Insider Article about the defense.
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Last season, two of the most explosive offensive teams in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers and the New England Patriots, statistically were also the worst two defensive teams in the league. Obviously, both organizations have realized that ultimate success will not come until they fix that side of the ball and both took major strides in the draft, using their first six picks on defensive players.
Focusing on defense in the draft is the first step toward rebuilding, but did both teams get enough impact players to fix their defenses? Matt Williamson took a look at the Patriots' D last week, so I'll turn my attention to the Packers' today.
Let's look at how the draft will impact Green Bay in 2012 on all three levels of its defense.
Defensive line
On this 3-4 defensive line, the only guy who played at a high level was NT B.J. Raji, who was in the Pro Bowl as a run defender. He had only three sacks and this defensive line applied very little pressure on opposing QBs -- though to be fair, the design of this defense is for the pressure to come off the edge with the OLBs. When DE Cullen Jenkins left for Philadelphia in free agency, the Packers never replaced his versatility and pass-rushing skills, and none of the other players stepped up and gave them good production.
They worked to upgrade this unit in free agency by signing DE Anthony Hargrove from Seattle, who has a terrific work ethic, but now he is going to miss eight games as a result of the Saints' scandal -- and who knows what his overall impact will be when he comes back.
Kiper's Draft Grades
How did the Green Bay Packers do in the NFL draft? Be sure to check out Mel Kiper's 2012 NFL Draft Grades.
In the draft they added two players to this unit, DE Jerel Worthy (No. 51) and DT Mike Daniels (132), and Worthy will be expected to start immediately. While he has been inconsistent on the college level, when he decides to turn it on he can be dominating as a one-gap penetrator. In their 3-4 base package, Worthy will play DE, and in their nickel 4-3 package he will move inside to DT, which is probably his most natural position. He could even spell Raji at NT as a one-gap changeup penetrator.
This is a little bit of a gamble pick for GM Ted Thompson, who is usually very conservative, but the rewards if they "hit" on him are high. Daniels is a productive player, but he isn't a great fit in this defense that prefers the DEs to be taller. He will likely play mostly in 4-3 pass-rush schemes as an inside penetrator and will add depth to this unit. The big question here is where is the other DE the Packers can count on? Is it Hargrove (eventually)? Is it young Mike Neal, Jarius Wynn or veteran Ryan Pickett?
Linebackers
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AP Photo/David Drapkin
Clay Matthews needs help rushing the passer.
The lack of an explosive pass rush was a huge problem for this defense in 2011 and it had a trickle-down effect on this entire defense. With no edge threat besides OLB Clay Matthews, opposing offenses rolled their blocking schemes to his side with a lot of double-teams, which was partially responsible for his sack production declining from 23.5 sacks in 2009 and 2010 to only six sacks in 2011.
Erik Walden and Frank Zombo aren't long-term solutions at the other OLB spot, which is the reason the Packers used their first-round pick on Nick Perry (No. 28), an OLB edge rusher from USC. This is another pick with some risk, because Perry can disappear at times, but his natural skills and upside are off the charts. He will have to make the transition from his natural 4-3 college DE scheme to the 3-4 OLB look, and that means going from a three-point to a two-point stance. He has rare size for the position but also outstanding first-step quickness, and if he can give them quality sack production, it will be a major upgrade for this entire defense.
Although the ILB duo of A.J. Hawk (104 tackles) and Desmond Bishop (142 tackles, five sacks) doesn't provide a lot of pass rush, the duo is rock solid versus the run, and the addition of rookie ILB Terrell Manning in the fifth round (No. 163) will add depth and give them a nice inside rotation. As Manning transitions from a 4-3 OLB to a 3-4 ILB, he should contribute on special teams and possibly in pass coverage. This was the worst four-man pass-rushing unit in the NFL last season, and when they are forced to blitz to apply pressure, it really exposes their weakness on the back end of this defense.
Secondary
Statistically, this was one of the worst units in the NFL a year ago, but it wasn't totally their fault. Yes, they gave up a whopping 4,796 passing yards and 21 passes of 30 yards or more in 2011. But they also created a ton of big plays and turnovers, as evidenced by their 85 interceptions in the past three seasons and 31 in 2011, which put them second in the league with a plus-24 turnover differential.
There are question marks both inside and outside, but let's concentrate on the safeties first. The loss of Nick Collins (career-ending neck injury) really hurts because he was the "quarterback" of the secondary. That left SS Charlie Peprah and FS Morgan Burnett as the starters, with marginal depth behind them. Rookie fourth-round pick S Jerron McMillian (No. 132), from Maine, will be asked to be their third safety and a special teams contributor and the coaches hope that he can develop into a starter eventually. The bottom line is there were simply too many breakdowns in coverage and missed tackles. In fact, they were so bad that CB Charles Woodson was forced to play inside in a lot of packages. He may make a permanent switch to safety as his speed and cover skills outside decline, but his instincts and ball skills are still top-notch.
At corner Woodson still makes a lot of plays, but if he plays inside a lot, that leaves Tramon Williams and Sam Shields outside -- both players seem to have regressed a bit in man coverage. They have high hopes for second-round pick CB Casey Hayward (No. 62) who can really produce in zone and underneath/intermediate schemes with his great ball skills, but his speed may not be good enough on the edge versus vertical passing games. The nickel is possibly his best position, which would allow Woodson to stay outside. The best thing this secondary did in 2011 was the ability to break on the ball and intercept passes, and they were also very effective blitzers.
The Packers traded up three times in this draft and took some chances on players with high upside but who also have effort issues (Perry, Worthy), which isn't usually how the Packers operate. However, there seems to be a sense of urgency to get this defense up to speed with the offense quickly to maximize the window to win championships. Green Bay also drafted players who tackled well, as the defense missed 190 tackles as a defense a year ago and vowed to be more fundamentally sound in 2012.
The Packers have added nice depth to the secondary and defensive line this offseason, but Perry is the key to an improved Green Bay defense in 2012. If he can significantly improve the pass rush and take coverage away from Matthews, Green Bay's defense will be much improved next season.