On Thursday, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst stated several times that the team is hoping to be aggressive in the offseason, but that they do not have plans on bringing in over-the-hill players to a roster that already returns 46 players from their 2024 53-man roster and injured reserve. Essentially, Gutekunst made the point that the team is interested in Xavier McKinney or Josh Jacobs types, young players who would be multi-year swings for the club, rather than short-term rentals.

That, generally, tracks with the other big signings the Packers have made under Gutekunst, not just in 2024. When Green Bay flooded the free agent market with money for Preston Smith, Za’Darius Smith and Billy Turner in 2019, those players were all 28 years old or younger, too. With that in mind, let’s take a look at which young (28 years or younger) free agents are expected to hit the open market beyond quarterback, running back, tight end and safety, positions that the Packers will most likely avoid in free agency.

We’re going to take you position-by-position, analyzing what the young players in these groups can bring to the table in Green Bay and whether there are some Packers ties or injury concerns with these players. The rankings by players’ names signify where Pro Football Focus has them ranked in the free agent class.

Receivers

• #1 Tee Higgins (CIN)
• #36 Marquise “Hollywood” Brown (KC)

Just about every Packers fan has kept tabs on Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins ever since Green Bay made the decision to take quarterback Jordan Love over Higgins in the 2020 NFL draft. In his five seasons in the league, Higgins has posted 330 receptions for 4,595 yards and 34 touchdowns, despite splitting passes with receivers like Ja’Marr Chase and Tyler Boyd. If the 25-year-old hits the open market, expect him to have a lot of suitors. The only question is whether or not the Bengals will tag him or let him walk, similar to Xavier McKinney’s situation with the New York Giants last year.

Marquise Brown’s situation is very interesting. After three years in Baltimore, Brown was traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a first-round pick. In two years there, he only managed to record 118 receptions for 1,283 yards and seven touchdowns. He was supposed to try to play through a “prove it year” deal with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2024, but he injured his collar bone, limiting him to just two regular season games played this past year. He is the field-stretching type of receiver that the Packers would be looking at to replace Christian Watson’s snaps, as Watson will be out at least three-quarters of next regular season with his ACL injury.

Offensive Linemen

Tackles

• #46 Alaric Jackson (LAR)
• #47 Dan Moore (PIT)

Guards

• #2 Trey Smith (KC)
• #24 Will Fries (IND)
• #25 Teven Jenkins (CHI)
• #28 James Daniels (PIT)
• #41 Mekhi Becton (PHI)

Centers

• #22 Drew Dalman (ATL)

I included offensive tackles here just for the sake of argument, but the Packers seem pretty set on playing Zach Tom at right tackle, where he will likely earn an extension worth around $20 million per year soon, and doubt that Rasheed Walker would be forced to guard by either Alaric Jackson or Dan Moore.

At guard, the big fish is Kansas City’s Trey Smith, who earned his first Pro Bowl this season. Smith is going to get a top-of-the-market contract. If he lands in Green Bay, it will allow the Packers to be a little bit more flexible with a player like Elgton Jenkins, who could potentially slide into center for Josh Myers, an outgoing free agent.

Another name to consider here is Teven Jenkins, the often-injured former second-round pick of the Chicago Bears. Jenkins has only been able to start 38 of 68 games for the Bears since he was drafted and was placed on the injured reserve during the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons. He was relatively healthy this year, starting the 14 games that he was able to suit up for, and the Packers brought him in on a pre-draft visit — generally a sign that they liked him as a prospect.

Mekhi Becton is another lineman who turned around his career. The 11th pick in the 2020 draft played all of one game during the 2021 and 2022 seasons and signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles this offseason. After moving from tackle to guard, he’s gained traction as one of the league’s second-contract breakouts.

The only relevant center in this free-agent crop is Atlanta’s Drew Dalman, who is more of a pass protector than an all-around lineman. Think of him as a poor man’s Corey Linsley. After sitting his first year, he’s started all 40 games that he’s been available for over the past three seasons in Atlanta. It’s worth noting here that his head coach, until last season, with the Falcons was Arthur Smith, who was a tight ends coach with the Tennessee Titans when Packers head coach Matt LaFleur served as the team’s offensive coordinator. It’s possible that Dalman could come into Green Bay knowing much of LaFleur’s language via his time under Smith. Considering how much the Packers have put on Josh Myers’ plate with Jordan Love under center, that shouldn’t be understated.

Defensive Ends

• #10 Josh Sweat (PHI)
• #16 Malcolm Koone (LV)
• #39 Baron Browning (ARZ)
• #42 Dayo Odeyingbo (IND)
• #49 Chase Young (NO)

Despite only being 27 years old, Philadelphia’s Josh Sweat has already played seven full seasons in the NFL, recording 43 sacks over that time and being a full-time starter over the past four years. Sweat is a freak athlete, posting a 4.53-second 40-yard dash and 6.95-second three-cone drill, numbers you’d typically see of a first-round pass-rusher, going into the 2018 draft. Last year, Sweat restructured the end of his three-year, $40 million contract to bring in $10 million for 2024. Sweat’s deal included void years from Philadelphia’s end, which means they have the incentive to re-sign him, rather than face the $16.4 million dead cap that he will leave behind if he hits free agency.

Malcolm Koonce, who played with Packers running back Josh Jacobs, cornerback Keisean Nixon and special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia on the 2021 Las Vegas Raiders, is a former third-round pick who had a breakout season in 2023. After only playing a total of 116 defensive snaps in his first two years in the league, he posted an eight-sack season off of 11 starts out of seemingly nowhere. Unfortunately, a knee injury meant that Koonce didn’t get to play in the regular season at all in 2024.

Chase Young is a 25-year-old former second-overall pick who only played 12 games in the 2021 and 2022 seasons — following a Pro Bowl rookie season — and managed to get his career back on track with the San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints over the last two years. If you want a swing on upside, he’s the name to highlight.

Defensive Tackles

• #30 Osa Odighizuwa (DAL)
• #32 Milton Williams (PHI)
• #40 Levi Onwuzurike (DET)

Both Osa Odighizuwa (6’2, 280 pounds) and Milton Williams (6’3”, 290) would be three-technique under tackles in the Packers’ 4-3 defense. On one hand, that would allow for Kenny Clark to play nose tackle full-time. On the other, it would mean that they would probably need to be spelled on rushing downs.

Levi Onwuzurike is more of an every-down player but was placed on the injured reserve in September with a back injury that required surgery. Earlier this year, the Lions extended Alim McNeill, a fellow 2021 draft pick, at the same position.

Linebackers

• #18 Dre Greenlaw (SF)
• #34 Nick Bolton (KC)

I would argue that there’s no position weaker in the NFL right now than the off-ball linebacker position, but one of the few difference makers at the position — when healthy — is San Francisco’s Dre Greenlaw. Greenlaw dropped out of the last Super Bowl with an Achilles injury, which cost him most of the 2024 regular season. After playing 30 snaps in his Week 14 season debut, he only suited up for four more snaps for the rest of the regular season before being shut down for the rest of the year. Clearly, there is some injury concern around the Pro Bowl-type talent.

Nick Bolton has played a lot of snaps for the Kansas City Chiefs and does best as a run-and-chase linebacker. His best trait, beyond his athleticism, is that he’s still only 24 years old. The former second-round pick is still relatively raw for someone who has started 53 NFL games, but his athleticism and age will probably translate to a significant contract.

Cornerbacks

• #26 Asante Samuel Jr. (LAC)
• #33 Byron Murphy Jr. (MIN)

As we mentioned with Tevin Jenkins earlier, cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. is another player who had a pre-draft visit with the Green Bay Packers in 2021, which generally means the front office has their eye on him. Usually, the Packers try to make a play for these players when they’re available, either as draft picks or free agents. Samuel started 47 games for the Chargers before dropping out of action in September with stinger issues that cost him the rest of the 2024 season. Samuel also played under Green Bay defensive passing coordinator Derrick Ansley, who was the Chargers’ defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator before joining the Packers.

Byron Murphy Jr., like Samuel, is a former second-round pick who the Packers’ coaching staff has praised before and after Green Bay’s divisional matchups with the Minnesota Vikings. Murphy is finishing out a two-year, $17.5 million deal with the Vikings after spending his rookie contract with the Arizona Cardinals. After posting six interceptions in 2024, Murphy was named to his first Pro Bowl this year. Despite playing six seasons in the NFL, Murphy is still only 26 years old.