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ThePerfectBeard
Cheesehead
Meh, let him go. I'm sure we can find a replacement round 3 or after.
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Deleted member 6794
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Don't like the idea as the rookie would have to start outside as neither Hayward or Hyde are capable of doing that.
TJV
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Here's some fodder for draftniks (not that there's anything wrong with that!). This is a link to McGinn's Early look at the NFL draft: http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/an-early-look-at-the-nfl-draft-b99403379z1-284999721.html
Here's what he writes about ILB prospects:
Here's what he writes about ILB prospects:
According to that scout, DePriest may be able to take Hawk's place on the roster. ... Nah, that's not fair: Hawk's a full 1/2 inch taller.
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Deleted member 6794
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When I read that article I was thinking exactly the same thing. DePriest seems like the perfect guy to replace Hawk. Hopefully Thompson goes in another direction at the position.
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Deleted member 6794
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I decided to quote this post in the draft section of the forum as this has nothing to do with the Bucs game.
I really hope McKinney will still be there when the Packers draft in the first round but it´s possible he´s already gone. While Matthews has been an improvement I would prefer to play a true ILB there. Sheldon and Fowler will probably be gone before and I don´t think PJ Williams would be my first choice at CB.
ExpatPacker
Cheesehead
The question I have is, if McKinney is gone by the time the Packers pick, and the same is true of the top 2 or 3 DTs (Williams and Sheldon), do the Packers use their #1 pick for the 2nd best ILB? There's no clear idea of who that is right now: could be Eric Kendricks, could be Denzel Perryman. Some scouts have Kendricks as a 1st round talent but many do not.
I think that unless there's a top player out there still on the board, in that situation the best alternative would be to trade back for a high-to-mid 2nd and 3rd rounder and pick up Kendricks or Perryman in the 2nd. CBS Sports has Perryman as the #62 ranked player in the draft, Kendricks as #99. Not sure why they rate Kendricks so low. Scouting reports on him are good: speedy, athletic, aggressive tackler, good awareness.
on the DT side, they have Eddie Goldman DT as the #21 ranked player and a clear 1st rounder, after that it's Michael Bennet and Malcom Brown, both projected as early 2nd rounders.
I could see getting Sheldon or Goldman in round 1 and Kendricks in round 2. That'd be pretty sweet.
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Deleted member 6794
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I don't think the Packers should use a first round pick on Perryman or Kendricks, one of them should still be on the board at the time they pick in the second round.
If Goldman and Shelton are gone as well I would be fine with Thompson trading back into the second round for additional picks but you need another team willing to offer a deal.
thisisnate
Cheesehead
I've changed my thinking on this to the point where I'm almost 100% positive that if we don't get our ILB in round 1, McKinney, Perryman, and Kendricks will be off the board by our late 2nd round pick, and we'll have missed the boat. This is a weak draft for ILB, and they're gonna come off the board quick. Pretty much every mock out there appears to agree.
Hayward still seems to make plays when he's on the field, but he must not be doing something right that he still doesn't see the field a lot. House has always had the talent. He was always in position, but could never seem to make the play on the ball. Now he is good at keeping position and playing the ball, but he never seems to be able to stay on the field.
It's hard to gauge how much interest he'll have from other teams because of that. Talented guys that can't stay on the field aren't worth a lot of money and they take up roster spots. I'm not sure how GB approaches it. I see Williams as making a bit too much, but he mostly available and does still play the position pretty well.
That said, I think getting better up front with DL or ILB helps anything we put behind them look better.
It's hard to gauge how much interest he'll have from other teams because of that. Talented guys that can't stay on the field aren't worth a lot of money and they take up roster spots. I'm not sure how GB approaches it. I see Williams as making a bit too much, but he mostly available and does still play the position pretty well.
That said, I think getting better up front with DL or ILB helps anything we put behind them look better.
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Deleted member 6794
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McKinney will be gone at some point during the first round. While it´s possible Perryman will be off the board by the time the Packers pick in the second round I don´t want Thompson to pick him in the first round. Kendricks should be there in the second round.
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I would think that pick 32 would be worth something like picks 48 & 80 in return so we might end up with 48, 64,80 & 96 in which we could probably get a ILB, DT, CB & WR that Thompson likes in the first three rounds. He'd still have 6 more picks for the last day of the draft.
NelsonsLongCatch
Cheesehead
The Packers should load up on inside linebackers during the draft. The inside linebacker position is far and away the weakest position on the team. AJ Hawk is solid, but average and the second spot is a revolving door of bad.
Regarding the nose tackle position, don't forget about Kyri Thompson. TT drafted him in the third round last year and he immediately went on the IR. He's a big boy who is hopefully taking this year to learn the system and get stronger.
Offseason priorities prior to the draft are resigning Cobb and Bulaga. I wouldn't mind seeing the Packers draft a tackle who could come in and be a solid backup in Year 1 and eventual starter in Year 2-3.
Regarding the nose tackle position, don't forget about Kyri Thompson. TT drafted him in the third round last year and he immediately went on the IR. He's a big boy who is hopefully taking this year to learn the system and get stronger.
Offseason priorities prior to the draft are resigning Cobb and Bulaga. I wouldn't mind seeing the Packers draft a tackle who could come in and be a solid backup in Year 1 and eventual starter in Year 2-3.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
2 years ago many thought CB to the weakest position. Well, Shields improved, House took a step, Tramon regained some of his form, and with the last pick in the 2nd round, TT stole the in-the-conversation-DROY CB Heyward.
Last year it was the same for safety. Now we have Barnett, Packer come back player of the year, Micah Hyde makng the move from CB, and a very exciting rookie in Haha.
from weakness to team strength in one season.
How can ILB improve? Maybe Sam Barrington takes a step. Maybe we pick up a stud in round 3 of the draft. Maybe . . . Who knows?
I love the off season. I hope TT lives to be a 100. Packers are in great hands as long as he is around.
Last year it was the same for safety. Now we have Barnett, Packer come back player of the year, Micah Hyde makng the move from CB, and a very exciting rookie in Haha.
from weakness to team strength in one season.
How can ILB improve? Maybe Sam Barrington takes a step. Maybe we pick up a stud in round 3 of the draft. Maybe . . . Who knows?
I love the off season. I hope TT lives to be a 100. Packers are in great hands as long as he is around.
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Dan115
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who is Barnett? Nick?
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Deleted member 6794
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IMO the safety position was addressed a year too late and it was pretty obvious last offseason the Packers should have improved the ILB position as well.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
It would be nice if we had HOF players at every position and pro bowlers on the bench. You only have so many draft picks, so many roster positions, and a salary cap every year. We have so much more talent than most teams it is amazing.
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Deleted member 6794
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There´s no denying Thompson made a mistake by not upgrading the ILB position this offseason. He´s doing a great job overall but that doesn´t mean he can´t be criticized.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
yep. That's pretty common for me. Usually not on my phone n I can google it.
All I can tell ya is I'm close n u no who I'm talkin bout.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
But there is not necessarily a solution available. There is risk in every decision and TT does not have the luxury of hindsight. Should TT have had a better backup QB last year? Absolutely. but he gambled. He could have dropped $3m on a backup. Instead he saved money and AR went down. We were screwed when the primary back up also went down, but that is football. He could have had a 3rd $3m backup, but now you have $6m in backups on a position you already have $23m into. Now you are looking at not being able to bring in Peppers and/or resigning Daniels.
Was it a mistake not to upgrade ILB this year? Maybe. Should TT be criticized for it? Hell no! To expect a perfect team is impossible. And a GM who drafts for need or just brings in any FA to fill a perceived hole, tends to be unemployed quickly. You can't make panic moves. You have to wait for the right player to draft or to be available as a FA.
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Deleted member 6794
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Thompson should be criticized for the way he has handled the ILB position for years. The two starters going into this season combined for a cap hit of over $9 million, yet it was obvious to everyone the Packers needed an upgrade at the position.
The Packers would have had options to replace both of Hawk and Jones with cheaper players for several years but Thompson decided to hang on and in the process overpaying for them.
As I´ve said before TT has done a great job overall, the ILB corps has been a mess for several years though and he didn´t do a good job of improving the position.
What you talking about Willis?yep. That's pretty common for me. Usually not on my phone n I can google it.
All I can tell ya is I'm close n u no who I'm talkin bout.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
Barnett or Burnett or a brunett or maybe a bar net.
I get confused easy. Its not easy when 1 of the voices in your head is Dr. Suess.
ILB was a could use an upgrade, do did our Dline due to age and injury, so did Safety, so did our running game, lost 3 extremely good and reliable WR's in the past couple years to FA and age, they aren't putting rodgers out there with a bare cabinet. Lots of positions needed addressing, and they always will.
People get old, they get injured, they just decide they're checking out after showing promise and you making decisions based on that potential. Free Agency happens, contracts expire and your roster turns over. Sometimes you're just wrong in your evaluation, but one thing is certain, we've won the division 4 years in a row, playoffs 6 in a row and we're the #2 seed in the NFC right now. Our defense is playing every bit as good as it needs to for us to win the whole thing and almost every single player in a Packer uniform right now was drafted by our front office headed by Ted Thompson and no other team comes close to saying that.
Not everything is perfect, and I'd love to have a Ray Lewis in his prime with Urlacher from 8 years ago playing ILB for us right now, but it doesn't just happen. So TT addresses ILB the past couple years, at what expense? Hyde maybe? Daniels? Adams? what if Cobb leaves in FA this year and we have Nelson and Boykin going into next years, you're happy with that? Clinton Dix? Lacy?
People get old, they get injured, they just decide they're checking out after showing promise and you making decisions based on that potential. Free Agency happens, contracts expire and your roster turns over. Sometimes you're just wrong in your evaluation, but one thing is certain, we've won the division 4 years in a row, playoffs 6 in a row and we're the #2 seed in the NFC right now. Our defense is playing every bit as good as it needs to for us to win the whole thing and almost every single player in a Packer uniform right now was drafted by our front office headed by Ted Thompson and no other team comes close to saying that.
Not everything is perfect, and I'd love to have a Ray Lewis in his prime with Urlacher from 8 years ago playing ILB for us right now, but it doesn't just happen. So TT addresses ILB the past couple years, at what expense? Hyde maybe? Daniels? Adams? what if Cobb leaves in FA this year and we have Nelson and Boykin going into next years, you're happy with that? Clinton Dix? Lacy?
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Deleted member 6794
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The easy solution for the ILB position would have been to bring in a veteran free agent either last year (Dansby) or this year (Spikes) than to hand out a ridiculous contract to Brad Jones.
AmishMafia
Cheesehead
Again, that is only through the benefit of hindsight. Did TT make a run at FA XXXX? Was he hoping that Ryan Shazier would be there for their pick last season? Did they think that Jones or one of the other young kids would develop into a dominant ILB? You don't know their plan and just saying well they should have done something different is not fair. Again, they only have so much money and so many draft picks. There will always be weak spots on every NFL roster. Its just the way it works. A reaction and action at one position prevents you from making a move at another position.
Think of it about the Center position. TT could have gone out and signed a FA for $4M and maybe he would be a little better than Lindsey is playing. He could have given EDS a $3.5M extension and our Center play would be about the same. Either way, we would be hampered going forward resigning Cobb or keeping Peppers next year. He could have traded up in this last draft and maybe our play would be suffering.
I was out once with a gal I met who turned out to be the 'body double' of Jessica Alba. We were at a restaurant waiting for a table and some guy approached us and invited us on a cruise. My date smiled and said, 'trust me, lets go'. We walked to the marina and onto this huge yacht. It was Jessica Alba, her agent and about a dozen other people. We sailed out to a beach on Catalina; had a bonfire; cruised around; ate a fantastic meal; drank wine; sang songs; a couple of these guys were so frickin funny, we all laughed our heads off. On the way back, as we were nearing the marina, there was a popping sound and the engine burst into flames. The captain quickly put it out, but we were stuck. Captain called a nearby boat and the passengers climbed aboard and they took us in. It was a small fishing boat and it smelled funny.
Now. Should my date have been criticized because she put us in a position where we had to ride 5 mins in a cramped stinky boat? You have to look at the whole picture and not myopically at one aspect of the team.
