The Green Bay Packers had a pretty solid draft last April.  A few of the players dealt with injuries but they showed a lot of potential for the future.  Here’s a look at how the rookie did in 2010:

Bryan Bulaga:  The Packers drafted OT Bryan Bulaga in the first round (#23 overall) out of Iowa last April.  He played in 16 games (12 starts) for the Packers last season, doing his best work at RT.  He looks like he’s going to be a fixture on the Packers’ starting O-Line for a long time.

Mike Neal:  The Packers took DE Mike Neal out of Purdue in the 2nd round (#56 overall).  He only played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Packers last year before his season ended due to injury but he did have 3 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 forced fumble.  If Neal can stay healthy, he has pretty solid potential to help the D-Line of the Packers.

Morgan Burnett:  Strong safety Morgan Burnett came to the Packers in the 3rd round (#71 overall) out of Georgia Tech.  He won a starting job for the Packers in training camp but his season ended early due to injury.  Burnett played in 4 games (all starts) for the Packers last year and he had 12 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception.  He looks like another find for the Packers to help out in the secondary.

Andrew Quarless:  TE Andrew Quarless came to the Packers in the 5th round (#154 overall) out of Penn State.  He played in 13 games (3 starts) for the Packers last year and he caught 21 passes for 238 yards (11.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Quarless was learning on the fly last year after the injury to Jermichael Finley but he has the potential to really help the Packers down the road.

Michael Newhouse:  The Packers took OG Michael Newhouse in the 5th round (#169 overall) out of TCU.  He never made it to the field and finished the season on the Injured Reserve List.  He will need to show the Packers something next season if he wants to continue getting paid to play football.

James Starks:  The Packers selected RB James Starks in the 6th round (#193 overall) out of Buffalo.  He started the season late due to injury.  He played in 3 games (0 starts) for the Packers during the regular season and he carried the ball 29 times for 101 yards (3.5 ypc).  Starks also caught 2 passes for 15 yards (7.5 avg) and he returned 2 kickoffs for 25 yards (12.5 avg).  But, in the post-season, Starks turned into the main man in the running game for the Packers.  Starks carried the ball 81 times for 315 yards (3.9 ypc) with a TD run in the playoffs and Super Bowl.  He also caught 3 passes for 15 yards (5.0 avg) and he returned 5 kickoffs for 70 yards (14.0 avg) in the post-season for the Packers.  He might not challenge Ryan Grant for the starting job in 2011, but he will be no lower than #2 on the depth chart at RB when next year begins as long as he is healthy.

C.J. Wilson:  DE C.J. Wilson came to the Packers in the 7th round (#230 overall) out of East Carolina.  He played in 15 games (2 starts) for the Packers last year and he had 18 tackles and 1 sack.  This was just another solid pick by Packers’ GM Ted Thompson who really knows what he is doing.  I look for Wilson to have  bright future with the Packers.

GRADE FOR 2010:  B

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A

24-year old ro0kie RB James Starks got off to a very late start to his rookie year due to injury.  He played in only 3 games during the regular season for the Packers in which he carried the ball 29 times for 101 yards (3.5 ypc).  Starks also caught 2 passes for 15 yards (7.5 avg) during the regular season.  But in the playoffs Starks has been a workhorse for the Packers.  In the Packers’ first two playoff games, Starks has carried the ball 48 times for 189 yards (3.9 ypc) and he also has caught 2 passes for 9 yards (4.5 avg).  The 6th round pick out of Buffalo appears to have fresh legs right now and he’s giving the Packers more balance on offense, making them even more difficult to deal with.  The Packers hope that Starks has a good game tomorrow, because if he does, the Packers will be in the Super Bowl.

The Packers need a little more out of 22-year old rookie TE Andrew Quarless.  He has seen increased playing time as the year has went on due to the injuries that have ransacked the depth chart at TE for the Packers.  Quarless has played in 10 games for the Packers so far this year and he has caught 17 passes for 205 yards (12.1 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He was a 5th round pick (#154 overall) out of Penn State last April.  When you take that in consideration the Packers are probably happy with him this year.

The Packers have lost 23-year old rookie DE/DT Mike Neal for the rest of the season due to shoulder surgery.  Neal played in 2 games for the Packers this year and he had 3 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 forced fumble.  The Packers have had a huge rash of injuries on D so Neal would have likely gotten his big chance soon if he could have just stayed healthy.  He was a second round pick of the Packers last April out of Purdue so they like him……they’ll just have to wait until next season to see what they have in him.

The Packers have selected DE C.J. Wilson out of East Carolina with the 230th overall pick (7th round) of the NFL Draft.  Wilson is a big guy at 6’3″, 284 pounds and he runs a 4.86 40.  He has good ahtletic ability for a man his size.  He played in 14 games (all starts) at East Carolina last season and he finished up with 57 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss, 5.5 sacks, he batted down 1 pass, forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  Wilson played in 54 games (44 starts) in his time in college in which he had 160 tackles, 45.5 tackles for a loss, he had 27 sacks, batted down 2 passes, he forced 4 fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  This was a good pick for the Packers as Wilson was projected by most “draft experts” to be selected in the 4th or 5th round.

The Packers have picked RB James Starks out of Buffalo with the 193rd overall pick (6th round) of the NFL Draft.  Starks is a big guy at 6’2″, 218 pounds and he can run a 4.5 40.  He runs with a upright style like Eddie George and Eric Dickerson did which causes him to take a lot of big hits.  That led to him missing the whole 2009 season with a torn labrum in his left shoulder.  Starks played in 36 games in his career at Buffalo and he carried the ball 698 times for 3,140 yards (4.5 ypc) with 34 TD grabs.  He also caught 127 passes for 898 (7.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs at Buffalo.  Look for Starks to have his best chance of making the Packers as a third down back.

The Packers have picked OG/OT Marshall Newhouse with the 169th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  He is a big guy at 6’3″, 326 pounds so he has the size needed to be a excellent inside drive blocker in the running game.  He’s a tad slow though so it’s hard to see him playing much at tackle unless he gets in better shape.  Newhouse played in 13 games (12 starts) at TCU last season and he has played in 52 games (38 starts) in his four years there.  With the Packers needing help on the O-Line, Newhouse was a solid pick in the fifth round as he could develop into a starter down the road.

The Packers have picked TE Andrew Quarless with the 154th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Quarless has the size 6’5″. 250 pounds and the speed 4.8 40 to do damage in both the running and passing game for the Packers.  He is a good run blocker and he has an excellent set of hands.  Quarless played in 13 games (all starts) at Penn State last season and he caught 41 passes for 536 yards (13.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He played in 48 games (31 starts) in his four years at Penn State and he caught 87 passes for 1,146 yards (13.2 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  Quarless fell to the Packers in the fifth round due to red flags for his off the field issues.  If the Packers can get him to behave himself they might just have a steal in Quarless.

The Packers have selected safety Morgan Burnett out of Georgia Tech with the 71st overall pick (3rd round) of the NFL Draft.  Burnett is a solid all around safety as he supports the run strongly and he makes big plays in the passing game.  Burnett played in 14 games (all starts) for Georgia Tech last season and he finished up with 85 tackles, he broke up 4 passes, had 4 interceptions, forced 1 fumble and he recovered 1 fumble.  Burnett played in 40 games (28 starts) in his three years in college and he finished up with 235 tackles, he broke up 19 passes, had 14 interceptions, forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles.  This was a solid pick for the Packers as Burnett looks like he will play strong safety in the pros.

The Packers have selected DT Mike Neal out of Purdue with the 56th pick overall (2nd round) of the NFL Draft.  Neal is a solid player when he’s not getting tired and he stays motivated.  He seems like someone that the Packers are going to have to keep an eye on getting him rest during a game.  Neal played in 12 games (all starts) for Purdue last season in which he had 35 tackles, 11.5 tackles for a loss, 5.5 sacks, he forced 1 fumble and he recovered 2 fumbles.  He played in 46 games (23 starts) in his four years at Purdue and he finished up with 99 tackles, 26 tackles for a loss, 13 sacks, he batted down 2 passes, forced 1 fumble and he recovered 2 fumbles.  Neal has a nice upside but it appears that the Packers might have picked him a round or two too early.