Packers Final Grades Show Promise and Concern: Defense and Special Teams

The Packers were extremely successful in going 13-3 and securing the number two seed and a first-round bye before finally bowing out in the NFC Championship game. That said, their record reflected a team that succeeded well beyond the sum of its individual parts. While the roster took a huge step forward from last season due to Brian Gutekunst’s aggressive foray into free agency, there is still much room for improvement, especially at the sport’s most important positions.

Defense

The defense improved slightly from last season, but given the upgrade in personnel provided by Brian Gutekunst, it seems like they should have improved more. A complete meltdown against San Francisco highlighted just how simple it was to exploit their scheme, as well as the remaining roster holes.

Defensive Line

Grade: B-

The Packers let Mike Daniels go in the offseason in favor of Dean Lowry. When healthy, Daniels is one of the best at his position, but the Packers saw his age and injury history, and they made the right call. Lowry provided sustained pass rush next to anchor Kenny Clark and helped to create one of the NFL’s best fronts against the pass. Clark was injured for much of the season and had a string of games where he was routinely overpowered, but he came on late and returned to form just in time for the playoffs. Clark is among the best interior linemen in the league and is due for an extension.

Tyler Lancaster was a solid run stuffer and occasional pocket collapser. He benefited greatly from his line mates, and you could certainly do worse. Montravius Adams was a bit of a disappointment, but he is still stout against the run, even if pass pressure is a work in progress. Kingsley Keke was productive in limited work and could develop into a starter with more time.

Outside Linebacker

Grade: A

The upgrade from Clay Matthews and Nick Perry to the Smith Brothers, Za’Darius and Preston, can’t be overstated. Za’Darius was second in the league in pressures with 65, trailing only New Orleans’ Cameron Jordan. Preston had a respectable 35 while playing outstanding run defense and excelling as an edge-setter. Za’Darius was a true weapon, and Pettine eventually started moving him all over the formation to great effect. Until the final game against San Francisco, he was even adequate against the run.

Rashan Gary was drafted as a project, and a project he remains. The Smiths’ brilliance relegated him to a rotation player, and while he flashed some talent at times, he was unsurprisingly inconsistent. Next season will tell us quite a bit about his future. Kyler Fackrell’s sack total crashed down to earth, and he’s still a huge liability against the run, but he did generate a fair number of pressures and remains a useful rotation player.

Inside Linebacker

Grade: C-

Blake Martinez can fill a gap with the best of them, but that’s about it. In the Packer defensive scheme, the inside linebacker is dependent on the players around him to execute and provide him with clean shots on the ball carrier. To his credit, Martinez takes advantage of those opportunities, and as a pending free agent, he may cash in. The team that pays him will likely be making a mistake.

Martinez is a liability in pass coverage, and if any offensive lineman gets to the second level, he gets wiped out of the play. He’s not bad as a gimmick pass rusher, but Kenny Clark and company contributed to his lofty tackle total more than anything Martinez did. He’s just a guy.

Oren Burks isn’t even that. A decent enough special teamer and in many ways a special athlete, Burks lacks the instincts for the position and couldn’t work his way onto the field, even in situations that seemed to call for his skillset. Burks should provide the versatility Pettine looks for in a hybrid “big Dime” backer, but he appears to be a bust.

BJ Goodson was a nice thumper against the run until the San Francisco game where he disappeared. Stout inside linebackers are a dime a dozen. Ty Summers was a nice contributor on special teams.

Cornerback

Grade: C

So many high draft picks have gone into rebuilding the Packer secondary, it’s amazing that the second-best corner on the team is still the 36-year-old Tramon Williams. Green Bay finished the season as the third best team against slot receivers, and Williams was a big part of that. He also was charged with moving over to relieve Kevin King whenever he struggles, which was frequently. King led the team in interceptions, but interceptions aren’t always a great individual statistic. It’s a credit to King that he held onto those throws, but he was targeted frequently, which provided him the opportunity. Opposing offensive coordinators quickly identified King as the weak link and managed a fair amount of success targeting him deep and making him tackle. If the defense is going to take a step forward, King needs to improve.

Jaire Alexander is a budding star. He took on opposing number ones all year and acquitted himself well. He was equally impressive against the biggest and the fastest, and even when he was beaten, he was almost always in the right spot. He still gambles too much, and quarterbacks were able to use his aggressiveness against him, but he’s a lockdown corner in the making.

Chandon Sullivan had a few big moments and provided nice depth at nickel. He was one of the better run defenders in the secondary. Josh Jackson is a zone corner in a man scheme. A change of scenery is in order.

Safeties

Grade: B

Adrian Amos was an enormous improvement over Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. He occasionally struggled in coverage, but he was among the best tacklers on the team, and he came up with several big interceptions including against his old team. He’s not a star, but he is exactly what the defense needed.

Rookie Darnell Savage started the season with a bang, and when healthy, he was all over the field making plays. Unfortunately, he missed some time with injuries, and being all over the field sometimes led to him being out of position. He worked well with the more stable Amos, which minimized the consequences from freelancing too much. Savage looks to be a special player and should benefit from another year of experience.

Ibraheim Campbell was added from IR near the end of the season to be the “Big Dime” back but wasn’t up to the task. Raven Greene was outstanding until his season was cut short by injury. He was one of the best hybrid players on the Packers, and he was almost ready to go against San Francisco. He probably wouldn’t have made the difference, but he is exactly the type of player who was missing from the defensive game plan. Will Redmond is a fine backup, but that’s all he is.

Special Teams

Grade: C

Mason Crosby had the best season of his career just in time for free agency. He gets an “A.” Crosby hit a career high 91.7% of his field goals, and with the NFL de-emphasizing kickoffs, he’s not as much of a liability in that phase of the game. Teams mess around with their kickers at their peril. Crosby is well-liked and predictable, and they should bring him back if at all possible. Don’t be surprised if Chicago makes a strong counter-offer.

JK Scott oscillated between brilliance and bust. An inexplicable midseason slump hurt his overall numbers, but he rallied once the weather turned cold, and his ability to flip field position, though inconsistent, is valuable.

The return game and coverage were a disaster for 75% of the season, before the addition of Tyler Ervin. Ervin was fantastic and instantly transformed the return game while also contributing on offense. Before that, they were a mess of penalties, fumbles and an almost comical inability to return any punt.

Coaching

Grade: C

Matt LaFleur brought creativity and formation diversity to a moribund offense, but in the end, that offense scored exactly the same number of points as the 2018 team. LaFleur’s challenge going forward is to get the most out of the last few years of Aaron Rodgers.

Mike Pettine’s defense improved, but credit for that improvement should go mostly to the Smiths, Amos and Savage. Smart offenses were able to exploit Pettine’s scheme with relative ease, and any injury instantly derailed the entire unit. They were fortunate to be healthy, but most NFL teams are not, and next season, when regression to the mean comes calling, the defense could become an issue yet again.