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Aaron Rodgers and Josh Sitton are two of the Packers “blue chip” players.

Now that my fellow staff members and I have completed our annual player evaluations and report cards, I thought it might be fun to take a look at the Green Bay Packers’ impact players. Taking a page from Michael Lombardi, former NFL Network analyst who now works in the front office for the Cleveland Browns, I have categorized the players into representational colored chips.

I’ve added a couple more categories beyond the usual blue and red chips, but for the latter groups, I have taken some of the qualifications as used by Lombardi. While some players might have fallen short of their expectations this past season, I have attempted to look at their entire body of work and where they stand going into 2013.

One thing I did notice in this exercise was the lack of playmakers on the defense, which Ted Thompson, Mike McCarthy, and Dom Capers need to work on correcting.

Feel free to chime in with any agreements, disagreements, or additions to the lists!

Blue Chip Players:

» Demonstrates rare abilities and creates mismatches that have an obvious impact on the game.
» Is a premier player in the league and a weapon on the field.
» Combines competitiveness and skill to provide a consistent championship-level performance.  Read more... (914 words + 1 image, estimated 3:39 mins reading time)

• Aaron Rodgers – One of the best quarterbacks in the modern NFL era, Rodgers is the heart of this team. His exceptional football intelligence, technique, and work ethic make everyone else around him look better.

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The official 2012 Green Bay Packers 53-man roster has been announced. Without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, we present to you, your 2012 Green Bay Packers!

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Packers Linebacker Jamari Lattimore

After the Packers’ best preseason performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, they now turn to Monday’s 4pm EDT deadline to reduce their roster by 10 players followed by an August 31^st (one week from now) deadline to reduce to 53.  It’s typically at this point that most teams will base many of these cuts on player health.  There are quite a few names currently on the roster whose chances of cracking the final 53 are and were slim-to-none coming into training camp.  The team released 5 players Friday, most  notably Anthony Hargrove, who was signed during the offseason and is set to serve an 8 game suspension to start the year.  While I don’t expect any surprises or big names to get a pink slip on Monday, let’s examine 3 guys who have either boosted or lowered their chances of sticking on the 2012 squad.

Up  Read more... (1486 words + 3 images, estimated 5:57 mins reading time)

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OL Don Barclay, #67, is quietly earning a roster spot with the Green Bay Packers.

There haven’t been a lot of bright spots across the Green Bay Packers’ backup offensive line this preseason, as Graham Harrell can probably attest to. All of this negative attention, however, has probably overshadowed some of the good line play going on. One player in particular – Don Barclay (#67) – has quietly been proving his worth with the second unit.

Barclay was picked up by the Packers as a rookie free agent from West Virginia University. With experience in the guard and tackle position, he was a three-year starter as the Mountaineers’ left tackle.

As a Green Bay Packer, Don Barclay made his first big jump during the preseason game against the Cleveland Browns. He earned a No. 2 guard spot along with veteran Reggie Wells and has been practicing there since. In Thursday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Barclay once again played with the second string offensive line at right guard. During the fourth quarter, he also took the reps at right tackle with the third string unit.

After hearing some rumors about his play, I decided to go back and “A.J. Hawk” him throughout the Bengals game. What I saw was very promising. Though I am no expert on the finer techniques of being an offensive lineman, I can definitely say that Barclay looked extremely solid. He didn’t give up any pressures or sacks, and he was able to hold his ground in pass protection, rarely if ever getting pushed backwards.  Read more... (465 words + 1 image, estimated 1:52 mins reading time)

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The Green Bay Packers receivers may not have room for one more.

Earlier in the offseason, I examined a couple ways the Green Bay Packers could shuffle around the 53-man roster to make room for six wide receivers. Both Diondre Borel and Tori Gurley are making a strong push to make the final cut, and the possibility is certainly there. Today, however, I’m going to play the Devil’s advocate and present a few reasons why the Packers won’t even decide to keep that extra receiver.

1. Offensively Useless

First and foremost, there simply isn’t room for a sixth wide receiver in the offense. The maximum number of receivers you can have in a given play is five, and it’s highly doubtful Mike McCarthy would line up Borel or Gurley in place of one of the “Top 5.” He’s going to put the best talent on the field, and that’s not going to include numero seis on the depth chart. Plus, according to the “Football Outsiders Almanac 2012,” the Packers offense lined up in a 4+ WR set on just 7% of their snaps.

Some might counter that having a sixth receiver provides good depth if someone were to get injured; however, we have to remember that tight ends also play a factor. Jermichael Finley and perhaps even D.J. Williams make the issue of depth a little moot. On top of that, the practice squad is always there in case of dire emergencies.

2. Special Teams Factor  Read more... (928 words + 1 image, estimated 3:43 mins reading time)

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With training camp approaching, fans most cherished prognosticating event, second only to mock drafts is predicting the final 53-man roster.  Our own Adam Czech and Chad Toporski have each done their own analysis of the 53-man rosters and I’m sure the entire AllGreenBayPackers staff will be making predictions further down the road, but instead of doing one this early myself, I’ve decided to write so general rules that I think you should follow when making your own 53-man rosters

Rule 1 – Drafted players almost always make the team: Over his 8 year tenure as the Packers GM, Ted Thompson has only cut 8 drafted rookies by the end of training camp (technically DE Lawrence Guy was also cut last year, but ended up on the IR list, so the Packers still hold his rights and he is part of this year’s training camp so I don’t consider him a true cut). That’s roughly 1 draftee cut per year, so with the Packers taking 8 players in this year’s draft, expect to keep at least 6 or 7 of them on roster.  Also keep that in mind that when trying to add Diondre Biorel, Tori Gurley or Dezman Moses to the roster, drafted players almost always get preferential treatment unless an undrafted rookie has played lights out.  Read more... (1440 words + 1 image, estimated 5:46 mins reading time)

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Can the Packers make room for a sixth WR like Tori Gurley?

The recent contract restructuring that Donald Driver agreed to with the Green Bay Packers has stamped a gigantic question mark over the wide receiver position. Namely, will the Packers’ 53-man roster include six wide receivers now that a roster spot is virtually guaranteed for Driver? Second-year players Diondre Borel, Tori Gurley, and even Shaky Smithson will all be competing for a spot on the roster, but it might require an additional receiver spot to make it possible.

Instead of debating the validity of keeping six wide receivers, I’ve decided to consider how this could actually happen. What roster moves would have to happen, and which option is the most likely?

Before diving in, I decided to do a little preliminary work and see how Mike McCarthy and Ted Thompson have built their opening day rosters in the past. I first charted how many players were kept at each position, then went through and looked at the minimum number of players McCarthy has kept throughout the years. I didn’t take an average, since I though it more important to see how low the Packers were willing to go at a given position and use that as kind of a breaking point.

(Note: I only went back to 2009 due to the defensive scheme shift. Defensive positions prior to that point, especially DL and LB, would carry significantly different numbers.)  Read more... (1189 words + 1 image, estimated 4:45 mins reading time)

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