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Packers 2016 NFL Draft: Day 2 Analysis

2016 NFL Draft analysis of the second and thrid round draft picks of the Green Bay Packers 

With the 48th pick of the NFL Draft, the Packers select tackle Jason Spriggs

Ted Thompson traded up from pick 57 to 48 to take another big man, this time on the offensive side of the ball. In addition to their second round pick, the Packers gave up their fourth round (125th) and seventh round (248th) picks to Indianapolis. The seventh round pick is almost meaningless because it is one of the last picks of the draft. Ted has done well with undrafted free agents and this gives them a little head-start identifying who they are going to target after the final pick is made. They also still have two compensatory picks at the end of the fourth round, so they didn’t give up much there either. It would be unusual to have 3 guys they really wanted bunched that close together.

Offensive line was an area of need, but most people thought they would be picking one a little later in the draft since the five starters are set. However, Spriggs was rated as a first rounder by some, and I think it’s safe to say Ted thought so too.

What they’re saying:

“Athleticism stands out” Brian Gutekunst

Strengths: Steady run and pass blocker. Has enough set-up quickness and lateral mobility to beat rushers around the corner, showing smooth body control and natural athleticism in space. Has the temperament needed to match up vs. fierce pass rushers. Rather than maul defenders at the point of attack, Spriggs relies on his quickness and agility.

Weaknesses: Tackles from collegiate spread offenses have struggled acclimating to the physicality of the NFL and this remains a concern for Spriggs, who struggles at times to sustain blocks due to average upper body strength and pad level. He needs to improve the timing and force of his punch in order to better control defenders. cbssports.com

Strengths: Athletic frame with long arms. Comes out of his stance with tremendous quickness and has elite lateral movement. Can get to extremely difficult backside cutoff blocks. Knee bender. As a move blocker, lands squarely in the strike zone and rolls hips and feet under him to wash down defender or secure a down-block. Shows good patience in space with ability to become solid combination blocker in zone scheme. Durable, four-year starter.

Weaknesses: Play strength needs improvement. Unable to match power as a base blocker and too easy moved off his spot. Doesn't use his length to his advantage often enough. Slows his slide when punching, allowing rushers opportunity to gain advantage around the corner. Needs stronger hands to snatch and control rather than just push. NFL.com

Other options on the board:

Seattle traded up right behind the Packers and picked Jarran Reed, who many thought Green Bay might have picked in the first round. At picks 52 and 53, Deion Jones and Su’a Cravens, two other players that had been predicted to the Packers in the second round. However, the Packers obviously got the guy they wanted by trading up nine spots.

Why they went with Spriggs:

Many were expecting a middle linebacker or another defensive lineman in the second round, but Spriggs potential was obviously too much to pass up. I think having 4 offensive line (3 starters) entering the last year of their contracts, makes this a great pick. Spriggs will be a quality backup that can jump in when Bulaga gets hurt. With Spriggs backing up the tackles and Tretter in the middle, this is a deep o-line. The Packers coaching staff has done an excellent job developing offensive lineman from the middle rounds of the draft, so I think it is likely they can help improve Spriggs areas of weakness. He was only about 250 pounds when he got to Indiana, so he is still learning and improving as he fills out his frame. With his physical ability he has a lot of potential.  

 

With the 88th pick of the NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers selected Utah State outside linebacker Kyler Fackrell

In the third round, Ted Thompson added another big, athletic guy. Fackrell was probably the best pass rusher left on the board. After picking two young guys, the Packers picked one of the oldest players in the draft. Fackrell is already 24 years old. But maturity has its advantages as well. Kyler is married and has a baby girl and from all accounts he is a great guy. Watching film of Utah State, Fackrell stands out as the best player on the field. He is all over the place, putting pressure on the quarterback, causing turnovers, and creating opportunities for his team mates.

What they’re saying:

Strengths: Premium length and athleticism. Rangy tackler who is able to shadow the ball all over the field. Has length and arm extension to punch and control the point of attack. Functional strength is good enough against the run. Has length and motor for tremendous tackle radius. Had 80 tackles or more in each of his last three full seasons. Had just five sacks, but often dropped into space. Potential is there to become plus pass rusher. Combines forward lean, hip explosion and long arms to crank up speed-­to­-power pocket push. Upfield burst covers substantial ground in first three steps. Has upper body turn and shoulder dip to slip under tackle’s shoulder and around the corner. Don’t sleep on his cover ability in space.

Weaknesses: Missed the entire 2014 season with an ACL tear. Can improve his hand play as pass rusher at the high side of his rush. When edge rush stalls out, has average counter attack. Long-strider who struggles to make sudden inside moves once he gets going upfield. High center of gravity combined with lean lower half make it difficult to play through redirect blocks with contact balance. NFL.com

Strengths: Tall, long-levered frame. Worked hard to develop his muscle and limb strength. Loose athlete with smooth redirection skills and long strides to cover a lot of ground. Lateral quickness to sidestep blocks or string plays to the outside. Active rusher and quick to read, adjust his angle and close. Uses his length to engage and lock out. Looks natural in reverse and has experience in coverage. Offers athletic versatility and natural ball-skills (eight passes defended and four interceptions in his career). Played on special teams coverages in college, including one blocked kick. Humble and hard-working, but also feisty and competitive - singled out as the leader of the defense by his head coach. Football junkie who already works and prepares like a professional. Highly productive with 253 tackles and 36.0 tackles for loss over 41 career starts.

Weaknesses: Lean-muscled body type with lanky bulk. Not a forceful player at the point of attack and needs to develop his take-on strength to push through the shoulder of blockers. Plays tall and too easily caught up in the crowd. Quick hands, but shed technique and block recognition requires fine-tuning. Needs to better break down and finish in space. Long-legged mover, leading to choppy steps and lost balance in short-areas. Inconsistent backfield vision and anticipation, which leads to overaggressive tendencies. Older prospect and will be a 25-year old NFL rookie. Missed all of the 2014 season due to an ACL tear in his right knee. cbssports.com

NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah: "He is very loose and bendy to wrap around blocks and pursue from the back side. He's versatile in the passing game. He can run and mirror tight ends and he's an explosive blitzer. Overall, this is a very athletic edge defender with the ability to make plays on all three downs."

Who was on the board at 88:

Andrew Billings, who many had going to the Packers in the first round is still on the board after round three. Joshua Perry from Ohio State is another popular fan target still waiting to be picked. Nick Vigil, ILB from Utah State, went one pick ahead of the Green Bay, but there are still many inside linebackers left to choose from on day three.

Why they went with Fackrell:

I think a theme is emerging among the Packers picks so far. There is a lot of talk from Packer personnel about the difficulty in finding quality big men. Both Spriggs and Fackrell are long and athletic. It appears this is an area of focused improvement for Thompson in this draft. It is also apparent they don’t value the inside linebacker position. However, Fackrell does fill a need at OLB, because Matthews is the only one guaranteed to be there beyond this year.

I think Kyler’s versatility improves the group as a whole. I’m not saying he is as good as Clay, but he is also good in space and he often dropped in to coverage in college. Scouts said he can cover tight ends.

I am excited to add him to this defense. This may be just me, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Capers use more of his edge rushers in passing situations. The fact that both Matthews and Fackrell are capable in space would make the defense more unpredictable. I love when they line up Peppers next to Matthews on one side. Put Fackrell or Perry opposite Matthews, and with Daniels that is a dangerous group.  

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Comments (22)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
croatpackfan's picture

April 30, 2016 at 01:05 am

Nice overview Adam... No wolves today to cry because of bad picks?

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dobber's picture

April 30, 2016 at 07:44 am

Even COW has been pleased...

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Rossonero's picture

April 30, 2016 at 01:14 am

I was caught off guard by the Spriggs pick, but trust in the Packers staff. We still have two 4th round picks, so it made sense.

The only weakness with him seems to be getting beat inside, but he's got the quickness to stuff anything outside. Like Brian Gutensk said, he's an athletic freak. It wouldn't surprise me if the Bears or Seahawks wanted him.

Now the only question becomes what does this mean for David Bakhtiari? The market value for left tackles may be too expensive for Ted. However, apparently Gutensk said Spriggs can play anywhere on the line.

I don't know much about Fackrell, but was happy since he's a pass rusher. Although the offensive line will have 4 free agents next year, the defense could lose Peppers and Perry next year and Neal is still unsigned, so OLB/DE is a huge need.

Next up is hope is ILB. Josh Perry, Kentrell Brothers or Scooby Wright I'd love to have plug up the middle.

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croatpackfan's picture

April 30, 2016 at 02:10 am

I would like them to get another DL man! Maybe some DE who can play end in 3-4!

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dobber's picture

April 30, 2016 at 05:35 am

They must have felt that Spriggs's issues were coachable. I hope so, and it certainly sounds like they are (although why a college line coach hadn't worked them out of him in four years is questionable).

Fackrell is a solid pick as well. Some had him going middle of round 2. High character, high effort guy...that seems to be the theme of this year's draft.

The question is: are these guys finishers?

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Irish_Cheesehead's picture

April 30, 2016 at 08:16 am

Very rare to have an O lineman come NFL ready. They all need a year or two.

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NickPerry's picture

April 30, 2016 at 06:18 am

I absolutely LOVE this draft so far and think Thompsons 2nd and 3rd picks were Home Runs. All 3 picks are athletic as hell for their size. For those of you who saw the tape of Spriggs running down the field at the combine backwards turning side to side (What do you call the drill TGR?) know what I'm talking about when I say "Athletic as hell", it's impressive.

Best of all I think Ted went up and grabbed the Player the Bears wanted because they traded RIGHT OUT after with Seattle.

With Fackrell I think we got a guy who can cover and rush the QB just as well and I think will be able to play quite a bit as a rookie. Adam already said it, Matthews & Peppers on one side and Perry & Fackrell on the other with Daniels pushing the pocket in the middle with Clark and Jones to rotate in.... Priceless.

Edit....Acorrding to Scout Inc these were the overall rankings for the Packers 3 picks. I'd sat TT got excellent value with each pick.

Clark...... #36 Overall #6 at his position
Spriggs...#54 Overall #7 at his position
Fackrell..#67 Overall #6 at his position

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 30, 2016 at 11:29 am

Sounds like a Pass Pro mirror drill. I like these picks. Not sure that Fackrell should be described as a pass rusher. Before Taryn rushes to Fackrell's defense, I am not dissing Fackrell: he is a well-rounded player who can rush, drop into coverage, and is okay against the run. Lots to work with here, and you can't teach 6'5".

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calabasa's picture

April 30, 2016 at 06:53 am

Adam- love this site to death, but Clay Matthews is the second-best player on the team you're covering, and you are misspelling his name. I don't think it's expecting too much, or maybe I'm just old.

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phillythedane's picture

April 30, 2016 at 07:31 am

Blogging trumping proofreading. It's happening everywhere.

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JerseyAl's picture

April 30, 2016 at 07:32 am

We all make mistakes. I fixed it.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 30, 2016 at 11:30 am

Calabasa: "Get off my lawn!"

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NickPerry's picture

April 30, 2016 at 07:31 am

You guys have to check out this video of Fackrell. The INT is AWESOME.

http://espn.go.com/blog/green-bay-packers/post/_/id/29651/packers-pick-o...

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zoellner25's picture

April 30, 2016 at 08:24 am

Sweet. He looks like a solid tackler too.

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Since'61's picture

April 30, 2016 at 07:44 am

Very solid draft for the Packers so far. These picks will provide depth first and then hopefully evolve into solid starting players. Good job TT and staff. Go Pack Go! Thanks, Since '61

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4thand1's picture

April 30, 2016 at 08:03 am

I love watching the expert's jaws drop when teams do just the opposite when picking. No player comes with a guarantee of being great or a bust. The Packers picked guys with no off field issues and team leaders. I remember a lot of posts in the past about no leadership on this team.

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zoellner25's picture

April 30, 2016 at 08:22 am

I like the pick, but I love there are many TEs and ILBs left on the board.

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ben's picture

April 30, 2016 at 11:43 am

Overall B:

Kenny Clark C-
A big guy who can move a little and has a decent motor, but nothing special. Not great 1st round value.

Jason Spriggs B+
A franchise left tackle who can EASILY play guard. Gave up quite a bit though and as of now does not fill a major need. as far as value

Kyler Fackrell B+
An absolute Kyle VanNoy clone. And I'm a fan of Kyle VanNoy. The same versatility, same instincts, the same natural moves, the same athlete, the same age, the exact same football player. which is a good thing. The 1 weakness to his game, and it's seems to be glaring, is his open field tackling. He misses a lot of open field tackles. He also tends to over pursue and get caught out of position which I don't think is really a problem and comes with being an aggressive proactive player.

Decent draft so far, but again (& again & again & again & again.....), the Packers are failing to address their annual team weakness at ILB and NT. Kenny Clark may add some depth on the defensive line but isn't a true upgrade at the NT position. Fackrell is versatile, but a better fit outside. Clay will again need to play the majority of his snaps inside no matter what MM has said this offseason.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 30, 2016 at 11:33 am

There is some truth in this comment.

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al bundy's picture

April 30, 2016 at 09:42 am

Why give away two needed picks to move up a few slots for a guy that would have been there anyways. I mean the guy is 25 years old. By the time he comes into his own, if he does he is 27 or 28. 30 is old for an OL and you spent a two pick to get hm and gave away too picks too boot.
The costs was too high for this guy.
Ted seems to shy away from the big named talent. Maybe he thinks they are too expensive down the line?

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dobber's picture

April 30, 2016 at 09:58 am

Spriggs is young. Fackrell is 24 (25 soon).

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 30, 2016 at 11:36 am

Al Bundy is confused about the facts again. All evidence suggests that Spriggs would not have been there at #57. Coleman would have been. I think Spriggs has a higher ceiling than Coleman, so I am fine with that. IIRC, Coleman fell a fairly long way.

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