Adrian Fedkiw
Each day leading up to the official start of the NFL football season, I will be providing you with player rankings, team previews, analysis, predictions, opinions and a whole lot more.
Green Bay could’ve packed it in when Jordy Nelson was lost with an ACL tear during last year’s preseason, but the Packers still made it to the NFC Divisonal Round and it took overtime for the Arizona Cardinals to knock them out.
Aaron Rodgers had an off-year by his standards, although 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions isn’t too shabby. Not only was his top target Nelson sideline, but a lot of his other weapons were wounded and sidelined throughout the year.
And how about the Hail Mary’s?! There’s no other quarterback that puts as much air under those chuck and hope tosses than Rodgers does.
It’s already been five years since the Packers won the Super Bowl, that’s insane.
Grading the Roster
QBs- Aaron Rodgers (9.3), Brett Hundley (7.2)
RBs- Eddie Lacy (7.5), James Starks (7.2), John Crockett (7)
WRs- Jordy Nelson (8), Randall Cobb (7.5), Davante Adams (7.2), Ty Montgomery (7.2)
TEs- Richard Rodgers (7.3), Jared Cook (7.3)
Ts- David Bakhtiari (7.3), Bryan Bulaga (7.4), Jason Spriggs (7.2)
Gs- T.J. Lang (7.6), Lane Taylor (7.2), Don Barclay (7.2)
Cs- Corey Linsley (7.6), J.C. Tretter (7.2)
DEs- Mike Daniels (7.9), Datone Jones (7.3), Mike Pennel (7.3), Dean Lowry (7.1)
NTs- Letroy Guion (7.4), Kenny Clark (7.2)
OLBs- Clay Matthews (8.3), Julius Peppers (7.6), Nick Perry (7.3), Kyler Fackrell (7.1)
ILBs- Jake Ryan (7.3), Blake Martinez (7.1), Joe Thomas (7.1), Jay Elliott (7.1)
CBs- Sam Shields (7.4), Damarious Randall (7.3) , Quinten Rollins (7.3), Ladarius Gunter (7.1)
Ss- Morgan Burnett (7.8), Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (7.7), Micah Hyde (7.3)
K- Mason Crosby (7.3)
P- Tim Masthay (7.3)
KR- Jeff Janis (7.3)
PR- Ty Montgomery (7.3)
Team Rankings
Team- 7.457 (4/32)
Offense- 7.581 (3/32)
Defense- 7.385 (19/32)
Quarterbacks-8.25 (1/32)
Running Backs- 7.23 (29/32)
Receivers- 7.42 (10/32)
Offensive Line- 7.34 (19/32)
Defensive Line- 7.37 (11/16)
Linebackers- 7.38 (9/16)
Secondary- 7.41 (10/32)
Special Teams- 7.3
Coaches- 7.4
PREDICTION– 12-4 (1st NFC North)
QUARTERBACKS
There’s a misconception about what the mobile quarterback is. There’s more to being athletic than running and escaping the pocket and gaining yards on the ground. I mean, Rodgers isn’t as athletic as Cam Newton and Russell Wilson, but what he does is extend plays using his feet. He eludes rushers in the backfield, escapes the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield and delivers accurate balls while getting rid of it using his lightning quick release. So he uses his ability to extend and find open receivers instead of take off and pick up as many yards as he can on the ground. There’s no quarterback in the game that uses his feet as intelligently as Rodgers does.
So with Rodgers, not only do you have a quarterback that’s your traditional pocket passer that delivers the ball accurately and on time, he can also escape it and throw pees on the move. No other quarterback has both of those qualities to the extent of what Rodgers does. And going a bit further into his skills from the pocket, Rodgers is so accurate that defensive backs can rarely break on the ball. He’ll never miss wildly enough to the point where an overthrow lands into the arms of a deep secondary player. And when he misses behind a receiver, it’s only slightly and not enough for a trailing defender to get his paws on it. Rodgers throws with anticipation and places the ball into tight windows by controlling the velocity and trajectory of his passes.
If there is a weakness, Rodgers gets happy feet, which can limit his accuracy, but his arm talent is so great he can get away with it. There’s a reason why he has the highest-rated passer rating in the history of the game.
Last year’s fifth-round pick Brett Hundley is behind Rodgers on the depth chart.
RUNNING BACKS
Eddie Lacy finally took his weight loss seriously and hit up P90 X’s Tony Horton during the offseason and the Alabama product looks lean and mean! It reached a point where he had to do something, because at 250-plus pounds, that extra gear and stamina isn’t there. When the weight was more under control, not only was Lacy one of the stronger backs in the game, he’s very agile for a man his size, which might improve even more now with the weight loss. He’s also solid catching the ball out of the backfield and is an exceptional blocker.
James Starks is a one-cut runner that outplayed Lacy last year, while Jhurrell Pressley is the third-stringer.
RECEIVERS
White men can catch.
Nelson is a serious home-run threat, who totaled eight catches for 40 yards or more and 19 for at least 20 in 2014 prior to the injury last year. He had 4 TD catches of 60 yards or more and it was really five because another one went for 59. He has good hands and runs good routes.
His absence limited Randall Cobb’s production. He wasn’t as dynamic and dropped 14 balls a year ago. Davante Adams hasn’t lived up to his second-round billing as of yet. His route running isn’t great and that’s to go along with suspect hands. An ankle injury ended Ty Montgomery’s season earlier than expected, but showed some promise.
Jared Cook and Richard Rodgers are both pass catching tight ends. Rodgers is more sure-handed, while Cook is more athletic and explosive.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
With Josh Sitton and T.J. Lang, the Packers had the top pair o guards in the league. I’m still scratching my head over the decision to release Sitton. Lang is a good run blocker. He’s powerful, tough, agile and plays with good balance.
J.C. Tretter is the starter at center over Corey Linsley due to a lingering hamstring injury. Linsley is very powerful, but also agile enough to make blocks inside, outside and in the screen game. He’s very well rounded. His technique as footwork is outstanding. With his balance and strength, Linsley doesn’t get moved off of his spot often in pass protection.
David Bakhtiari and Bryan Bulaga are the left and right tackles, respectively, and third-round rookie Jason Spriggs has the potential to be a future starter.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Mike Daniels has silently become one of the better 3-4 defensive ends in the game. He plays with active hands and good leverage as a pass rusher, which makes it difficult for an offensive linemen to set up shop against him. Run defense is where Daniels really excels. He doesn’t have the length like many others on this list, but it’s his active hands which makes it difficult for a lineman to generate contact with him at the point of attack. He has good short area quickness and recognition skills to be able to bring down the ball carrier.
Former first-rounder Datone Jones is the other starter at defensive end and Letroy Guion is a underrated nose tackle. Rookie first-rounder Frank Clark is a name to watch as well.
LINEBACKERS
The last few seasons have shown how versatile Clay Matthews can be, moving over to inside linebacker out of necessity due to the scarcity of depth at the position in Green Bay. There is nobody that can come around and bend the edge the way Matthews down and he’s relentless in pursuit. His first step is ridiculously quick. In run defense he wins with leverage. In pass defense the one thing that I was really impressed with when he played inside linebacker was his ability to step up in coverage and take away the crossing routes.
The 36-year-old outside linebacker Julius Peppers still posted 11 1/2 sacks last year, still displaying athleticism and bend getting around the edge. Nick Perry is another option and sets the edge well in the run game.
Jake Ryan showed potential as an inside linebacker. He’s not great in coverage, but is tough and physical in run defense. Rookie Blake Martinez is the other starter.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Sam Shields is the Packers’ top cornerback, showcasing good press coverage skills. He has a strong jam at the line of scrimmage and thrives playing the deep ball.
The future is fairly bright too with Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins. Rollins played just one year of college football after starring in basketball and is already showing positive signs. His coverage was tight and his future is bright.
Safety Morgan Burnett is basically an extra linebacker on the field with his ability to play the run. He’s very savvy, which helps him overcome physical limitations, because he can slice through traffic without having to take on blockers and make plays on the ball. Pass coverage has always been a bit of a weakness, but Burnett’s improved in this area over the last few years. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix is also a solid run defender and flies downhill to tackle ball carriers.
TEAM PREVIEWS
AFC East: Buffalo Bills | New England Patriots | Miami Dolphins | New York Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens | Cincinnati Bengals | Pittsburgh Steelers | Cleveland Browns
AFC South: Indianapolis Colts | Houston Texans | Jacksonville Jaguars | Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Denver Broncos | Kansas City Chiefs | San Diego Chargers | Oakland Raiders
NFC West: Los Angeles Rams | San Francisco 49ers | Seattle Seahawks | Arizona Cardinals
NFC South: Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Atlanta Falcons | New Orleans Saints | Carolina Panthers
NFC North: Chicago Bears | Detroit Lions | Minnesota Vikings
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NFL PLAYER RANKINGS