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Cut him or keep him? The Packers might just stay uncomfortably married to AJ Hawk.

The topic of A.J. Hawk gets debated to death by Packers fans every offseason.

Some fans view Hawk as an overpaid bust who has no business on the field. Others view him as a serviceable player even though he hasn’t lived up to his status as a high draft pick. A few delusional fans even think some other team would trade a first or second day draft choice for Hawk.

If I were in charge of the Packers, I’d release Hawk. If released after *June 1, it would save $5.45 million against the salary cap — money that could be used to extend Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews and B.J. Raji — and cut ties with a player who hasn’t forced a turnover since 2010 and didn’t break up a single pass in 2012.

Hawk has always been a ho-hum player. I believe the Packers committed to him because they weren’t sure about their other options. The Packers were the 35-year-old woman who married a guy that wasn’t quite perfect, but time was running out and the other options were iffy. Settling on Hawk was better than being left alone and vulnerable (with a house full of cats).

Here’s the big question regarding Hawk’s future in Green Bay: Are there finally some other options for the Packers this offseason?  Read more... (572 words + 1 image, estimated 2:17 mins reading time)

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Packers Inside Linebackers:  If nothing else, the 2012 team showed us how deep we are at inside linebacker. After losing two starters in Desmond Bishop and D.J. Smith, the Packers were still able to keep things together with Brad Jones in the lineup. The caveat, however, is that while the group is deep, there are no real “blue chip” players to be found.

(Note: Listen to the combined linebackers podcast at the end of this article:)

Where are we now:

Here are the current suspects:

A.J. Hawk (1st Round, 2006)
Desmond Bishop (6th Round, 2007)
Brad Jones (7th Round, 2009)
Robert Francois (UDFA, 2009)
D.J. Smith (6th Round, 2011)
Jamari Lattimore (UDFA, 2011)
Terrell Manning (5th Round, 2012)

For all the talk of the deficiencies at defensive line and outside linebacker, we seem to forget about the fact that inside linebacker is leaving us with something to be desired. It’s not a horrible group by any means, but there’s also nothing special about it. Desmond Bishop is currently the best player of the bunch, A.J. Hawk isn’t worth his contract weight, D.J. Smith was a bit of a disappointment this year, and despite his solid play, Brad Jones wasn’t much of a playmaker either. Terrell Manning seems to be the current roster’s last shred of hope among an otherwise lackluster crew, but he needs to make it onto the field first and foremost.  Read more... (1586 words + 1 image, estimated 6:21 mins reading time)

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A.J. Hawk

1) Introduction: Everyone knows the story of A.J. Hawk, because it’s how people have measured his reputation and performance. As the fifth overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, Hawk was supposed to be more than he has been. Being “assignment sure” has become more of a condemnation of his skills than an emblem of solid play. Still, Hawk has been the consistent force at inside linebacker. In his seven seasons with the Green Bay Packers, Hawk has only missed two games.

2) Profile:

Aaron James Hawk

• Age: 29
• Born: 01/16/1984, in Centerville, OH
• Height: 6’1″
• Weight: 242
• College: Ohio State
• Rookie Year: 2006
• NFL Experience: 7 years

Career Stats and more

3) Expectations coming into the season: A.J. Hawk has never been much of a playmaker. While Dom Capers would argue that Hawk’s role is to make sure other guys can make plays, it doesn’t quite appease the desires of Packers fans. The dismal performance of the 2011 defense also didn’t help Hawk’s cause, especially as the “quarterback” of the unit. After six years of seeing him play, was there really much more we could expect from A.J. Hawk in 2012?  Read more... (525 words + 1 image, estimated 2:06 mins reading time)

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The injury to D.J. Smith was one of many among the Green Bay Packers linebackers.

When the injuries started compounding for the Green Bay Packers this year, fans didn’t seem to flinch. Too fresh in their memories was the story of 2010, when the Packers overcame several key injuries to become Super Bowl champions. “Next man up” became the rally cry for the team, its fans, and the media.

The motto’s resurgence in 2012 showed the confidence of Packers Nation in Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy’s ability to add and develop depth throughout the team. While concerns still brewed in the back of our minds, they were overshadowed by what we’ve come to expect from Green Bay’s second string players.

No more Desmond Bishop? Bring in D.J. Smith. Now Smith goes down? Get Brad Jones in there. Lose Cedric Benson, James Starks, and Brandon Saine? Promote Alex Green and DuJuan Harris, then re-sign Ryan Grant from free agency. Even undrafted rookie Don Barclay surprised us with his ability to take over for Bryan Bulaga and not get Aaron Rodgers killed.

The specific team building philosophy of Thompson and McCarthy have allowed the Green Bay Packers to succeed even when some of their best players end up on injured reserve. Many other teams would struggle to handle such losses, whereas the Packers push through, fill in the holes, and still win their division.  Read more... (778 words + 1 image, estimated 3:07 mins reading time)

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Packers and Beer.

The Packers got destroyed on Sunday night. It really wasn’t much of a game from about the middle of the second quarter on.

I’m not used to the Packers getting blown out, so I didn’t know how to react. My mind started wandering in the second half.

Instead of panicking or trying to figure out why my favorite football team just laid an egg on national TV, I started thinking about which Packers players reminded me of certain types of beer.

I like beer. I like the Packers. Thinking about beer and the Packers is a lot more fun than being depressed about the Packers losing to the Giants.

Here are my random thoughts on which Packers (and some non-Packers) remind me of certain types of beer. If you also want to take your mind off of Sunday night, use the comments section to chime in with some of your own comparisons.

Packers & Beer
Ryan Pickett: Darkness. Heavy and strong. Overwhelming if you’re not ready for it.

Tramon Williams: Grain Belt Nordeast. Punches the clock and comes ready to work every day.

Mike Neal: Michelob Golden Draft Light. Careful, the bottle breaks easily.

Donald Driver: Leinenkugel’s Honey Weiss. There are better options, but it remains a Wisconsin favorite.

Clay Matthews: Size 7 IPA. A little undersized, but brings it every time you pour one.

Jermichael Finley: Ten Cent Strohs. Whenever Finley drops a pass or says something stupid, fans pound ten cent Stroh’s and this happens.  Read more... (484 words + 1 image, estimated 1:56 mins reading time)

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Could D.J. Smith take A.J. Hawk's job in 2012?

Since being drafted in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft, A.J. Hawk has consistently been one of the most criticized players for the Green Bay Packers.  In fact, it would be safe to say that the former No. 5 overall pick has been widely considered somewhat of a bust during his tenure in the league.

It seems that every year Packers fans are wondering whether or not this will be the last time that Hawk remains a starting inside linebacker for Green Bay.  However, every year before the start of the regular season they inevitably see Hawk’s name in the starting lineup without a possible replacement challenging him.

That may no longer be the case for Green Bay and Hawk.  According to a report from Gregg Rosenthal at NFL.com, Hawk could lose playing time to second-year player D.J. Smith.  Rosenthal does state that it is unlikely that Smith will completely replace Hawk, but could definitely begin taking away snaps from him.

However, the most interesting quote in Rosenthal’s article is the comment from defensive coordinator Dom Capers that basically states that Smith will be competing for Hawk’s job.  It is one thing for a reporter to say Smith could take Hawk’s job, but it is another thing entirely to have the head-honcho of the defense saying the same thing.  Read more... (621 words + 1 image, estimated 2:29 mins reading time)

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Surviving Sunday with no Packers Football

The NFL recently announced that the all-22 coaches’ film will be made available to fans through the league’s Game Rewind package on NFL.com this season.

The all-22 film is something hardcore football enthusiasts and blogger-types like me have been clamoring for for a long time. It gives us access to the same footage that coaches use to evaluate games and players on a week-by-week basis. Theoretically, it should improve football analysis by leaps and bounds.

But will it? The more I thought about it, the more I questioned whether I should be so enthusiastic.

My main worry is that too many people will think they’ve suddenly become football experts because of this new access to coaches’ film. There are plenty of idiots calling themselves football experts already. Might the all-22 film cause even more idiots to come out of the woodwork? Or might the current idiots become even more idiotic and insufferable because of this access?

The answer is probably ‘yes’ to both of those questions.

But in the end, who cares?

Coaches’ film or no coaches’ film, there will always be idiots. Once the all-22 is available, we need to handle the idiots the same we handle them now: Try to tune them out and focus on the analysts and experts that we respect and think do a good job.  Read more... (848 words + 1 image, estimated 3:24 mins reading time)

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