The Green Bay Packers are one of the most popular franchises in the NFL, but that does not necessarily make them a premier free agent destination. Instead, GM Brian Gutekunst and his staff place a great deal of importance on building the core of their roster through the draft. That's a big reason why the franchise has elected to bring scout Dan Zegers back to Green Bay.
On the surface there may not be anything remarkable about the Packers moving to acquire an experienced talent evaluator in early June. Closer examination shows that the Zegers hire may have more upside than is usually available this time of year.
For one thing, Zegers cut his teeth in Green Bay in the team's equipment room before forcing his way into a scouting role under former Packers' GM Ted Thompson. A tradition rich team like Green Bay always needs to pay close attention to hiring people who are familiar with both the team's history and culture.
#Packers hiring #Browns Midwest area scout Dan Zegers, per a source. Previously #Chiefs scouting coordinator, #Packers scouting assistant. A homecoming for St. Norbert and De Pere High School graduate @KPRC2
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) June 5, 2025
More talent in the scouting department is a great thing for the Packers
Zegers most recently plied his trade as the Cleveland Browns as an area scout. He also spent time with the Chiefs under then GM John Dorsey. It's difficult to tell what sort of influence he wielded for either franchise but he does seem to command solid respect throughout the NFL scouting community.
The big outstanding question on Zegers is what role he's slated to fill upon his return to Green Bay. He could serve the Packers as an area scout but it's possible they needed to offer him more responsibility to pry him away from the Browns. It's easy to envision a scenario where Zegers gets some oversight as a part of his new gig. That would provide him a larger voice in the team's personnel plans than ever before.
Zegers' background indicates he will not shy away from making big decisions at the quarterback position. He was with Cleveland when they took their massive role on the dice with Deshaun Watson. The Packers are not an organization that will take that sort of conduct risk with a player but they are not afraid to engage in succession planning at the quarterback position.
That means this could be an early indicator that Green Bay is preparing for life after Jordan Love. That may seem crazy given that the team's current starting quarterback is just 26 years of age. In theory, his best football is still ahead of him. Love has dealt with minor injury issues in his career but none of that seems to be important to his long-term career prospects.
The bigger issue for Love's future in Green Bay is the size of contract he'll be looking for when his current deal expires after the 2028 season. The Packers would like to see him achieve meaningful playoff success before making him one of the highest paid quarterbacks in NFL history. Love will be looking for a lucrative deal no matter how many playoff games he wins over the next few seasons.
With all due respect to current backup Malik Willis, the Packers do not have their next franchise quarterback on the current roster. Looking for a successor to Love in the 2026 or 2027 draft could be astute roster planning for Green Bay. It was not so long ago that the franchise made selecting a quarterback in the draft an annual tradition under the previous front office regime.
Hiring Zegers could be an early move designed to help the Packers make sure they zero in on the right prospect to serve as Love's successor or an insurance policy against his contract demands getting out of hand. He will not be the only member of Gutekunst's front office charged with that heavy responsibility but he could be a key aspect of the team's quarterback scouting in future seasons.
Packers fans should not be panicking about Love's future based on one scouting hire though. Zegers is part of the franchise's systematic commitment to improving their front office by adding talent whenever possible. His background does raise interesting questions about what his exact role in Green Bay might be. It's safe to assume he'll have a role in plotting the team's long-term roster future. That includes the Packers' future at quarterback.