Official Packers Off Season Pre-Draft Thread

[ChampionshipBelt]

If you intend replacing Martinez, you'd better figure it has to be done through free agency, because I see no way you can draft a guy out of college, and have him step in, and fill that spot. Anyone on the roster who can do it? Nope! So, to find that guy, through FA, what do you think it will cost? Put a figure on it, and realize that when you pay that money, he might not be as good as Martinez, so you could take a step back, with a higher salary. Don't sit out on the end of that tree branch while sawing it off, at the trunk of the tree. It's a long fall.

I doubt very much if Pettine will be gone. He's going to get another year to make things work better. If you look at where our defense ranked, it was right in the mix with both San Franciso and KC, in the rankings.

The league is funny as to how it works. For a year or two, the defenses will decide winners and losers. Offenses adjust, and they take control for about the same amount of time. It goes back and forth as teams adjust, modify, and use speed and deception to further their brand. But, in the end, it all comes back around, full cycle.

I think the problem we need to consider is that we just plain did not have offense to win. In 2018, our defense gave up 25 points per game on average, and in 2019, it was down to 19.6, which placed us in the top 10.

The answer is, get the ball in the end zone, and keep the defense on a central theme of improvement. Small improvements on D are fine, while you do all you can to reload what's become a fairly vanilla offense, that lacks field stretching capability.

I get what you are saying, TW but when it came to the playoffs again the D gave up tons of points and over 300 yards rushing. Our O needs some playmakers no doubt but we need an ILB and a DL more to make this D elite and SB caliber.

 

[realitybytes]

Tunnel-Vision Approach Needed on Defense to Beat 49ers

Why did the Packers keep Mike Pettine, and why was his defense so good for most of the season but so bad against San Francisco?

www.si.com

excerpt:

This past offseason, general manager Brian Gutekunst directed an incredible overhaul of the Green Bay Packers’ defense.

In free agency, he spent lavishly on outside linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith and safety Adrian Amos, and he used his first-round picks on outside linebacker Rashan Gary and safety Darnell Savage. With those five players replacing the overpaid and underperforming tandem of Clay Matthews and Nick Perry at outside linebacker and the mishmash of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Kentrell Brice and Jermaine Whitehead at safety, the Packers rocketed from 25th to ninth in points allowed and from six wins to 13.

None of it mattered in the biggest game of the season. The San Francisco 49ers ran roughshod over the Packers in the NFC Championship Game. They won 37-20 by rushing for preposterous 285 yards and scoring on six consecutive drives.

read more: https://www.si.com/nfl/packers/news/tunnel-vision-approach

 

[dannobanano]

Which goes to show that you can’t fix everything all at once and the dearth of talent left by the previous person.

 

[realitybytes]

Which goes to show that you can’t fix everything all at once and the dearth of talent left by the previous person.

i think if they had drafted dexter lawrence instead of rashan gary, there could have been a better outcome.

 

[Nerd]

I get what you are saying, TW but when it came to the playoffs again the D gave up tons of points and over 300 yards rushing. Our O needs some playmakers no doubt but we need an ILB and a DL more to make this D elite and SB caliber.

Take away those three turnovers and the Niners run how many fewer plays? That's how many fewer yards per play, and how many fewer points?

Just saying. Defense needs work, but we may be closer than it appears. It's like with Kaepernick. If we weren't running that gimmicky Chip Kelly bullshit, the Niners would have had 1/3 less time of possession, fewer plays and fewer yards. I calculated at the time, the Niners would have been within reasonable expectations.

Either way, the defense still needs to stop them. But they probably looked worse than they were.

 

[Budman]

Which goes to show that you can’t fix everything all at once and the dearth of talent left by the previous person.

I'm trying to see the silver lining. I really am but this just wasn't a power rushing team that rushed a few more times than passed it. There were 8 passes thrown. That's all. It was a monumental fail to stop the run. Maybe I'm naive to the way a defense works so I'll trust all you guys that are saying that a DL partner for Clark and an ILB better than Martimez will turn things around. I'm skeptical but I'll try an remain optimistic.

 

[Budman]

Take away those three turnovers and the Niners run how many fewer plays? That's how many fewer yards per play, and how many fewer points?

Just saying. Defense needs work, but we may be closer than it appears. It's like with Kaepernick. If we weren't running that gimmicky Chip Kelly bullshit, the Niners would have had 1/3 less time of possession, fewer plays and fewer yards. I calculated at the time, the Niners would have been within reasonable expectations.

Either way, the defense still needs to stop them. But they probably looked worse than they were.

How about we just take away all the points the 9ers scored too? I mean, I understand what people get at when they try to take away the big runs, the big pass plays, the turnovers, as a way to show that the outcome would be different but it just becomes this "wish in one hand, crap in the other and see which one fills up faster" type of scenario. The game is played in an imperfect world and you can't just arbitrarily take away the positives from one team in Hope's to justify how your team was so close. Every losing team could do that every week.

The defense couldn't stop anyone and the offense couldn't score in the first half to save their lives.

 

[FlaPack]

Take away those three turnovers and the Niners run how many fewer plays? That's how many fewer yards per play, and how many fewer points?

Just saying. Defense needs work, but we may be closer than it appears. It's like with Kaepernick. If we weren't running that gimmicky Chip Kelly bullshit, the Niners would have had 1/3 less time of possession, fewer plays and fewer yards. I calculated at the time, the Niners would have been within reasonable expectations.

Either way, the defense still needs to stop them. But they probably looked worse than they were.

When in hell did we run a Chip Kelly offense. Quick answer — Never. Turnovers happen and SF was running the ball at will. No this defense is not close. Void at ILB, void at DL sans Clark, zero depth at CB.

 

[rpiotr01]

i think if they had drafted dexter lawrence instead of rashan gary, there could have been a better outcome.

I disagree. They were running wide zone to gas our guys and get them moving laterally, then countering with gap inside right up the middle. It was a brilliant scheme by Shanny, mercilessly attacking Pettine's scheme and the lack of attention to detail by all his players. This was not the case where a rookie DL was going to be the difference.

 

[rpiotr01]

In coaching news, LaFleur interviewed veteran coach Jerry Gray for the DB coach position. Gray was recently on staff with Zimmer in MN with the same role.