-- Whatever position the Green Bay Packers target in the first round of next week's draft, it won't be one that's prioritized in advanced.

Given where the Packers are -- sitting pretty with the 14th pick and 11 others in their pocket -- there's a cushion provided for them to take the best player available on the board. Now, that, of course, comes with its restrictions.

The Packers need obvious help on the defensive side of the ball after fielding a below average defense in several team rankings last season -- the final year under defensive coordinator Dom Capers. The best player available offensively at that point will likely be Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley, and all arrows are trending downward in terms of his fit in Green Bay.

Ridley was scarcely mocked to the Packers early on, but it's not hard to see why the connection was drawn in the first place.

The Packers released long-time veteran pass-catcher Jordy Nelson last month, leaving a moderately-sized gap at the position despite signing tight end Jimmy Graham in free agency, who is expected to play a significant part in the Packers' aerial plans. However, Ridley filling the void left behind in Nelson's wake would be asking for a lot, if not all of his upside to come to fruition, and that's hardly the case with most prospects.

He would need to be the perfect receiver to spend a pick on that early when there will be defensive playmakers available for the Packers to pluck from.

The beauty of where the Packers are is they can find a top-10 defensive prospect -- considering there could be four or five quarterbacks drafted within the first 13 picks -- without moving up or down. But their best bet to leave the first round with a full slate of talent that can immediately strengthen numerous facets of their defense would be to trade into the back-end of the first round after making their selection at 14.

Boston College edge rusher Harold Landry is one popular pick -- both amongst analysts and fans -- to be on Green Bay's radar at 14. If he does slip to the Packers and they can find a way to trade down into the late-teens, they'd be able to leave the first 32 picks with both a top-two edge rusher and a top-five cornerback.

UCF's Mike Hughes, Colorado's Isaiah Oliver and Louisville's Jaire Alexander are three other cornerbacks who haven't received as much notoriety as their peers, Denzel Ward and Josh Jackson. Rightfully so, of course, considering Ward and Jackson are at the top of their class.

If by some stroke of miracle Jackson slips into the vicinity of where the Packers would hypothetically trade around, he'd be the obvious pick. But Hughes is the only cornerback from the above list that the Packers have had a pre-draft visit with, aside from LSU's Donte Jackson.

Not a cornerback? Not an edge rusher? What about a safety or an inside linebacker at 14?

The Packers would still be getting a play-making defensive player if Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith managed to slip past greedy teams and into Green Bay's lap. If not Smith, Virginia Tech linebacker Tremaine Edmunds -- 6-5 with the speed of a safety -- wouldn't be a terrible consolation prize by any means.

Edmunds is more versatile than Smith, but both offer distinctive qualities that can help lock down the middle of the Packers' defense, which has notoriously been a weak spot through the years. One of the two would be paired with Blake Martinez, who tied for the league-lead in tackles last season. Almost instantly, the Packers would have the potential of sporting one of the scariest inside linebacker duos in the league.

There's something to love about both FSU's Derwin James and Alabama's Minkah Fitzpatrick, two of this class' top safeties. Fitzpatrick, however, will likely translate his skill set to playing mostly nickel cornerback in the NFL.

James, on the other hand, is a human Swiss Army knife, similar to former Packers safety Micah Hyde's style. James would be able to blitz from the slot, manhandle opposing linemen with astounding force for his size -- 6-2, 215 -- as well as cover from any position: the slot, free safety, in the box. There's no limit to how James can be utilized.

There is a limit to how far he'll fall, though, and there's a high chance it won't be to the Packers.

While the Packers have glaring needs at both outside linebacker and cornerback, the luxury of where they are and with this current class or prospects is that they can stand pat with their 14th overall selection and still target the best-available defensive prospect.

That prospect, when drafted, can enter the Packers' plans on defense and immediately contribute as well. It's a strong class on the side of the ball for which the Packers hired a new defensive coordinator to coach this offseason, leaving the door wide open for a multitude of possibilities come April 26.