Judging from first impressions, I think it is safe to say the Green Bay Packers’ defense is in much more capable hands than the previous three years. Under Bob Sanders the Packers were trying to find a way to continue the limited success they had seen under previous coordinator Jim Bates. When Bates refused the position after being passed over for the head coaching job, head coach Mike McCarthy made the first major mistake of his head coaching career and hired Bob Sanders, who had no prior coordinator experience and only claim to fame was he would keep Bates’ system in tact. Huge mistake.
While the Packers’ defense was not awful until last season, it never could make the big play to win a game. Was it Sanders’ fault? Was it the scheme? I say it was 50-50. Sanders’ defenses never could make a play when they needed it most, always leaving it in the offense’s hands. Judging by the way Dom Capers introduced himself to the Green Bay media and Packer Nation today, things are about to change. Instead of forcing players into a scheme, Capers will scheme around the players. This is going to be fun to watch.
I know a lot of you, including Rookie on The Fan are saying Capers is not a miracle worker and won’t get the Packers’ defense into a top five defense. The Packers’ don’t need that. They just need a defense that can make a stop once in a while and compliment an offense that has the potential to be unstoppable. Last year the Packers were two Mason Crosby shanks away from an 8-8 record and probably lost four more games because their defense could not make a stop after the offense gave them a lead late.
Capers spoke today for 30 minutes at least and it seemed he was only asked a few questions. He harked back to 1997 when he lost the NFC Championship game as coach of the Carolina Panthers, he detailed the history of the zone blitz scheme, for which he has to be considered co-inventor at minimum. Capers answered all questions with answers that were the answers of somebody who has been around the NFL and knows what it takes to win in the league. He knows what he is doing.
I was also impressed with the way Capers praised the Packers’ organization from top to bottom. I know all coaches say the same thing but Capers has proved his word by his time in the league and you can bet if the Packers were a rinky-dink operation he would have said no way. Capers started two franchises from scratch, so he might know a thing or two about how they operate.
I do believe that McCarthy made a wise decision here. We don’t need top five Pittsburgh-slash-Baltimore type of defense in Green Bay, unlike those teams, the Packers have an offense. Granted, it would be nice to be like the Packers of 1996 and be number one in both offense and defense, but that doesn’t happen very often. Just give me a half-dozen big stops and I’ll be happy. Throw in a couple of three-and-outs and I will be ecstatic.