Defense, Draft, and D-backs

      In the 2011 NFL season, the Green Bay Packers defense ranked last in total defense and pass defense, and 14^th against the run. With the NFL draft just around the corner and free agency looming thereafter, the obvious areas of need are on defense. What were the major holes in the defense that led to such poor statistics? The secondary got shredded. This may, however, have more to do with the other defensive problem, the lack of a pass rush. The Packers fell in the bottom five teams, recording only 29.0 sacks over the year. The loss of Cullen Jenkins and absence of LB Frank Zombo and a handful of other defense players made an obvious impact on their pass rush. The previous year, the Pack ranked second in the league with 47.0 sacks.

      The draft is the first chance the Packers have to address the defensive flaws. Mock drafts project the Packers drafting DE Shea McClellin (Boise St.), DE Whitney Mercilus (Illinois), and a slew of other OLB's and DE's. I don't claim to be a draft expert in any way, so I won't make any predictions or suggestions here other than to say that an OLB or DE is essential to fixing the defensive problems.

      Another interesting and debated option comes in the realm of the “draft day trade.” The Philadelphia Eagles are reportedly willing to trade CB Asante Samuel for a 5^th or 6^th round draft pick. Samuel is one of the best zone corners in the NFL and has recorded the second most interceptions over the last five years, behind Green Bay's own Charles Woodson. I have heard that Samuel's $10 million contract would allow for renegotiation, but that has been the deal breaker for teams like the Denver Broncos. The problem with Samuel is his poor tackling, which would only multiply the current tackling issues in our secondary, and is not very good in man coverage, which the Packers play predominately. However, for a cheap price Samuel would be a great replacement as a nickel corner if CB Sam Shields continues to regress from his stellar 2010 rookie campaign. Other options include starting CB Tramon Williams and Samuel at corner and moving the aging Woodson to the safety spot.

      These are some different suggestions to ponder. I'd like to see the Packers draft a DE, OLB, and DB early in the draft and add a veteran defensive back like Samuel. There are available players in this draft who can make an immediate impact on this Packers team and help the defense return to it's Super Bowl form of 2010.

      Don't get too worried about the defense, though. Aaron Rodgers and the offense can always just drop 40 or 50 points to get the win.

-Zack

All stats come from nfl.com or espn.com