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Kitan Oladapo Named Green Bay Packers Sleeper Pick of 2024 NFL Draft

Originally posted on Packers Coverage | By Nick Ziegler | Last updated 5/1/24

With the NFL Draft wrapped up, a lot of reaction to what the Green Bay Packers did has been circulating. Overall, a lot of people seem to be pleased with how the Packers did over the weekend.

One of the picks that were talked about was the selection of Kitan Oladapo from Oregon State. The Packers were focused on improving at safety in this draft, as they selected three of them, with Oladapo being the third one, taken in the fifth round.

Recently, Zach Kruse spoke about Oladapo being a potential sleeper pick for the Packers, and if he’s able to be a productive player as a fifth-round pick, Kruse will have been spot on. Here’s what he had to say.

Xavier McKinney is perfect to play the post safety. Javon Bullard might be perfect in the slot. And Oladapo might be perfect as the strong safety/robber/big nickel. The 6-2, 216-pounder was an elite player against the run and profiles best as an in-the-box defender who can play the run like a linebacker but also comfortably cover in the short to intermediate areas.

In the NFL, having depth has become more and more critical, as teams every year struggle to replace their starters with quality players when injuries occur. Since the season is so long, injuries are bound to happen, making every player on the 53-man roster important.

For Oladapo, being a safety who can play like a linebacker could result in some snaps for him in different formations. With the league going more and more toward passing the football, having bodies in the secondary is important, but those bodies also have to be able to protect against the run.

With safety being a position with snaps up for grabs for the Packers heading into 2024, keep an eye out for Oladapo to potentially steal some playing time despite being selected in the fifth round.

This article first appeared on Packers Coverage and was syndicated with permission.

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