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http://www.packersnews.com/story/sp...hyde-packers-defense-special-teams/31507005/#
excerpt:
Entering his third NFL season, Hyde may be one of the most important pieces to Capers’ defense even if he doesn’t have the name recognition of Clay Matthews, the pedigree of Julius Peppers or the blazing speed of Sam Shields.
It only took two years for the Packers to teach Hyde every position in their secondary. The transition to safety last year enabled him to start the first seven games on the back end and play more than 700 defensive snaps with his work in the nickel and dime subpackages.
The Packers drafted a pair of cornerbacks, Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins, with their first two picks, but Hyde remains the frontrunner to man the slot in the nickel subpackage. If anything happens to starting safeties Morgan Burnett or Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, he appears to be the next-man-up there, as well.
“I’ve always felt the more things a guy can do for you increases his value,” Capers said. “I think he’s given us good leadership now. You can see he’s been around here for a while. He’s a confident player. I think he’s got very good communication skills. You like Micah because he can play so many different spots. That’s important.”
How Hyde has balanced his defensive responsibilities with his contributions on special teams is what his coaches appreciate the most. He’s returned three punts for touchdowns on 38 career attempts with a robust average of 13.6 yards per return.
His 15.8 yards per return and two touchdowns last season would have made him the NFL’s leading punt returner if he’d had six more attempts to meet the minimum requirement. Instead, he split duties with receiver Randall Cobb.
In need of a spark on kickoffs, Hyde even stepped in late in the 2013 season. His 70-yard return against Pittsburgh on Dec. 22, 2013, remains the closest the Packers have come to a kickoff return for a touchdown since Sept. 8, 2011.
Hyde has been serving as personal protector for Tim Masthay on punt coverage so far in camp, potentially sandwiching his special-team duties on both sides of a defensive series. Hyde laughs at the novelty of it all. Playing four downs is something he’s been doing since he started playing football.
“He’s always available,” cornerbacks coach Joe Whitt said. “It’s truly four downs with him. It’s multiple positions. He starts off first and second down nickel and then third down go to dime and now he’s returning the punt. He’s truly a four-down player. He’s very valuable for us.”
excerpt:
Entering his third NFL season, Hyde may be one of the most important pieces to Capers’ defense even if he doesn’t have the name recognition of Clay Matthews, the pedigree of Julius Peppers or the blazing speed of Sam Shields.
It only took two years for the Packers to teach Hyde every position in their secondary. The transition to safety last year enabled him to start the first seven games on the back end and play more than 700 defensive snaps with his work in the nickel and dime subpackages.
The Packers drafted a pair of cornerbacks, Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins, with their first two picks, but Hyde remains the frontrunner to man the slot in the nickel subpackage. If anything happens to starting safeties Morgan Burnett or Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, he appears to be the next-man-up there, as well.
“I’ve always felt the more things a guy can do for you increases his value,” Capers said. “I think he’s given us good leadership now. You can see he’s been around here for a while. He’s a confident player. I think he’s got very good communication skills. You like Micah because he can play so many different spots. That’s important.”
How Hyde has balanced his defensive responsibilities with his contributions on special teams is what his coaches appreciate the most. He’s returned three punts for touchdowns on 38 career attempts with a robust average of 13.6 yards per return.
His 15.8 yards per return and two touchdowns last season would have made him the NFL’s leading punt returner if he’d had six more attempts to meet the minimum requirement. Instead, he split duties with receiver Randall Cobb.
In need of a spark on kickoffs, Hyde even stepped in late in the 2013 season. His 70-yard return against Pittsburgh on Dec. 22, 2013, remains the closest the Packers have come to a kickoff return for a touchdown since Sept. 8, 2011.
Hyde has been serving as personal protector for Tim Masthay on punt coverage so far in camp, potentially sandwiching his special-team duties on both sides of a defensive series. Hyde laughs at the novelty of it all. Playing four downs is something he’s been doing since he started playing football.
“He’s always available,” cornerbacks coach Joe Whitt said. “It’s truly four downs with him. It’s multiple positions. He starts off first and second down nickel and then third down go to dime and now he’s returning the punt. He’s truly a four-down player. He’s very valuable for us.”
