By Rick
What do you think?
Strengths
QB- All Pro and MVP. Rated as one of the top players in NFL.
WR- Jordy Nelson and James Jones have shown themselves to be great WRs. A large group of younger players will have a chance to watch and learn and be thrown to by on eof the best QBs in the league. Making this a solid deep position for GreenBay.
TE- Rarely used last year as safeties were loaded in the box I see TE as being a great asset in Green Bay with a more legit running attack now being present.
LT and and LG are filled by two solid Offensive players.
NT has a solid young man in Raji and now with some depth help he can stay fresher and be there in the gut come the playoffs.^p
RDE Pickett is the wily older veteran. He does well everywhere he is needed but wears down quickly. He will also benefit like Raji with better depth and rotation help now available.^p
SOLB CMIII has been a disruptive force but needs a legitimate 3-4 Dline to stay clean and make the tackles/sacks and be the attacker.
ILB has veteran Hawk and Bishop back. They know the defense and the schemes and again will benefit from solid play from the NT and DE up front.
CB The should have been defensive rookie of the year and pro bowler last in my opinion Casey Hayward played lights out and combined with Tramon Williams shoulder finally not much of an issue gives Green Bay a top notch 1-2 tandem. Assuming Shields comes back in shape depending on his signing of his tag, the back end is amazing for Green Bay for the next few years. There is even quality depth making CB the best depth position on the team.
S Has Morgan Burnett playing at a great level.
Weaknesses
QB Since Flynn has left no one knows what Green Bay has to call on at back up QB. So far it has not been necessary but after watching what happened to teams last year I am hopeful for MM that a solid back up emerges.
RB Does Green Bay now have a credible healthy running attack??
C Is EDS the answer? He played fine and Rodgers says he does a great job at line calls. So maybe
RG and RT are open competition. That can be good so the best can start, but that means there is no easy solid winners on the team as we see it right now. A lot of Preparation and not a lot of H ing could means the sores and problems on the O line are gone…. or not.
LDE In the vernacular of Slim Shady, Will the real 3-4 DE the belongs in this defense please stand up, please stand up
WOLB We have 270-290 lbs men practicing in a position played by much faster men at 245-250. Is this a stroke of genius or a stroke??
S Other than Burnett is there another quality starter at safety on the roster? There are some solid young men in the competition but most seem to be backups not starter. Can one of these players step up and be the back end player this defense needs? This will be a key focus along with the defensive line in Training Camp and preseason to see what develops.
K Crosby has one of the longest and strongest legs in the NFL. With the new rules on kick offs he is a serious assest but does his inaccuracies continue? Can he beat out the challenger? I think it is not close and this is just a challenge to help him focus. During OTAs and early TC.
LS Brett Goode has been with the team for a few years and has been great on his snaps however his bulk size and lack of athleticism has led to very little in the way of ST help which has been a bone of contention in Green Bay until recently. Should a more athletic playmaker be on the team in this spot? Perhaps a Long Snapper that can be a possible back up on the team somewhere else instead a roster spot being occupied by a LS that does nothing else?
Free Agent Guard Brandon Moore is still on the market and is available for as little as $3 million/yr. He is older at 33 but a serious veteran challenger and on a no bonus deal would be a great push to elevate and compare what Green Bay has to work with on the right side of the line. If none of the youngins stand up then Brandon is a great run blocker on the right side to make the run threat more legitimate and keep safeties from being able to take away the passing attack of Rodgers. If he is surpassed by the player(s) already here then he can be cut with no cap hit.