Speaker 1: Hi, everybody, Welcome back to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com.
Speaker 1: I am Mike Spofford, joined as always by my trusted
Speaker 1: colleague Weston Hodkowitz. We are you, your fully vaccinated host,
Speaker 1: and that is what allows us to be back here
Speaker 1: in the studio without wearing masks. Weston. It's really good
Speaker 1: to see you right across the table here, my friend,
Speaker 1: for well one, all the Skype episodes that you and
Speaker 1: I did, all the recordings of this the socially distanced season. Uh,
Speaker 1: coming in here with Larry to do three things and
Speaker 1: wearing the masks even when we do final thoughts, wearing
Speaker 1: the mask. What a relief this has been. And I
Speaker 1: gotta give credit to the wonderful nurses everybody here from
Speaker 1: Bellin that that took care of me, took care of
Speaker 1: my family over the past month, and just blessed and
Speaker 1: fortunate as we prepare for an NFL draft this year,
Speaker 1: my because we recap free agency today, Just what a
Speaker 1: quantum leap we've made from last year when I was
Speaker 1: trying to make sure I had enough bandwidth to be
Speaker 1: able to stream video on my home WiFi so we
Speaker 1: could do our jobs appropriately. That's right, well, we really
Speaker 1: are turning over a new leaf here. In one we
Speaker 1: had new intro music here for Packers unscripted, first time
Speaker 1: we've we've changed that in in quite sometime. But as
Speaker 1: you mentioned, we do have a lot of off season
Speaker 1: to recap here for the Packers, so we're going to
Speaker 1: start there and later this week early next week we
Speaker 1: will also get into previewing the NFL Draft, which as
Speaker 1: of now is nine days away for the the first round.
Speaker 1: But as far as the off season goes, a handful
Speaker 1: of guys back with the Green Bay Packers West and
Speaker 1: I'll just rattle off their names here. Aaron Jones, Kevin King,
Speaker 1: Marcedes Lewis, Tyler Lancaster, Will Redman all resigned with the
Speaker 1: Green Bay Packers. The biggest headline there, though, of those
Speaker 1: five guys, has to be running back Aaron Jones, because
Speaker 1: this is a guy he wasn't just going to be
Speaker 1: the top running back available in free agency. He was
Speaker 1: going to be one of the top free agents across
Speaker 1: the board in the league available if the Packers had
Speaker 1: let it get to that point. They did not Aaron Jones.
Speaker 1: A huge part of this Matt Lafleur offense is back
Speaker 1: in the fold long term now for Green Bay. So
Speaker 1: all these years in which we've had free agency, I've
Speaker 1: always kind of looked at the board, how it was
Speaker 1: laying out, and and very very infrequently is there a
Speaker 1: moment where it's like, Okay, there's a player that you
Speaker 1: think the Packers will bring back that they just can't
Speaker 1: get back. For me, it was Aaron Jones this year.
Speaker 1: Now certainly went right up until the eleventh hour, right
Speaker 1: until the verge of free agency before he agreed to terms.
Speaker 1: But when you sit back, Mike, you look at what
Speaker 1: he has added to this Packers offense and how he
Speaker 1: has every single year been in the National Football League,
Speaker 1: increased his rushing totals, increased his flexibility as a running back.
Speaker 1: This guy is more than what his position said. He
Speaker 1: is a playmaker, and he's the second biggest playmaker in
Speaker 1: this offense, second only to four time Pro bowler now
Speaker 1: finally an All Pro receiver in Davante Adams. So to
Speaker 1: have him back in the multitude of ways that Matt
Speaker 1: Lafleur utilized him over the past two years, it just
Speaker 1: made too much sense. Now, I think what the exciting
Speaker 1: thing is going to be now for the Packers is
Speaker 1: how do you expand on what this guy does because
Speaker 1: he's in the prime now, twenty six years young. This
Speaker 1: is that where you really expect him to be in
Speaker 1: the peak of his years. I just think there's a
Speaker 1: massive opportunity there. He'll have a new running mate in
Speaker 1: a J. Dillon. But as far as the face of
Speaker 1: that Packers backfield, Mike, this is the most stability they've
Speaker 1: had their going back to really the Almond Green days. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's interesting because Aaron Jones was here when Matt Lafleur arrived, obviously, right,
Speaker 1: and they're there are all kinds of ways in which
Speaker 1: coaches adjust their scheme and their systems to fit the
Speaker 1: personnel they have. But that being said, you almost can't
Speaker 1: raw up a running back who fits Matt Lafleur's offense
Speaker 1: better than Aaron Jones. And that's what I was saying
Speaker 1: all through last season when everybody was wondering, are the
Speaker 1: Packer is going to be able to bring back Aaron Jones?
Speaker 1: What are the free agent priorities? And we'll talk about
Speaker 1: some of the guys who are not back in a
Speaker 1: moment here, and for me, Aaron Jones was the number
Speaker 1: one priority in terms of resigning your own free agents
Speaker 1: because of how he fits La Fleur's offense and what
Speaker 1: he brings to the table in in all those different
Speaker 1: skills he he just he brings more than any other
Speaker 1: running back you could ask for, and to lose him
Speaker 1: would have been to lose not just a running back,
Speaker 1: but but such a big, such a big part of
Speaker 1: the offense. Now, as you said, he is in his prime.
Speaker 1: He is hitting full stride here. So what are the
Speaker 1: Packers going to do to expand the ways that they
Speaker 1: use him? We could see him, We've already seen him
Speaker 1: line up in a lot of different ways, but maybe
Speaker 1: that starts to expand with a j. Dillon now coming
Speaker 1: into his own a little bit more as the second
Speaker 1: year and the number two running back um based on
Speaker 1: the way the roster currently sits. So I'm really curious
Speaker 1: to see now exactly you know what the plan is
Speaker 1: for Aaron Jones moving forward, because I think there are
Speaker 1: some things that maybe we haven't seen yet. Absolutely, And
Speaker 1: I mean this has been a guy that's been defying
Speaker 1: the definition that everybody's put on him in his game
Speaker 1: since he entered the league back in two thousand seventeen.
Speaker 1: Is a fifth round draft pick. But here's the other
Speaker 1: thing I love about him. And you know, there's a
Speaker 1: million moments with Aaron Jones you can say, Okay, nobody
Speaker 1: else can do that. This is a guy, this is special.
Speaker 1: But if I was ever on the fence about as
Speaker 1: he gonna be back or they canna be able to
Speaker 1: pay him, you know, do you pay a running back?
Speaker 1: It was that first play, I believe it was the
Speaker 1: first play coming out a halftime against the Rams where
Speaker 1: he bust the sixty yard in the playoff game, And
Speaker 1: you and I were sitting there watching that, and I
Speaker 1: just said to myself, I'm like, there are so few
Speaker 1: human beings that can just change the complexion of a
Speaker 1: football game the way that he just did that. It
Speaker 1: wasn't I don't think Wayne was shouting that's your dagger
Speaker 1: or anything like that up in the radio booth, but
Speaker 1: it really felt like, Yeah, this is the Packers day,
Speaker 1: They're gonna take this one. And that's that's what he brings,
Speaker 1: that game breaking aspect. And then just a quick shout
Speaker 1: out to A J. Dillon. I mean, these are huge
Speaker 1: shoes for him to fill. With Jamal Williams moving on
Speaker 1: to Detroit, This is a guy that never fumbled during
Speaker 1: his four years in Green Bay, was a consummate pro
Speaker 1: in the locker room, was a fantastic pass protector and
Speaker 1: ball catcher out of the backfield. But A J. Dillon,
Speaker 1: when you saw he did against the Titans last year,
Speaker 1: it just really opened my eyes to the possible thunder
Speaker 1: enlightening combination that him and Aaron Jones can be. I
Speaker 1: know that's an overplayed cliche, but if you look at
Speaker 1: that six ft five ft nine two oh eight or
Speaker 1: whatever Aaron Jones comes in at, those are two drastically
Speaker 1: different running backs that the Packers could use in tandem.
Speaker 1: They can alternate if you add in a number three
Speaker 1: back through this draft or undraft free agency. There are
Speaker 1: so many options here that Green Bay could explore. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Absolutely well. Maybe an unexpected move in free agency was
Speaker 1: the resigning of Kevin King. I think when the Packers
Speaker 1: did sign Aaron Jones, there was a lot of thought
Speaker 1: that Kevin King was not a guy the Packers were
Speaker 1: going to be able to afford. Turns out they did
Speaker 1: bring him back on a one year deal, So the
Speaker 1: Packers will have essentially their top three corners from last
Speaker 1: year are back. Intact that, you know, the nickel package
Speaker 1: that they used last year, j R. Alexander, Kevin King,
Speaker 1: Channon Sullivan, will I'll be back. And then the other
Speaker 1: real headline as far as the guys coming back, is
Speaker 1: the big Dog Marcedes Lewis sixteen. This will be his
Speaker 1: sixteenth season now in the NFL. And this is really
Speaker 1: quite a story West because his first year here two
Speaker 1: thousand and eighteen, the last year of the Mike McCarthy era,
Speaker 1: and after it looked like Marcedes Lewis was heading off
Speaker 1: into the sunset, It's like, all right, it's time for
Speaker 1: the next chapter in life. And not only did he
Speaker 1: decide to come back play for Matt Lafleur. You know,
Speaker 1: they've found this role for him both in the offense.
Speaker 1: He has a tremendous role in the locker room. And
Speaker 1: now here we are three years later and he just
Speaker 1: got another contract and he's still going. And you know,
Speaker 1: this coaching staff, all these guys on this roster are
Speaker 1: thrilled that the Big Dog is back for another goal.
Speaker 1: You know what he reminds me of who he reminds
Speaker 1: me of. You remember Juwan Howard during his final years
Speaker 1: of the NBA. He went to Miami Heat and he
Speaker 1: was a big part of what they did there. He
Speaker 1: wasn't a guy that was playing thirty minutes at night anymore,
Speaker 1: but he was a great locker room presence, a great leader.
Speaker 1: Obviously he's turned into a phenomenal college coach, but he
Speaker 1: also gave them important minutes when he needed them. It
Speaker 1: wasn't like, Okay, I'm not gonna have you give you
Speaker 1: thirty anymore, but I'm gonna give you eleven good minutes
Speaker 1: here and there when when I'm needed. And that's what
Speaker 1: Lewis reminds me of. If you want to talk about
Speaker 1: any profession, doesn't have to be the National Football League,
Speaker 1: could be your even your normal job. How do you last?
Speaker 1: How do you find ways to be able to get
Speaker 1: up in the morning and still enjoy what you're doing.
Speaker 1: You have to evolve, you have to reinvent yourself. You
Speaker 1: have to set new goals. That's what I love about
Speaker 1: Mercedes Lewis. What is the one thread? Since he was
Speaker 1: drafted in the first round in two thousand and six.
Speaker 1: He is a huge human being that is a willing blocker.
Speaker 1: If he ate a couple too many Big Max on
Speaker 1: a certain week, this guy could be a tackle in
Speaker 1: this league. I mean, he's that big of a guy.
Speaker 1: But he was also an incredibly athletic and gifted individual
Speaker 1: in his prime. It's why he was able to go
Speaker 1: to a Pro Bowl in two thousand and ten and
Speaker 1: caught seven receiving yards passes. But now he's older, thirty
Speaker 1: six range. You have to adapt your game, and he
Speaker 1: has done that. In the best part about it, he
Speaker 1: isn't he's playing a position other than quarterback or kicker
Speaker 1: where they're just trump constantly trying to replace tight ends
Speaker 1: in this league. Guys, come, guys, go, there's no replacing
Speaker 1: Mercedes Lewis. Whenever he decides to move on, You're not
Speaker 1: just gonna be able to say, Okay, well this six
Speaker 1: ft six, two seventy pound guy, he's going to be
Speaker 1: the next guy. You have to have a certain skill
Speaker 1: set that matches up with his physical attributes. Lewis brings that.
Speaker 1: And by the way, much like some of these guys
Speaker 1: that you've seen over there, is he's still chasing that
Speaker 1: Super Bowl ring. He's still chasing that Super Bowl appearance,
Speaker 1: and he feels like this is the place to get
Speaker 1: that done. Yeah, no question about it. Well, as far
Speaker 1: as the Packers players who are not back who have
Speaker 1: signed elsewhere, Corey Lindsley, Jamal Williams, Tim Boyle, Lane Taylor,
Speaker 1: and Montravius Adams, And we talked a little bit already.
Speaker 1: I think I want to start here with regard to
Speaker 1: the offensive line. Corey Lindsley and Lane Taylor both gone.
Speaker 1: We know David Bakti is working on the rehab from
Speaker 1: the a c L injury. Everybody's trying to figure out
Speaker 1: what what's the Packers offensive line gonna look like in
Speaker 1: Week one? You know, does Elton Jenkins play center and
Speaker 1: take over for Lindsley? Does Jenkins play left tackle? Does
Speaker 1: Billy Turner play left tackle? And Jenkins, you know, stay
Speaker 1: where he is and you put somebody else at right tackle.
Speaker 1: The most important thing I think moving forward here for
Speaker 1: the Packers is they have options because you have versatile players,
Speaker 1: and you also have a draft coming up where there's
Speaker 1: a lot of depth that offensive tackle in this draft,
Speaker 1: based on what the analysts are saying, you would think
Speaker 1: the Packers are going to potentially make a significant draft
Speaker 1: investment there at that position. So we're a long way
Speaker 1: from knowing what the Packers offensive line is going to
Speaker 1: look like in Week one, but it is gonna look
Speaker 1: a little bit different in yeah, because for the first
Speaker 1: time really since J. C. Trader was drafted, the Packers
Speaker 1: don't have like a center prospect of a bona fide
Speaker 1: guy that's like, okay, that's who we want snapping Aaron Rodgers.
Speaker 1: Now the coaches might know that behind the scenes, but
Speaker 1: as far as how we're approaching this season, we we
Speaker 1: don't know which direction that's gonna go. I made my
Speaker 1: two cents felt an inbox. You know, I would think
Speaker 1: even if David bat is ready, the Packers are gonna
Speaker 1: want to be cautious with them. They're gonna want to
Speaker 1: er on the side of caution. Is I continually said,
Speaker 1: because you know the way that Bats built cut from
Speaker 1: that same cloth as Brian Bulaga. He's gonna want to
Speaker 1: be out there as soon as possible. But there is
Speaker 1: again you have to see the forest for the trees here.
Speaker 1: Let's say they just take the cautious approach there with Box.
Speaker 1: Tr To me, after seeing what he did last year,
Speaker 1: I think Elton Jenkins is a perfect fit to be
Speaker 1: able to buy you time there at left tackle. I
Speaker 1: really truly believe this, Mike. I think if Billy Turner
Speaker 1: is just playing right tackle, I honestly believe he could
Speaker 1: be an All Pro player in this league. I saw
Speaker 1: that last year. I had some questions when he came
Speaker 1: in at right guard, didn't quite look like his natural position.
Speaker 1: But when they left him at right tackle, once he
Speaker 1: settled into that job last year, you'd be hard pressed
Speaker 1: to find anyone who did their job better. I believe.
Speaker 1: I think he has the athleticisms, letticism for it, the footwork,
Speaker 1: and he's intelligent from there. I think that lines up
Speaker 1: Lucas Patrick to be at center. I think you have,
Speaker 1: you know, John Runyon as a guard prospect and the
Speaker 1: other guy not to forget about in this equation, stimonds
Speaker 1: Simon Stepanek. Now, he missed all last year because of
Speaker 1: that coming off the a c L injury at Indiana.
Speaker 1: You gotta remember, this kid put up thirty seven bench
Speaker 1: reps at the combine that with with a bumne. That
Speaker 1: is the most of anyone in the modern era that
Speaker 1: the Packers have drafted. That was more than Corey Linsley.
Speaker 1: That was more than although it wasn't at the combine
Speaker 1: Tyler Lancaster. This guy is a strong dude. So that's
Speaker 1: a great starting point for where you're at, and then
Speaker 1: you factor in The Packers have had a really good
Speaker 1: track record of drafting offensive lineman early, drafting them high,
Speaker 1: and having them make an incidant impact. So I've said
Speaker 1: this over and over again. I mentioned it during our
Speaker 1: offseason recap show. It Larry to me, I don't know
Speaker 1: if it's the first round, second Whenever you pick the
Speaker 1: best offensive lineman possible, you let him compete for a
Speaker 1: job at a specific position and let the rest of
Speaker 1: the dominoes fall from there because the versatility of that
Speaker 1: group can be a real strength. Yeah, And what I
Speaker 1: said an insider inbox the other day, what I think
Speaker 1: really ultimately is going to be the question that the
Speaker 1: Packers coaches face. Assuming David Batr is not lining up
Speaker 1: at left tackle in Week one and he needs some
Speaker 1: more time to be ready, the question that's going to
Speaker 1: be facing the Packers coaching staff is for week one,
Speaker 1: do you focus on getting your five best offensive linemen
Speaker 1: out there or how much do you consider the whole
Speaker 1: continuity aspect of things? Because if Elton Jenkins start this
Speaker 1: starts the season at left tackle, presumably he's not going
Speaker 1: to play left tackle all season. When bok Tr is ready,
Speaker 1: he goes there, and then Jenkins shifts, and then you're
Speaker 1: moving things around at some point after the season starts.
Speaker 1: So is is it about the five best or is
Speaker 1: it about the least disruption when Bostr comes back. I
Speaker 1: think that's the question that the Packers coaches have to answer.
Speaker 1: I'm not sure what their answer is going to be.
Speaker 1: Necessarily based on what we saw last year, the versatility
Speaker 1: players moving guys around, it seemed the overwhelming philosophy was
Speaker 1: with what we've got to deal with, We're putting our
Speaker 1: best five guys out there in front of Aaron Rodgers.
Speaker 1: I think that's the way they're going to go. But
Speaker 1: I just throw it out there that the continuity part
Speaker 1: things over the course of now a seventeen game season.
Speaker 1: It's something that I think you at least have to consider. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and behind the scenes, I mean, the Packers are gonna
Speaker 1: get David Botr back at some point early middle whenever
Speaker 1: he's gonna be back, and you're gonna have the best
Speaker 1: left tackle in football to playoff of the question, the
Speaker 1: first thing that the coaches are gonna have to answer again,
Speaker 1: and the meetings that you and I will not be
Speaker 1: privy to assume, meetings that we will not have a
Speaker 1: log in for, is gonna be what do you do
Speaker 1: with Elton Jenkins Because the reason I mentioned him at
Speaker 1: left tackles because the one thing that Elton proved to
Speaker 1: me last year, it doesn't matter where you play him.
Speaker 1: It doesn't matter how many snaps he gets. He's gonna
Speaker 1: perform well in that duty. And it doesn't matter what
Speaker 1: the competition is. It's the guy that started the season
Speaker 1: at right tackle. Because of the injury questions there, he
Speaker 1: stepped in at center for three weeks. Mike Aaron Rodgers
Speaker 1: has basically had the same two centers for the past
Speaker 1: eight years. When you look at bulk of that being
Speaker 1: Corey Lensley and a little bit of it being j. C. Treader,
Speaker 1: Elton Jenkins went in there and it was like not
Speaker 1: a step was missed. And this is, by the way,
Speaker 1: subbing in for an All Pro or who is deemed
Speaker 1: by the Associated Press to be the best center in
Speaker 1: football last year. So that's why I just feel like
Speaker 1: it's such a luxury that Green Bay has right now
Speaker 1: and then and then again to Lucas Patrick's Lucas Patrick's
Speaker 1: credit can play all three the interior positions. Billy Turner
Speaker 1: can play everywhere as well. A lot of different potential
Speaker 1: domino combinations here for Green Bay. Yeah, and quickly before
Speaker 1: we move on to some other offseason news, Jamal Williams
Speaker 1: Tim Boyle both going to the division rival Detroit Lyons.
Speaker 1: Essentially what that does? We already talked about Aaron Jones
Speaker 1: a J. Dillon as the one to at running back
Speaker 1: to Packers obviously have Aaron Rodgers Jordan's Love as the
Speaker 1: one two at quarterback, but now the number three spot
Speaker 1: at both of those positions is essentially wide open for
Speaker 1: the Packers. They need a number three quarterback. Will they
Speaker 1: use a late round draft pick on one? Will they
Speaker 1: go the undrafted route as they did with when they
Speaker 1: brought Tim Boyle in a few years ago. As far
Speaker 1: as running back, you have a handful of candidates on
Speaker 1: the roster for the number three running back, but maybe
Speaker 1: you also draft one at some point here in a
Speaker 1: week and a half to add to that competition to
Speaker 1: see who's going to be that number three behind Jones
Speaker 1: and Dylan. So some interesting things to watch here at
Speaker 1: those two positions. As as a couple of very reliable
Speaker 1: guys end up going to a division rival in free agency.
Speaker 1: First and foremost, to tip my cap to the Lions,
Speaker 1: I thought those are two of the best signings that
Speaker 1: have been made of the NFC, not just the division,
Speaker 1: this office and kind of signings that went under the radar,
Speaker 1: frankly under the rains of the national in terms of
Speaker 1: the national media. But but yeah, I I agree with you.
Speaker 1: I think those I think those are really really good
Speaker 1: pickups for the Detroit Lions with what they're trying to do. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and in the contract that Jamal Williams got reportedly, I mean,
Speaker 1: just what an incredible deal in savings that is for Detroit.
Speaker 1: And I've said this time and time again and I'll
Speaker 1: say it once more. I know DeAndre Swifts there, I
Speaker 1: know all these other things. My advice to Detroit Lions
Speaker 1: is make Jamal Williams. Give him a good opportunity to
Speaker 1: be your lead back next year. You won't be disappointed.
Speaker 1: And as far as Tim Boyle, everyone knows my feelings
Speaker 1: about Tim Boyle, what an amazing story he's been. But
Speaker 1: I saw that one blogger, one one fan site for
Speaker 1: the lines of saying as Jared Goff the best quarterback
Speaker 1: now in the NFC North, and obviously they're just you know,
Speaker 1: it's all tongue in cheek. I get that, But the
Speaker 1: Lion is better make sure that he's their best quarterback
Speaker 1: on the roster because I still I've said it time
Speaker 1: and time again, I think Tim Boyle is going to
Speaker 1: open some eyes. He has the arm, he has a size,
Speaker 1: he has everything you look for in an NFL quarterback. Yeah,
Speaker 1: no question about it. Quickly here West some sponsored business.
Speaker 1: Serious x M NFL Radio delivers hard hitting analysis and
Speaker 1: up to the minute NFL news that true football fanatics
Speaker 1: need seven three six. All right, before we go, I
Speaker 1: do want to talk about the two big changes on
Speaker 1: the coaching staff here for the Packers. Two new coordinators
Speaker 1: Joe Berry brought in as defensive coordinator to replace Mike Patton,
Speaker 1: and Moe Drayton promoted from special teams assistant to spell
Speaker 1: teams coordinator to replace Sean Meninga. Just your initial impressions
Speaker 1: here of these moves and uh and when they were
Speaker 1: introduced to the Green Bay media. Yeah, and I was funny.
Speaker 1: I was driving through like northern Wisconsin, like like north
Speaker 1: of Rhinelander. I was that the day you went up
Speaker 1: to Superior. Yeah. I was in the middle of road trip. Yeah,
Speaker 1: so I but I made it a point. Mike was
Speaker 1: being very nice. The age of zoom, you have to
Speaker 1: take advantage of the fact that we can do all
Speaker 1: this stuff remotely. Mike handled all the coverage of the
Speaker 1: coaches that day, but I still listened. I stopped over
Speaker 1: at the Culver's in Rhine Landers so I could start
Speaker 1: listening to Joe Barry Country. Yeah, and I was so impressed,
Speaker 1: not only by him and how he spoke and all
Speaker 1: those things, but when you take a step back and
Speaker 1: you look at his resume, don't look at just the
Speaker 1: defensive coordinator stints. Look at his entire resume, working with
Speaker 1: Monty Kiffin, his you know, his work with I know
Speaker 1: it's his father in law. But I've always had an
Speaker 1: immense respect for Rod Marinelli. You've heard me talk about it,
Speaker 1: the way he renovated Dallas's defense there in the two
Speaker 1: thousand tents um and then obviously now the scheme and
Speaker 1: system of defense that they've been running in in l
Speaker 1: A when it was Wade Phillips, and now obviously the
Speaker 1: transition this past year, there is such a unique blend
Speaker 1: of philosophies that have been incorporated into berries in his mind.
Speaker 1: Now he's gonna be his own man, He's going to
Speaker 1: be his own coach. But when you are immersed in
Speaker 1: that type of not only that scheme, but the amount
Speaker 1: of talent he's been around, I just I think when
Speaker 1: you sit back and you look at where this talent
Speaker 1: level is at. For Green Bay again, a top ten
Speaker 1: defense last season, first time they've done that since the
Speaker 1: Super Bowl year in two thousand and ten, there's just
Speaker 1: I think the possibilities are endless. I'm really I I
Speaker 1: we all know what the pieces are going to be
Speaker 1: for the Packers defense. How do you move them? How
Speaker 1: do you get the most out of him? How are
Speaker 1: you able to get you know, the Smith Bros. Going
Speaker 1: back again, What is the next step for Gyr Alexander
Speaker 1: on the outside, Darniell Savage? What kind of weapon can
Speaker 1: this guy be? In Mr? Consistency Adrian Amos, There are
Speaker 1: just I think the possibilities are undless for that defense. Yeah,
Speaker 1: as I've been saying, I don't see this as something
Speaker 1: that's like a major defensive overhaul. It wasn't. Yeah, that's
Speaker 1: not to say that that's not to say the defense
Speaker 1: is going to look exactly the same under Joe Berry.
Speaker 1: But this is not something where we're going to be
Speaker 1: spending the off season and training camp talking a lot.
Speaker 1: At least I don't think we're going to be talking
Speaker 1: a lot about this, this transition to the new playbook
Speaker 1: and everything like that. Yes, there are going to be
Speaker 1: some things that are different, but this is not going
Speaker 1: to be some completely different scheme. One thing that I
Speaker 1: noticed about Joe Berry, and he mentioned it when he
Speaker 1: spoke with the Green Bay Media, and it's kind of
Speaker 1: what I wrote about that day, is that you look
Speaker 1: at you look at his track record. This is a
Speaker 1: guy who's been everywhere in the NFL, from the penthouse
Speaker 1: to the outhouse. He's been on a coaching staff that
Speaker 1: won a Super Bowl. He's been on a coaching staff
Speaker 1: that lost every single game during a season. And but
Speaker 1: we're undefeated in the preseason. But to his to his credit,
Speaker 1: he you know, he's not he's not dodging the failures
Speaker 1: that he's had along the way, and he's like, hey,
Speaker 1: those failures, those rough moments are what made me a
Speaker 1: better coach. Yes, going to Super Bowls, which he's been
Speaker 1: to a couple, he's won one. Those are the things
Speaker 1: that you enjoy. Those are those are the ones that
Speaker 1: are really going to be the you know, the lasting memories.
Speaker 1: But the moments that make you a better coach are
Speaker 1: when things don't go well in this league and you've
Speaker 1: you've got to you've got to figure it out. And
Speaker 1: so I was I was really interested to hear what
Speaker 1: he had to say about that, because he wasn't trying
Speaker 1: to dodge, you know, the downtimes in Detroit and Washington
Speaker 1: when he was when he was on the defensive staff,
Speaker 1: was the defensive coordinator there, and is he said, I'm
Speaker 1: proud of my scars. I love that line. That was
Speaker 1: the line of the press conference. I know everybody pulled
Speaker 1: that out as the top quote. It was true. But again,
Speaker 1: if you want to take a step back, if you
Speaker 1: really want to perseverate about the defensive coordinator stints, look
Speaker 1: at the talent level, Look at how many Pro bowlers
Speaker 1: around those teams in Detroit, Look at what he was
Speaker 1: dealing with in Washington. This is a new agenda. He
Speaker 1: has been given a five course dinner that he's gonna
Speaker 1: be sitting in front of now and it's your opportunity
Speaker 1: to finally go to work. Yeah, and as far as Drayton,
Speaker 1: that special teams coordinator, this isn't this, This is this
Speaker 1: is almost just as big a higher as defensive coordinator.
Speaker 1: With as much as the Packers struggled on special teams
Speaker 1: a year ago, not really any return game to speak of,
Speaker 1: too many explosive plays in the in the return game.
Speaker 1: The other way, Mo Drayton has a lot of work
Speaker 1: to do. This is in some sense as a risky
Speaker 1: hire for Matt Lafleur because he promoted somebody from within
Speaker 1: who was part of the struggles last year in the
Speaker 1: season instead of going outside and bringing somebody into to
Speaker 1: completely start over. So there's a lot of people questioning
Speaker 1: that decision. I'll just I'll just say this, and I
Speaker 1: said this an insider inbox as well. Nobody was doing
Speaker 1: nationally speaking, fan base speaking, nobody was doing a bunch
Speaker 1: of cartwheels. And Nathaniel Hackett was the became the offensive
Speaker 1: coordinator when Adam Stanovich became the offensive line coach. Look
Speaker 1: at what those guys have done now on Matt Lafleur's staff,
Speaker 1: Guys that he had some connections with that he that
Speaker 1: he knew. Okay, Matt Lafleur worked with Joe Berry with
Speaker 1: the Rams. He's seen Mo Drayton up close the last
Speaker 1: couple of years as he was um the assistant on
Speaker 1: special Teams. We just we have to we have to
Speaker 1: give Matt Lafleur's I for coaching talent, you know, a
Speaker 1: chance here to see to see if he's right before
Speaker 1: we start, you know, making a whole bunch of judgments
Speaker 1: about these hires. That again, nobody, nobody was jumping up
Speaker 1: and down about Joe Berry and Moe Drayton, but you know,
Speaker 1: he's had hires like that. He's had hires in the
Speaker 1: past that didn't necessarily get everybody outside the building super excited,
Speaker 1: but look how they work. And especially when they hired
Speaker 1: Nathaniel Hackett. Everything. For as much as he accomplished in Jacksonville,
Speaker 1: the way things ended there, there were some questions about
Speaker 1: putting him into that role. He been an All star,
Speaker 1: higher was a guy that had an opportunity to get
Speaker 1: an interview as a head coach this offseason. That's where
Speaker 1: he's at now. The thing I like the most though
Speaker 1: about the Special Teams is yes, it's a coach that
Speaker 1: has been on staff. But you heard Matt Lafleur talk
Speaker 1: about it, and again this is no disrespect to Seawan Meninga,
Speaker 1: but you could almost hear in his words when he
Speaker 1: was addressing the media that this is a guy I
Speaker 1: wish I would have known more about that being uh
Speaker 1: Modrayton when he hired for the coordinator's spot the first time,
Speaker 1: he knew he was talented, he knew he's someone that
Speaker 1: was held in higher guard in this in the building,
Speaker 1: but wasn't sure if he was ready for that head spot.
Speaker 1: He feels like that's the spot he's in now. And
Speaker 1: even more than that, Mike. Right now, Greeny Packers have
Speaker 1: six specialists on this offseason roster. You have to imagine
Speaker 1: there's gonna be a lot of competition not only for that,
Speaker 1: for the return jobs, for the four core jobs they
Speaker 1: brought back, Will Redmond you have you know, or in
Speaker 1: Burke's and Tye Summers coming back. They want to build
Speaker 1: a basis there and I think this is an important
Speaker 1: time to do it because I would believe I still
Speaker 1: think we're gonna end up seeing this expanded practice squad
Speaker 1: stick around even past COVID. You're going to be able
Speaker 1: to pull players. You're gonna be able to do a
Speaker 1: little bit more maneuvering than in the past. If you
Speaker 1: can find players, I really truly believe this, find a
Speaker 1: core group that then you can move pieces around as
Speaker 1: you need to. That is going to be key, because
Speaker 1: as as Drayton said, you look back to the Nolan
Speaker 1: Cromwell days, the Mic Stock days. He took the right
Speaker 1: approach in being reflective on what the history of special
Speaker 1: teams is in Green Bay and wanting to pay homage
Speaker 1: to that and also bring some of those values back
Speaker 1: now as they look to turn this thing around. Yeah. Absolutely, Well,
Speaker 1: with that, we're going to call it a wrap on
Speaker 1: this edition of Packers Unscripted. In our next couple of episodes,
Speaker 1: we will look a little more closely at the draft
Speaker 1: and and get into the Draft preview as things really
Speaker 1: ramp up and get close here. But for now, thank
Speaker 1: you for tuning in everybody. We appreciate it. We really
Speaker 1: appreciate being back here in the studio. Nice studio. This
Speaker 1: is nice. We will see you next time.