Packers 2016 NFL Draft: Round 1 Analysis

It's starting to feel a little bit like Packers fans are starting to get a bead on Ted Thompson; many people, including our own dear leader Jersey Al had the Packers selecting Kenny Clark with the 27th overall pick.  While defensive tackle was widely assumed to be a position of need after the sudden retirement of BJ Raji and the 4 game suspension of Mike Pennel, the Packers had a wealth of talent to choose from and ulitmately picked Clark over Jarran Reed, A'Shawn Robinson, Andrew Billings and Vernon Butler.  While the 4 guys above are certainly bigger names than Clark, Clark's main advantage is likely his versatility; in reality the Packers defense plays the majority of its snaps in subpackages (nickel and dime), which diminishes the value of a true nose tackle.  Reed, Robinson and Billings likely will only be able to play the 0,1 or 3 technique (in a 4-3), meaning it really came down between Clark and Butler as the two players who could manage in the 0 tech (NT) and move to 4 and 5 technique in the Packers subpackages. 

Strengths and Weaknesses

STRENGTHS: Scouts can check off a lot of boxes with Clark. He was a high school wrestling champ, and many of those maneuvers translate from the mat to the football field, playing with low hips, leverage and power. He's a stout run defender who comes off the ball low and hard, consistently winning the leverage battle. Anchors well to double teams, planting his feet into the turf and locking out his arms. Clark flashes a quick burst but doesn't rely on it, exploding through the gap to wreak havoc at the line of scrimmage when opponents attempt to pull to block others. Asked to play defensive end, defensive tackle and nose guard for the Bruins, Clark will enter the NFL with plenty of position and schematic versatility. WEAKNESSES: Just average size for the position. While possessing an exciting initial burst, Clark tops out quickly and shows just average change of direction and balance for the position, limiting his upside as a pass rusher. Clark gives good effort in pursuit but too often gets caught up in the hand-fighting at the line of scrimmage and occasionally is extended too far over his feet. - CBS Draft

STRENGTHS: Former high school wrestler who can generate torque through upper body strength and leverage with power in his hips. Will hammer finesse guards and centers with initial punch and overtake the neutral zone. Quick to diagnose run direction and will race to set the edge against blocker. Low center of gravity and powerful core make him a challenging block to seal for linemen. Cranks up a nasty bull ­rush to collapse pocket when single blocked. Plays with plus instincts and football IQ. Has feel for trap blocks and double teams and is quick to read and react to screens. Can work his way through double teams and squeeze the gap. WEAKNESSES: Short and missing arm length to be better tackle finisher. Allowed unusual amount of broken tackles (4) for an interior lineman. Not a quick twitch athlete. Needs to do a better job of bringing feet and hips through contact. Gets too anxious pursuing down line and can lose backside contain. Despite strength, lack of size will be challenging in some matchups. Straight line bull­ rusher with average lateral quickness for twists. - NFL.com

Other options on the board

Of the defensive tackles, the biggest name was likely Vernon Butler, but in reality the Packers had their choice of any of the interior defensive linemen outside Sheldon Rankins.  However the biggest story has to be the precipitous fall of Myles Jack, who fits a position of need but comes with serious injury concerns.  Right off the bat, I knew that if Jack was there at 27, the Packers certainly would not be picking him.  The Packers have one of the most conservative training and medical staffs in the league and if 26 other teams decided to not pick Jack there was no way the Packers were going to be the ones to stop his fall.  Media reports have been all over the map in terms of Jack's health; some have said teams have crossed Jack off their boards while others have said they were fine with picking him (perhaps they meant later in the draft), there were also rumors that teams wanted to have Jack sign an injury waiver.  In reality, it appears teams were a lot more hesitant about Jack's knee than was initially let on; it's quite possible that Jack will need microfracture surgery which would likely shorten his career, add to Jack may never recover from the ACL tear and the result is Jack still being on the available in the 2nd round.  The other player most linked to the Packers is probably ILB Reggie Ragland, who fits the traditional mold of the 3-4 inside linebacker and Deion Jones from LSU, who fits more of the mold of the "modern" ILB, who is faster and can cover at the expense of run defense.  The last player the Packers might have their eyes on is OG Cody Whitehair, who was widely considered to be the top guard in the draft and a likely 1st round pick; while it would be out of character for Thompson to pick a guard so high, it was rumored that the Packers would have selected Kevin Zeitler in 2012 if the Bengals hadn't scooped him up right before the Packers picked.  

The Trade that was never meant to be

Other than a defensive tackle or (unrealistically) an inside linebacker, the most other common pick was for the Packers to actually trade down and let a QB needy team secure a valuable 5th year option for their quarterback of the future.  While Ted Thompson pretty much too all of his allotted time trying to find a trading partner in the end it was 2 of his proteges who managed to add value in the draft.  Seattle has made it basically a tradition of trading down in the 1st and John Schneider dropped down from right before the Packers to the end of the 1st with the Broncos who traded up to get Paxton Lynch; in return the Seahawks got a extra 3rd round pick and probably ended up with the same player they wanted all along in Germain Ifedi.  Kansas City and John Dorsey pulled a similar move by trading out of the 1st entirely with the 49ers, who curiously picked guard Joshua Garnett but had to give up their 2nd round pick, 4th round pick and 6th round pick; not too shabby for dropping down 10 picks.  It's a little surprising to see "Trader Ted" stand pat, but recently Thompson has been staying put more often than he was when he was just starting out as the GM; maybe it's a sign of maturity.  

 

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Comments (112)

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

April 29, 2016 at 07:16 am

Both Al and Brian Carriveau had their mock drafts and had the Packers taking Clark.

During that episode of Railbird, I told people that Clark was my dark horse pick for the Packers. The fit was almost perfect. He is great as a NT. Packers needed a NT. The area in which he was taken is about where he was going to go.

Packers seem to really like UCLA players especially since Jim Mora took over.

After everything, Clark made a lot of sense.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:19 am

McGinn had him too.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:22 am

Also Pete Prisco had him yesterday in his mock draft.

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WKUPackFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:30 am

I think we darn near blew up CHTV's band width last night. I've never seen a comments section spill over into two pages. What fun!

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:37 am

That was a lot of fun last night.

We need to do it again tonight!

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:46 am

I'm sure loved all the clicks they got with the constant refreshing. haha

I'll be here tonight.

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JerseyAl's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:57 am

you said that, not me!

In reality, just glad you are all here and enjoy what we do.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:59 am

It was great last night. really was.

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Wiscokid's picture

April 29, 2016 at 03:42 pm

Jersey All, sparkling as ever!

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:01 am

Agreed last nite was hilarious. I'm sleepy at work but who cares.I would have preferred Butler but the more I read about Clark the more I agree w the pick. He's got a ton of potential for such a young guy. Now wr just need our mlb and pass rushers in rounds 2/3 and we can call the draft a success!

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:03 am

Yea, I'm dragging ass. haha

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:07 am

lol. its why they make energy drinks and coffee. :)

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:22 am

If u think I haven't had plenty of coffee already today you must have been Tunsiln'.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:34 am

I need one of those gasmask bongs, only filled with coffee.

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:49 am

Me too bro.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 04:19 pm

I'm thankful that Fridays are usually slow. No Heat Tickets. No one cares about fixing their computer - they just want to go home, lol. So I've been feet up Youtube'n.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:36 am

I will say I think a lot of people got a little luck on Clark since everyone assumed there would be a lot more DTs selected than there actually were. If you had told draftniks that the Packers could pick any interior DL other than Rankins, I don't think many would have picked Clark.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:03 am

Honestly, I was higher on Clark then others. He just fits our defense better then some of the other players. I think he has more upside too.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:33 am

Man, tooting the hell out of that horn, aren't ya, RC? Ha.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:46 am

about the only one that i can. lol

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:53 am

Lol, live it up!!!!

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:25 am

lol. will do.

Looking forward to tonight.

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Big_Mel_75's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:48 pm

314 seems pretty light for an NFL Nose tackle. To many better options where on the board that I bet the mock drafts never dreamed would still be there...

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TKWorldWide's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:21 am

I am thinking that TT might give less than two piles of fecal matter about drafting "big names".

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:38 am

If big names means players thought to go to the 1st round and to the Packers then Clark is a big name. If you mean a guy coming from Ohio St or Alabama then not so much.

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Big_Mel_75's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:50 pm

you mean coming from the two best programs in college football...

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TKWorldWide's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:22 am

Can't wait for rounds two and three tonight! I'll be at Miller Park and checking for updates. Unless a baseball game actually breaks out.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:23 am

lol.

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Packer_Pete's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:29 am

I am somewhat ok with the pick, but I do have a question for the guys who watch college football regularly. I don't. And it's a serious question, not meant to troll, I just want to hear an opinion from people who actually watched Pac-10 games.
Clark's strength is playing the run. They also had Jack at MLB at UCLA. So why was UCLA's run D so bad? Now I only know McCaffrey as RB in the Pac-10, but the Pac-10 is generally not known as having great run teams or great RBs. It seems to me that the middle of the UCLA D wasn't really as stout as one would assume with Clark and Jack?

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John Galt III's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:57 am

Maybe the other 9 players were not that great.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:18 am

^^THIS^^

Sometimes really good players come from really average or lousy teams. As an example that strikes close to many of our hearts: Troy Vincent comes to mind.

Sorry to invoke memories of the Don Morton Badgers on this Friday morning...

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:58 am

Why was Goff the number 1 overall pick when he only won 14 games total?

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:21 am

I recognize your question as being mostly rhetorical, but I wonder this myself. There's been a long-running hype train on Goff, and this might be the culmination of it. He's a very good college QB with many of the tools an NFL team looks for, but I wonder if he's got "it"...

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:05 am

I think he will be good, but how good? I have heard though, if Goff wasn't on the team they wouldn't have won 1 game. So that kind of explains it.

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Big_Mel_75's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:55 pm

Because EVERY year teams/ scouts take the two best QBs and make them into Hall of Famer talents. Remember Geno Smith being super awesome. RG3 one year wonder boy, You can go on and on they hype the crap out of QBs that need time on the bench and say they are ready to start then fall on their face...

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ray nichkee's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:11 am

Didn't get to watch many pac-10 games but my buddy, a born and raisedpacker fan lives in LA now and is a sports geek. He always lets me know when he likes a pick and i got a text from him last night.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:42 am

The talent pool in college is just so diluted that it's not uncommon to find good players out in the middle of nowhere; there are hundreds of college teams that feed into only 32 NFL teams. A good example is Nick Collins, I literally no nothing about Bethune Cookman other than Nick Collins, I couldn't even tell you what state the school is. Another is Donald Driver, do you know anything about Alcorn State?

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:45 am

After Cleveland picked the Baylor receiver to pair with RGIII, I thought to myself "They're creating Baylor West. Or is it Baylor East. Wait, where the hell is Baylor?"

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Packer_Pete's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:13 am

It'd be Baylor North LOL :-)

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WKUPackFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:09 am

Another reason is the PAC 10 is a heavy spread offense league, thus defending the pass is much more important. Teams are going to get gashed in that situation.

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lucky953's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:34 am

We all know Ted is a scout at heart. With the enormous amount of evaluation work they've done, I don't think there was a lot of second guessing. If Seattle had kept their pick, might Ted have dropped down to acquire another pick? There still would have been a quality lineman available. I believe the Packers are really, really happy to get Clark. A quality character person, hard worker, with the physical tools to develop. Barring injury, a lock to become an NFL starter. I feel an enormous sense of relief. I think Clark will play meaningful snaps and lead to an improved defense. With Randall and Rollins making 2nd year jumps, I think this could be our best defense since 2010-11.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:08 am

They still have work to do on this defense to get back to that level. They lost a lot of snaps in Neal and Hayward. Hayward might be more easily replaced (based on what's currently on the roster) but you need to have depth at CB. Maybe you consider Jones to be an in-house replacement for Neal, but then, who is the replacement for Jones? It's not Clark...he's the replacement for Raji.

More...work...to...do...

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holmesmd's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:40 am

Not so sure about that? Guion & Pennel can replace Raji. Clark can play outside opposite Daniels!:)

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:45 am

good thing they got 8 more picks...

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lucky953's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:27 pm

Well, now I can say: 6'5" Kyler Fackrell. The Pack is killin' it so far.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:44 am

I think the Broncos were targeting the Seahawks cause they knew they would be willing partners with the Packers as probably Plan B. It would have been nice to stay in the first round and grab another pick, I'd guess Clark would still be there at 31.

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NickPerry's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:41 am

Clark is a solid and safe pick for Green Bay. Everything I read about the guy is positive, ZERO red flags, no injury history, strong as hell, and got better each season with the Bruins, and has that wrestling background. I'm really loving the idea of Daniels and Clark tossing O-Linemen out of the way on the way to the QB. He 6'3" so he can be used all over the D-Line which might be most important for the Packers. One of the things I like most is he didn't "Vault" up draft boards after the combine so the Spandex Games didn't really have anything to do with Clark going in 1st round. He was considered a late 1st rounder before AND after the combine. Guys who jump too much scare the hell out of me.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:47 am

Clark probably doesn't test well cause that's not what he does well as a player . He wins in leverage and power, almost all the drills are on speed and agility.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:57 am

As an educator, this is our problem as a society: if you're testing based on one set of traits or outcomes, you shouldn't necessarily generalize it beyond that. Just because a WR scores an 8 on the wonderlic doesn't mean he can't get to the post.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:23 pm

I think most people agree it's a poor predictor of talent but there aren't any better standardized tests and it's also why game tape is so important.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 02:40 pm

I seem to remember Mike&Mike arguing over whether the fact that Eli Apple couldn't make himself a grilled cheese sandwich meant he would fall in the draft...whaaaat?

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stockholder's picture

April 29, 2016 at 07:43 am

TT made the right pick! Clark was rated very high before the Hype. Too many Question marks along the LBs. They should have been taken long before the #27 pick. Billings should have been taken before #27 too. I would go right back to the DL tonight again. Being Jones is the new elephant.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:02 am

I'm really excited to see who will be available for the Packers tonight. Do they trade up? There should be some really good defensive players available to them tonight.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:06 am

Deion Jones? Brothers? Correa?

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:06 am

I would go Deon Jones, or Correa.

IMO, if they can come away with a starting caliber LB, they nailed this draft.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:10 am

The value picks tonight will be at DL. A lot of players that we didn't think would be available in r2 are going to be there at #57 or in easy "trade-up" range.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:16 am

That is what I'm really wondering. Do they trade up for another DL. I think there will be a big run on DL early in the 2nd round.

If Ragland falls more do they look to trade up for him?

If Jack continues to fall do they take him at the end of Round 2 or trade up for him?

So much intrigue. I can't wait.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:40 am

I think they can stand pat and get a very good LB.

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:08 am

I agree.

Some guys to keep an eye on in the 2nd round.

Correa, Ogbah, Cravens, Jordan Jenkins, Deion Jones, Spence, Calhoun, Fackrell, and Josh Perry.

I think all could be in play for the Packers 2nd round pick.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:49 am

Unless something really unusual happens, Jack is not going to be a Packer. Can you think of any situation where Thompson stopped a big name player from falling in the draft due to medical concerns? Thompson usually doesn't take those risks, maybe he got gun shy after Justin Harrell.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:05 am

To be fair, "big name players who are falling due to medical concerns" is a relatively small sample size from which to draw any conclusions.

I think each case is unique and just because TT didn't draft, say, Marcus Lattimore, doesn't have any bearing on Myles Jack.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:26 pm

Fair point but we have all seen how the Packers deal with injured players on the roster and that definitely translates to the draft. At least in the first round the Packers almost always pick a guy with a clean medical record (outside of Harrell)

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:56 am

I saw this morning on twitter that Nagler said that he heard that the Packers were close to pulling the trigger on Jack. No clue how true it is, but thats interesting.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:48 am

I was close to dating Stevie Nicks...that is if you count my working seats during one of her shows at Alpine Valley. I was close...

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J0hn Denver's Gavel's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:16 pm

Is/ was Stevie Nicks even/ ever hot? Serious question.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:33 pm

No...but she was rich.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:59 am

AT some point, the value takes over. The question is: how much value does the guy making the call place on the player?

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croatpackfan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:26 am

Ragland has some healthy issues - he has enlarged aorta, so it might be risky to draft him!

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 09:51 am

Whatever... ;)

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:27 pm

Supposedly the enlarged aorta will not be a playing issue, so it's probably more likely that Ragland is a more old school LB that is out of fashion at the moment

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holmesmd's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:44 am

R3, no, r2 ;) As everyone here knows, I would take J Brown before all of these guys, probably not Correa though I guess? Like k

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NickPerry's picture

April 29, 2016 at 04:36 pm

HELL YES, MAYBE, YES!!!!

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ray nichkee's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:04 am

I read an OTL piece on his family at espn. He sounds like a strong individual who used football as a focus. He could have easily taken a different path. I'd share the link but i don't know how with a smartphone. Check it out, it's a good read.

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Razer's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:10 am

The amount of research going into these picks is phenomenal. When you watch all these guys drop into the second round, such as Myles Jack, you realize that teams are doing their homework.

I like what I read about Clark and glad that we invested in the D-line. Let's hope that we follow-up with a gem in the second.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:16 am

"It's a little surprising to see "Trader Ted" stand pat, but recently Thompson has been staying put more often than he was when he was just starting out as the GM; maybe it's a sign of maturity. "

I think it's more a sign of his having fixed many of the holes that Mike Sherman (who gutted the roster) left for him to clean up. It might be more accurate to say that the roster has matured, not Ted. Besides, "Trader Ted" likes to move around on day 2 and 3, too. Plenty of time...

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:50 am

That comment was written a little tongue in cheek.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:00 am

Your keyboard has a cheek? ;)

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:27 pm

Doesn't yours?

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:47 am

Correa and J Brown .....like ...O...M....G. That would be insane. (Said in a 14 year old girl style)

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:55 am

I would like that.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:09 am

What some might not be realizing just yet:

If the coaches can some how avoid Kenny Clark and Mike Daniels from being double teamed just about every play that Pocket is going to collapse early and often. I think that was the only problem he faced at UCLA. I think the coaches should have lined him up directly over guards and not the center a lot of the time. He's ok at holding his ground against the Double Team.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:04 am

Getting push from the interior makes your edge rushers so much more effective. Where do you help? I'd like to see our edge rushers against OL on an island more. Forcing QBs into early decisions will make our iffy ILBs better in coverage by default.

A good pass rush will hide a lot of defensive shortcomings. In the recent past, I would argue that many sacks the Packers were getting were coverage sacks: the DBs were able to hold coverage long enough for the rushers to get to the QB. I'd like to see the pass rush catch up in that regard.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:11 am

I am so tempted to download that Chargers game again. Dom was throwing everything at Rivers, but wasn't getting home nearly enough.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:29 pm

I'd be more than happy if Clark and Daniels get doubled every play, that would mean clay would get a 1-1 and at least two other guys would have a straight shot at the QB

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:06 am

Please no Calhoun that's all I ask...

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:12 am

I was thinking about this earlier: I've seen more than enough Mocks that have the Pack taking Kentrell Brothers. I'd MUCH rather have Calhoun than Kentrell Brothers.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:18 am

And how...and that says a lot.

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EdsLaces's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:25 am

No way dude. Calhoun is exactly like neal/perry. I think Brothers has playmaking ability. You don't have that many tackles plus a few picks plus like 3 blocked kicks of you aren't a playmaker.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:25 am

You might want to check those Game Logs/Splits and do some comparisons.

The longest Calhoun went without a sack was 2 games (Totaled 10.5 sacks)

Brothers had 2 INTs last season (both in 1 game) and the longest he went without a sack is 4 games (Totaled 2.5 sacks)

The longest Calhoun went without a TFL was 1 game (Totaled 15)

The longest Brothers went without a TFL was 2 (Totaled 12)

Misc. Defense:

Calhoun has just as much pass break-ups as Brothers and he's an Edge Rusher (3)

Brothers has 1 QB hurry compared to Calhoun's 18

Calhoun has just as much as Forced Fumbles as Brothers (1)

Brothers blocked more Kicks/Punts (3) than Calhoun (1)

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:17 pm

I've said here many times that I think Calhoun will struggle in a transition to 3-4 OLB, but there are many Kentrell Brothers types in this draft. If the Packers dump a #2 on a two-down run-stuffer who can't cover, TT needs to have his head examined. With Calhoun, there's pass-rush upside. I think we know exactly what Brothers will be.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:29 pm

I'm with you, but if it comes down between Brothers and Calhoun -- I want Calhoun. That's all I'm saying.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 29, 2016 at 01:00 pm

I don't want Brothers at all. Hard pass unless I just want a back up for Barrington late.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:16 am

Who is left as reasonable 2nd Rd choices?

DL (6) Robinson, Billings, Reed, Chris Jones, Bullard, Austin Johnson, Hargrave?, Washington? Nassib?;

OLB (8) Spence, Ogbah, Dodd*, Correa, Calhoun, Kaufusi, Josh Perry, Deion Jones, Fackrell, Cravens?;

ILB (1) Ragland, Brothers?,

OL (4) Spriggs, Whitehair, Nick Martin (by talent, wrong position), Coleman, Westerman?, Vadal Alexander? Hawkins? Theus?;

RB (2) Derrick Henry, Booker,

TE (1) Hunter Henry,

WR (4) Sterling Shepard, Michael Thomas, Boyd, Braxton Miller

CB (3) Alexander, Howard, Fuller
S (2) Bell, Cash

*Dodd could be listed as a DL - some others who could be conversion projects listed as well like Perry OLB >ILB

25 guys have to go before GB is on the clock. In parentheses I listed the # of prospects (roughly in order) I would be happy with at #57 in terms of talent. I don't really want a safety, a center, for example. I see 31 players who would be okay at #57, but only about 22 that would make me pop a cold one.

Obvious choice @ #57: JATAVIS BROWN (jk a few folks).

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:28 am

Yeah, your picks seem to be about right with who could be there and worthy of picks.

Right now I'm thinking Packers go Front 7 defense again. Just with who will be available. I could see them go with Henry if he was there.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:43 am

I highly doubt Dodd lasts long today. Dodd would be a great protege to JP. I also like that Kaufusi kid. I don't know how TT and the coaches feel about his age though.

Would yall believe me if I told yall Kaufusi had a better 3-Cone than Dion Jordan? Better than Jadaveon Clowney, Noah Spence's, Victor Ochi's and is a hair behind Shaw Lawson/Joey Bosa?

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:18 pm

Even if a kid comes in at 25, you get his prime years out of two four-year contracts. I don't worry about age so much.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 29, 2016 at 01:05 pm

I missed a few names. QB for example - Cook probably gets drafted in the 2nd round, maybe Hackenberg. I just did this to reassure myself that someone I like should be there at #57 - don't know if TT will take someone I like, but that's always the case. [I did leave off my draft crushes like Justin Simmons - I think he more 3rd round.] Most folks know I crushed on Dodd, and agree he's probably gone pretty quick, but who knows?

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 01:19 pm

I like Simmons as well. His sure open-field tackling and versatility really stood out to me. He's a bit small, so I don't think he can roam around the LOS, but I do like his ability to roam everywhere else. His range might be better than Burnett's.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:30 pm

Don't steal my thunder :) my next article, which is already up is basically this post in long form

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:19 am

Feeling pretty good at this point about round 2. This, of course, means that TT will trade down.

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Razer's picture

April 29, 2016 at 10:25 am

I'd love to see this Ogbah added to the defensive group.

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sonomaca's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:05 am

Rumor from Walterfootball:

Likewise, Packers starting left tackle David Bakhtiari is in the final year of his contract, and the belief is the team would like to move him inside to guard and upgrade the left tackle spot.

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Evan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:18 am

Without any source, I call BS. But that is an interesting thought that I hadn't considered before.

But any transition wouldn't happen till next off-season, after presumably Sitton left in FA. So, then how would you re-sign Bahk? He's only ever been a LT, so he's going rightfully demand LT money. But you can't pay him LT money only to move him to G. The timing makes it all very unlikely to me.

Speaking of Walter, I looked at their updated round 2-3 mocks and find them very far fetched, to say the least.

Walt has Austin Hooper in R2 and Jaylon Smith in R3.

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DrealynWilliams's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:45 am

"Speaking of Walter, I looked at their updated round 2-3 mocks and find them very far fetched, to say the least. "

Lol

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RCPackerFan's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:19 am

I saw that rumor on twitter earlier.

I don't agree with it on many levels.

First, Why would Bakhtiari take a contract as a OG versus OT?

Second, What would make Bakhtiari a good OG versus OT? Bakhtiari isn't a road grading OT. He is more of a pass rusher or finesse type of player. Which is ok for OT, not OG.

I just don't get it, really. It doesn't make sense to me.

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sonomaca's picture

April 29, 2016 at 11:42 am

I don't think the Packers would be dumb enough to put out something like this. It amounts to telling Bakh that they don't think much of him. All but guarantees his departure...

Unless of course they don't think much of him and are intending to replace him. If they draft a tackle in round 2 I think you'll have your answer.

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dobber's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:22 pm

I saw this same report on ProFootballRumors.com, and I don't put a lot of faith in it.

When Bakhtiari was drafted, most draftniks said he was destined to be a backup OT or to transition inside to guard. I don't think he plays the power game well enough to transition inside, but if you watch him, he's pretty decent at finishing blocks on the second level...got a little nasty to him.

Someone else said it, though: if you're the Packers and you're saying you want to move your impending free agent to a position where his salary won't touch what he'll make on the open market at his current position? You're asking him to walk. Someone out there is playing with us.

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hobbes's picture

April 29, 2016 at 12:31 pm

I don't think you can pay him to play guard when he can find OT money outside of the Packers.

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sonomaca's picture

April 29, 2016 at 05:19 pm

If this came from another team, that would speak to interest in Bakh, trying to drive a wedge between him and Packers. I'd go ahead and sign him now, get rid of all the noise.

Let Sitton walk for sure. See if Tretter can play guard this year. If he can, maybe let Lang go, as well. Maybe draft a couple of guards in the next few rounds.

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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

April 29, 2016 at 08:57 pm

I agree, RC. Not sure Bakh can play OG, pretty sure he would not want the pay cut. Plus, I think he has gotten better at OT every year.

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4thand1's picture

April 29, 2016 at 04:42 pm

I was like the last scene in Kill Bill vol 2 last night for a while. "I might have over reacted a little" Time to read and look closer at the pick and I like it.

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