 before he was ultimately released. He didn’t ever do much on defense, but he’s never had to; he was still taking special teams reps for NFL teams in 2025, playing for both the Bears and Lions last season.
