The good news for the Green Bay Packers is rookie Jordy Nelson is outperforming the two wide receivers selected ahead of him in the draft. The bad news is, Nelson doesn't play defense, where the Packers could sorely use some reinforcements.
The issue isn't whether Nelson was worth taking with the Packers' top draft choice high in the second round (36th overall) in April.
The bigger question is whether General Manager Ted Thompson should have stayed put with the 30th overall pick in the first round and addressed some significant defensive needs.
Thompson has restocked the roster mostly through the draft since taking over in 2005, with a preferred method of trading down to accumulate picks.
But at some point, Thompson must stop trading back, especially high in the draft when impact players are available, and place more emphasis on immediate needs.
Thompson traded down from No. 30 to No. 36 and acquired an extra fourth-round choice from the New York Jets, which after more wheeling and dealing, turned out to be defensive end Jeremy Thompson.
In the long term, parlaying the No. 30 selection into Nelson and Jeremy Thompson might turn out just fine.
Of the first 10 receivers taken in the draft all in the second round Nelson ranks third in production with 10 catches for 116 yards and a touchdown serving mostly as the team's No. 4 wideout. Jeremy Thompson, who spent four games on the inactive list and only played last week because of Cullen Jenkins' season-ending injury, has a long way to go before he makes an impact.
In the short term, the Packers desperately could use help on defense. Injuries have decimated the depth chart, and the defense ranks near the bottom of the NFL.
Instead of trading out of the first round, Ted Thompson could have selected Clemson defensive end Phillip Merling, who is making waves with the Miami Dolphins. The 6-foot-4, 290-pound Merling is pushing veteran Vonnie Holiday for a starting spot and has recorded his first NFL sack on a team that ranks No. 7 in points and yards allowed. Considering the Packers' pressing needs on the defensive line, Merling would look pretty good in a green and gold uniform right about now.
The Packers' GM also could have drafted Virginia Tech cornerback Brandon Flowers, who became an immediate starter with the Chiefs and has 22 solo tackles and three passes defensed.
The Packers waited until the end of the second round to draft cornerback Pat Lee, who was inactive for the first three games, and like Jeremy Thompson, is a work in progress.
It's telling that just five of 20 Packers draft choices in the past two years have been devoted to defense, and there are no starters among them.
Maybe some of those young prospects will emerge into bona fide stars someday. In the meantime, the Packers' defense is suffering and starved for playmakers.