What do you remember from 2016 Packer Season?
The great run at the end of the season?
Aaron Rodgers, being Aaron Rodgers?
The great play of the Packer defensive backs? Opps - NOT!
The do have some cover:
*losing their number one game 1 - Shields
*injuries - a LOT of injuries
*not great pass rush
All of the above!
That was then, this is now - could there be a change - quick answer - YES!
Safeties (7 in camp & some experience & talent!)
Morgan Burnett - 6'1" - 209 lbs - Georgia Tech - Year 8
The leader! Solid player. Versatile player. Respected. Deserves All Pro status!
The Packers defense needs to improve. One consistent player is Morgan Burnett. He has been the one constant and dependable player the past 8 years!
Career Highlights:
- Finished tied for No. 4 on the team in tackles (74) and tied for No. 3 in solo tackles (55) despite missing five games due to a calf injury in 2015. Started both postseason contests and tied for the team lead with 14 tackles (11 solo).
- Led the team with 125 tackles (99 solo) and was tied for No. 3 on the team with a career-best 11 special teams tackles in 2014, despite missing one game due to injury.
- Posted two sacks and an interception in the 2014 NFC Championship Game at Seattle, becoming the first defensive back in franchise history (since 1982) to register two sacks in a postseason contest.
- Started each of the final 13 games in 2013, posting 106 tackles (77 solo), nine passes defensed and a career-high and team-leading three fumble recoveries, one of which he returned for his first career TD.
- Opened each of the team’s 16 games (plus both playoff contests) for the second consecutive season in 2012 and finished second on the defense with a career-high 137 tackles (97 solo), a career-best two sacks, 13 passes defensed, two forced fumbles, an interception and a fumble recovery.
- Participated in all 1,088 plays for the Packers’ defense in 2012, and, according to NFL participation statistics, was one of only four non-offensive linemen in the NFL to appear on 100 percent of his team’s snaps, joining St. Louis LB James Laurinaitis, Indianapolis QB Andrew Luck and San Diego QB Philip Rivers.
- Started each of the team’s 16 regular-season games in 2011, the first two at strong safety and the final 14 at free safety in place of an injured Nick Collins (neck), one of only two Green Bay defenders to start all 16 games (NT B.J. Raji).
- Despite the injury, continued to fill in the statistics sheet in first full season of action, posting a secondary-high 107 tackles (83 solo) and a career-high 14 passes defensed. Added three interceptions, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and his first career sack.
- Was one of only two players on the team (CB Charles Woodson) to record a sack, an interception, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble in 2011.
Some interesting tidbits:
Earned honorable mention all-state recognition at QB as a sophomore…Had his jersey, No. 1, retired by the school in April 2011…Also was a four-year letterman in track and a three-year letterwinner in basketball…Community involvement: Holds a free youth football camp in his community, Clayton County (Ga.), every summer…Is a spokesperson for the ALS Association Wisconsin Chapter...Is an ambassador for the NFL Play 60 program…Has participated in benefits for the Jerry Parins Cruise for Cancer…
Ha Ha Clinton-Dixx - 6'1" - 208 lbs - Alabama - Year 4
Last year, was selected as All-Pro. He has arrived & made himself into a force in the NFL! The Packers have two of the best safeties in the league! Wouldn't it be NICE to win a Super Bowl and have the defense lead the way & the defensive backs have a GREAT year! - Redemption!
Back in the day:
High school: Was rated the No. 1 safety in the nation by Rivals.com and Scout.com as a senior in 2010 at Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Fla. …Named an Under Armour All-American and a SuperPrep All-American…Was ranked as the top player in the state of Florida by Rivals.com and SuperPrep…Registered 112 tackles, including 10 tackles for a loss, six sacks, four forced fumbles, two interceptions and 10 passes defensed as a senior…On offense, carried the ball 23 times for 244 yards (10.6 avg.) and three TDs and caught five passes for 156 yards (31.2 avg.)…Returned eight punts for 199 yards (24.9 avg.) and 11 kickoffs for 291 yards (26.5 avg.)…As a junior in 2010, recorded 93 tackles, including 13 tackles for a loss, six sacks, three INTs, 12 passes defensed and three forced fumbles…Averaged 20.3 yards per punt return and 74.5 yards on two kickoff returns with one TD…Also lettered in track, participating in the 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams…Community involvement: Participated in community activities in Wisconsin involving Bellin Health, The Salvation Army, St. John the Baptist School and the Jerry Parins Cruise for Cancer…Helped paint houses in Tuscaloosa, Ala., following a destructive tornado in 2011…Residence: Orlando, Fla
Clinton-Dixx needs a big year, help the younger players, make some game changing moments, and deliver some BIG hits!
Kentrell Brice - 5'11" - 200 lbs - Louisiana Tech - Year 2
Apparently, this second year player has be delivering some big hits! Pound for pound, Brice has been
mentioned as a player that will still his nose into the ball carrier & the Packers NEED good tacklers!
Background:
High school: Attended Ruston (La.) High School, logging 159 tackles (104 solo), including nine for a loss, five forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, 31 pass breakups and six interceptions…Also posted eight blocked field goals, returned an INT for a 96-yard touchdown and returned two kickoffs for TDs during his senior year…Lettered in football all four years…Was named first-team all-district, honorable mention all-state and the Elite 22 Defensive MVP of the Year…Lettered two years in track and field and basketball
In year 2, watch for this kid on special teams & passing situation!
Josh Jones - 6'2" - 220 lbs - NC State - Rookie
Another hitter! This draft choice brings the punch! DO YOU SEE A THEME HERE?
The Packers have not been known as a physical team on defense, the time for change is here! Mike Daniels has been the man! The day may be arriving where Daniels will have a team of hitters around him!
And, from the Mike Spofford:
Following a 109-tackle, three-INT season in 2016, he declared for the NFL Draft a year early. He’s genuinely thrilled to be in Green Bay with a chance to play in Dom Capers’ scheme, but seeing eight safeties drafted ahead of him – three in the first round, five in the second – before the Packers came calling didn’t sit well.
“A lot of teams passed on me,” Jones said. “Trust and believe that I will never forget that. Every day that I wake up, every day I come here and come to work, that’s never going to leave my head.”
In the meantime, he wants to get inside the head of Clinton-Dix, a safety he’s admired from afar whom he’ll now get to work with up close.
“I watched Ha Ha, his highlights, before my games last season, so it’s crazy,” Jones said. “You’re actually in the locker room with the guy you used to watch on film before you used to play. It’s exciting.”
So is where Jones’ rookie season, and career for that matter, could be headed.
He has the confidence and the drive. He also has the humility and lack of entitlement. It’s an engaging mix.
Now, it’s up to him to prove he has the game.
“I don’t take a back seat to anybody as far as talent. I’m very confident in my abilities, and what God has blessed me with,” he said. “Going into the draft, when I declared, I knew I was an underdog. I’ve been an underdog my whole life.
“I go by the motto of ‘no handouts.’ I don’t want anything handed to me. I want to work for it.”
Read more: http://www.packers.com/news-and-events/article-daily-news-story/article-1/Josh-Jones-brings-engaging-personality-to-Green-Bay/f136db09-a756-4b68-af19-3aa53ed3f685#ixzz4ozxnuOeg
So, another physical safety! Let the hitting begin!
And, a few long shots at safety?
Marwin Evans - 5'11" - 211 lbs - Year 2
Background Info:
- One of five rookie free agents to make Green Bay’s Week 1 roster in 2016.
- Joined S Kentrell Brice as the only 2016 rookie free agents to play in all 16 regular-season games and three postseason contests for the Packers.
- Saw time primarily on special teams as a rookie and was tied for No. 2 on the team with nine tackles during the regular season.
- Signed by Green Bay as an undrafted free agent on May 10, 2016.
He has a year under his Packer belt. Best thing going for Evans is special teams & that may be the way he sticks, but as of now, a long shot!
Aaron Taylor - 5'11" - 206 lbs - Ball State - Year Rookie
A long shot from Ball State!
Jermaine Whitehead - 5'11" - 195 lbs - Auburn
Originally with the Ravens in 2015 & Packers last year. Looks like a player that needs a few breaks
to make the 53 man roster!!!
Next up the Corners!
Corners (11 in camp - the biggest room to improve?)
Davon House - 6'0" - 195 lbs - New Mexico St - Year 7
Damarious Randall - 5'11" - 196 lbs - Arizona St - Year 3
Quinten Rollins - 5'11 - 195 lbs - Miami(Ohio) - Year 3
Kevin King - 6'3" - 200 lbs - Washington - Rookie
LaDarius Gunter - 6'2" - 201 lbs - Miami - Year 3
Josh Hawkins - 5'10" - 189 lbs - E. Carolina - Year 2
Raysean Pringle - 6'0" - 191 lbs - S Utah - Rookie
Donatello Brown - 6'0" - 190 lbs - Valdosta State - Rookie
Lenzy Pipkins - 6'0" - 196 lbs - Oklahoma St - Rookie
Daquan Holmes - 5'11" - 187 lbs - American Int - Rookie
Demetri Goodson - 5'11" - 197 lbs - Baylor - Year 4
Coming up next!
