While I'm hopeful that Keke has a successful season in 2020, I'm not sure that a 288 lb. defensive lineman is going to be the missing piece for this defense to start stopping the run.

Ya, banking on improvements from players that really haven't shown anything, is suicide. Keke, Burks, these are guys we could really use in a jump, but banking on one is just proven to not pan out more than it pans out. Just not buying it. They keep banging the drum for Burks and he just doesn't show up. I just don't see it.. I love the idea of it, I just don't see it happening.

I was perplexed by our lack of movement on the defensive line. Either the GM knows what he’s doing here, or he doesn’t. There is no third possibility that I can see, so I’m going to believe that the GM has a plan that doesn’t include drafting a DL or spending in FA.

So.....the GM is seeing something in Keke, or Adams (not as likely) that makes him believe he can suit up 5 good DL in the opener. Truthfully, I don’t see it. And that makes me think we’re going to trade or pick up a guy. I’m not really seeing any FA better than Daniels and that won’t work.

I wonder if we could trade a player, or a pick next year, for a guy who could give us 500 good snaps.?? Right now, I see Clark, Lowry, and Lancaster. Adams either needs to be a player for us or we should give his roster spot to someone. If Keke does progress, and we replace Adams with a guy we traded for......we’d have an overall better line.

If memory serves, didn’t we poach Gilbert Brown from the Vikings? He was cut and we snatched him up. He was hurt for two years, but then he got healthy and nobody ran on us very well.

This is the kind of move we need. I wonder if we’ll see it.

Grasping at straws and denying reality! KEKE just isn't worth singing a magic song over. Unless this team starts putting some prime Beef in the trench. Their just Not going to the super-bowl. It's not that I'm not a believer. But I'm not getting on cloud Nine with this. How can any coach watch Clarke move in and out, and figure Lowrey and Keke are suitable answers? Are Defensive Line is the Laughing stock of the NFL. Give it Time? Raji and Clarke were expected to play with immediate results. So should anybody else.

I hope that he develops. Our problems was that the holes were so big that the running backs were at the second level before anyone could react. The D line seemed ok but we did not have a linebacker who could shed blocks and make a tackle at the line or into their backfield. Martinez the proverbial tackling machine did it after the back gained 10 yards. Our D backs couldnt tackle well either. If you dump it off and the D back comes up to make the tackle - they must make that play more than not - we were a not. I just hope with Martinez and Fackrell gone that others will step up - if not by players by scheme - It will be up to Burks, Gary, Kirksey and Summers to step up and take the heat and snaps from the Smiths. The other guy that needs to show something is Hester on the Dline - he has the NFL experience and as a 300 pounder this is probably his last crack and hopefull will be a good rotational player.

If Adams was truly injured last year like the rumor mills say...he could be a difference maker. Keke should become better than Lancaster, let's just hope it happens. Calling Keke a key contributor, would be pushing the envelope too much.
But hey!!!!! A good article to read on a slow sports day.

Dudes?! I sense a lot of negativity here why?

In today’s NFL you must draft and develop otherwise fall into the pit of salary cap whoa and despair.

They say it takes 2 to 3 years for defensive lineman to develop, Keke has talent, Let’s let him develop and see where it goes.

Snacks Harrison is just another old washed up vet that wants another paycheck and won’t be worth the money. Signing these broken down old vets isn’t going to get us to a Super Bowl.

Draft and develop it’s the smart way to go and fill in with young upcoming free agents like we did last year.
Of course you can’t sign those expensive free agents every year so the Packers had to fill in with some mid-level vets this year.

The Packers defense will be fine they have a lot of talent and a lot of young up-and-coming players in year three of Pettine’s system. Let’s be patient and let these guys develop and see what we’ve got.

Hicks with the Bears wasn’t great until year 3 I believe.
Have faith that Gute knows what he’s doing and let him work his magic!

Remember we were 6 & 0 in the division, 13 & 3 and beat Seattle in the playoffs!

Go Pack!

There was only one good player on the defensive line last year - Kenny Clark. I don't know why Lowry is often referred to as a solid player because he was a complete non-factor. Perhaps the question becomes, what can you expect from an NFL player who only makes 7m a year? Apparently, "not too much" (see also Billy Turner). Nevertheless Lowry does continue the tradition of the Packers over-paying for defensive ends who are really good at cashing their cheques and little else (see Nick Perry, Datone Jones...). As for the other D linemean - Adams is only a pre-season all-star. Lancaster, for all his strength and quickness, is a relatively easy block - leaving only Kingsley. While I do think Kingsley has a realistic opportunity to supplant Lancaster and even Lowry - there is little to believe why the Packers D-line will be much better this year than last. So go offence - ground control and time possession game!

Our three D-line starters feature one very good Dlineman, one above average DE, and one average guy at nose. That's not a bad start. But we need guys behind them. We did not draft one, we did not did not sign one. That means the GM is fine with what he has OR he has a plan to get a guy. OR both. Maybe he thinks Keke is the 4th guy. I'm still hoping for big nose pig.

If you let me put 350 lbs of garbage in the middle of the line I guarantee it will slow down your run game. So that's the baseline. If you have a player who is better than garbage it helps more.

Most of the Packers issues w/ Run defense have to do w/ scheme. Not so much personnel. Clark, Lowry and Lancaster are all good run players and would play their gaps. Lowry and Lancaster in particular are very much the type of players that would be disciplined in their gap fits. But the Pettine/Rex Ryan defensive scheme is based on getting disruption in the backfield and particularly on the QB. So they just don't emphasize gap discipline since it takes away from the ability to penetrate. Pettine wants the front 7 to get into the backfield (at basically all costs). Martinez himself referenced that the front 7 didn't play w/ any gap discipline and he was left trying to cover up all the lanes that were created. Unless Pettine really stresses gap discipline in training camp, no change at DT to Keke is really going to make a huge difference. However, if you stress the gap discipline its going to affect the amount of disruption/penetration on the backfield and QB.

Could they use a better DT to pair w/ Clark inside? Absolutely, but that isn't the root of the problems w/ the Packers run defense. That goes back almost entirely to the scheme.

Watching those clips hammered home another point to me; the Pack won't miss Blake Martinez all that much.

This whole thing is a problem area in our D, without a doubt. I can understand anyone who might not want to trust in what we have.

However, I do think Kingsley Keke is going to be really, really good this season. He's a player, and he's spent this whole offseason building his body to handle the NFL. Those pointing to BJ Raji may want to recall that he was a Top 10 pick. Those guys don't just fall off trees for a reason. NFL ready bodies at any DL position for a rookie is an exception, not anywhere near the norm.

TGR pointed to the fact that most DL require 1-3 years to develop an NFL ready body to handle the punishment, and to deliver the blows in run stop and pass rush. That's the norm. I think Keke brings some great traits, and showed many as a rookie in limited action.

Could it be Gutekunst, DL Coach Jerry Montgomery and DC Mike Pettine know what they are doing not only with their returning players Lowry, Lancaster and Adams, but as well with the developing rookie Keke and the newly signed Treyvon Hester and Gerald Willis?

I'm right with those who thought we needed to add DL as possibly a #1 or #2 priority this offseason. They addressed that the day prior to the draft with Willisand just after with Hester - and did so with players who have already had a chance to grow into the NFL DL body type that is more effective compared to adding a rookie coming in off a college training table...

Personally, I wanted all of Lowry, Lancaster and Adams sent outta here on the next SpaceX, but, that was without any consideration for the Packers staff's development plan. Gutekunst does have two more avenues for acquiring talent to add to the mix in roster cut down signings and a possible trade before the deadline if things don't work out as they foresee. I'm going to trust these guys until they show otherwise. Last year was an aberration at how deficient we were behind and next to Kenny Clark. NO ONE got the job done, especially Lowry after signing a big extension. Kenny Clark was the ONLY player to show his real worth there, along with Keke in his very limited snaps.

Kenny Clark, a bigger, stronger Keke, along with Willis, Hester, and hopefully a better developed and more motivated Lowry/Lancaster ought to help immensely with our run D, as will ILBs Christian Kirksey and Kamal Martin. Run stop was going to require a lot of position upgrades, and it looks like they've added talent to turn it around. We'll see, and hopefully it works out. Go PACK!

Keke is much better suited for the 3 tech role w/ Lowry taking the 5 tech. I'm sure the Packers coaches know that... Some promise, but still a long way to go. And to be honest the run defense isn't a problem of personnel, its a scheme issue.