2020 Predictions: Three Guys That Will Step Up

[tynimiller]

Alright...before the draft as I think draftees should NOT be considered for this exercise as too easy of a prediction for many.

What three returning guys do you feel are going to exceed expectations and/or elevate their level of play in 2020?!


My three as of right now (3/26/2020) in no particular order are:

• Lucas Patrick - With a new RT coming in, and the chances of us avoiding injury along the line for a second year basically quite low, I think Patrick gets a chance to show why Gute and Co. gave him his extension. Possible if Turner has to slide to tackle he goes guard, or if Linsley misses any time he snaps...either way I just sense Patrick gets more chances to shine.

• Equanimeous St. Brown - I was a fan of his before the draft. His craft and technique and mind is what sets up up for success. He is a technician and a scholar (dude is a GENIUS!), which flows over to his approach to football as well. I expect he solidifies himself on the 53 and when called on answers the call successfully more often than not. He isn't going be a starter opposite of Adams, but watch out for him to be a gameday contributor as asked.

• Jamaal Williams - I have a sneaky suspicion Jamaal hits his stride and becomes an even more solid backup to Jones...it is his contract year, as of now he has no one which is going to steal reps from him. I like his chances....actually I know he'll get chances, and for this thread I'm going to predict he runs with them.

*Honorable mention: Chandon Sullivan

EDITED Post-Draft: Removing Jamaal Williams as I truly believe Dillon greatly limits what role Williams will have. I'll switch to Kevin King, in a contract year and ready to truly earn his first big paycheck if he balls out. I don't think Green Bay will be able to retain him if he does this, but we will see.

 

[gopkrs]

The obvious is Sternberger
The hopeful to get even better is Savage
The longshot is Burks

 

[Mondio]

Savage, Sternberger, and Gary

 

[HardRightEdge]

Alright...before the draft as I think draftees should NOT be considered for this exercise as too easy of a prediction for many.

What three returning guys do you feel are going to exceed expectations and/or elevate their level of play in 2020?!


My three as of right now (3/26/2020) in no particular order are:

• Lucas Patrick - With a new RT coming in, and the chances of us avoiding injury along the line for a second year basically quite low, I think Patrick gets a chance to show why Gute and Co. gave him his extension. Possible if Turner has to slide to tackle he goes guard, or if Linsley misses any time he snaps...either way I just sense Patrick gets more chances to shine.

• Equanimeous St. Brown - I was a fan of his before the draft. His craft and technique and mind is what sets up up for success. He is a technician and a scholar (dude is a GENIUS!), which flows over to his approach to football as well. I expect he solidifies himself on the 53 and when called on answers the call successfully more often than not. He isn't going be a starter opposite of Adams, but watch out for him to be a gameday contributor as asked.

• Jamaal Williams - I have a sneaky suspicion Jamaal hits his stride and becomes an even more solid backup to Jones...it is his contract year, as of now he has no one which is going to steal reps from him. I like his chances....actually I know he'll get chances, and for this thread I'm going to predict he runs with them.

*Honorable mention: Chandon Sullivan

Patrick assumes Linsley will be released which is a big assumption. As it stands these are depth and rotation considerations.

I would propose a different list as the roster stands now, not considering what may happen in the draft which was your premise. Without considering the draft, it would stand to reason the needed step-ups from the current roster must include the positions where there is a fairly strong concensus on where Day 1 and 2 picks should be allocated.

• Rashan Gary - Fackrell had a 40% snap count last season, Gary 23%. That's a 63% snap count waiting for him. This is not simply a rotational issue. Petine's stated preference is to be able to use Z. or Gary inside in nickel/dime, with all three on the field. Even as it was, those 4 OLBs combined for 231 snaps which implies that 3 of them were on the field 31% of the time despite Pettine's plan being largely deferred. Here we have a #12 pick, a large investment. In a world where getting productivity out of relatively cheap rookie contract players is a necessity, this investment has to be at the top of the list.

• ILBs - Kirksey is the presumptive 3-down ILB. As things stands there isn't another one. So a moneyball approach is needed with the current roster--getting 3 downs in the aggregate out of more than one player, a base player and a passing down player. Burks would appear to be the evident lead candidate in base defense, though a 3rd. year jump should be viewed with skepticism. There are a couple SS candidates for the hybrid role, Green and Redmond, or perhaps even Summers who posted a 4.52 at the Combine. Thinking about Summers size/speed combination as a 3-down player is a massive stretch with unrefined run D instincts. Burks was supposed to be a 3-downer, but that would be huge stretch now. He needs to do on thing well first.

• Nickel corner: This is a de facto "starter" position. I suppose Sullivan is the leading candidate at this juncture. Whoever it is, he needs to be a player.

• Sternberger - This is your presumptive Graham replacement, the guy you would expect to be the highest snap count TE by a significant margin. As TEs go, a #75 pick is fairly significant investment. Cheap rookie contract, yada, yada.

• Funchess/Lazard - Rather than focus on St. Brown, why not consider the guys we presume are ahead of him on the depth chart at this point? A veteran in a new system with an injury history and Lazard in year 2 present considerable question marks. Looking across the TE and WR group, and last year's productivity other than Adams, two out of three of these name players need to show they can play without going to more questionable Plan B's.

 

[tynimiller]

Patrick assumes Linsley will be released which is a big assumption. As it stands these are depth and rotation considerations.

I would propose a different list as the roster stands now, not considering what may happen in the draft which was your premise. Without considering the draft, it would stand to reason the needed step-ups from the current roster must include the positions where there is a fairly strong concensus on where Day 1 and 2 picks should be allocated.

• Rashan Gary - Fackrell had a 40% snap count last season, Gary 23%. That's a 63% snap count waiting for him. This is not simply a rotational issue. Petine's stated preference is to be able to use Z. or Gary inside in nickel/dime, with all three on the field. Even as it was, those 4 OLBs combined for 231 snaps which implies that 3 of them were on the field 31% of the time despite Pettine's plan being largely deferred. Here we have a #12 pick, a large investment. In a world where getting productivity out of relatively cheap rookie contract players is a necessity, this investment has to be at the top of the list.

• ILBs - Kirksey is the presumive 3-down ILB. As things stands there isn't another one. So a moneyball approach is needed with the current roster--getting 3 downs in the aggregate out of more than one player, a base player and a passing down player. Burks would appear to be the evident lead candidate in base defense, though a 3rd. year jump should be viewed with skepticism. There are a couple SS candidates for the hybrid role, Green and Redmond, or perhaps even Summers who posted a 4.52 at the Combine. Thinking about Summers size/speed combination as a 3-down player is a massive stretch with unrefined run D instincts.

• Nickel corner: This is a de facto "starter" position. I suppose Sullivan is the leading candidate at this juncture. Whoever it is, he needs to be a player.

• Sternberger - This is your presumptive Graham replacement, the guy you would expect to be the highest snap count TE by a significant margin. As TEs go, a #75 pick is fairly significant investment. Cheap rookie contract, yada, yada.

• Funchess/Lazard - Rather than focus on St. Brown, why not consider the guys we presume are ahead of him on the depth chart at this point? A veteran in a new system with an injury history and Lazard in year 2 present considerable question marks. Looking across the TE and WR group, and last year's productivity other than Adams, two out of three of these name players need to show they can play without going to more questionable Plan B's.

There is always that one guy that colors outside the line. You listed 10...two not returners but Funchess and Kirksey. LOL


My three, while not the obvious or bigger ones are still guys I foresee stepping up higher than their expectations.

 

[HardRightEdge]

There is always that one guy that colors outside the line. You listed 10...two not returners but Funchess and Kirksey. LOL

My three, while not the obvious or bigger ones are still guys I foresee stepping up higher than their expectations.

There's always one guy who thinks he draws the lines others must color inside. Everybody gets to draw their own lines and color as they see fit. "Concept ownership" is itself a bizarre concept. Why you would expect this thread to be different than any other I could not say. Actually, if you look across these threads, you have many guys coloring outside the lines all the time. I'm sure if I cared to look that would include you! I don't disapprove of off-topic wanderings as one thing connects to another.

But if you insist:

Williams: He's pretty much a fully formed player and a valuable asset expecially at his cost. I don't expect, nor does this team need, some next step forward. He's shown subtle, incremental development over 3 years. There may be some more, but I would not expect it to be dramatic or necessary.

Patrick: Barring the unlikely Linsley cut or an interior line injury, he's not going to see many snaps. He might be making a jump behind the scenes but you'd never know.

St. Brown: The one thing I've disliked in his game is how he rounds off his route breaks. You get some of that with long striders like St. Brown but with him it is pronounced. That makes a CB's job in man coverage a lot easier. What I think I've noticed on the plus side his route running against zone and maybe a knack for the scramble drill, in other words finding his own space in plays that call for it. But if a receiver is giving away too much in man coverage, his utility is limited.

You might like those assessments less than the coloring outside the lines.

 

[tynimiller]

There's always one guy who thinks he draws the lines others must color inside. Everybody gets to draw their own lines and color as they see fit. "Concept ownership" is itself a bizarre concept. Why you would expect this thread to be different than any other I could not say. Actually, if you look across these threads, you have many guys coloring outside the lines all the time. I'm sure if I cared to look that would include you! I don't disapprove of off-topic wanderings as one thing connects to another.

But if you insist:

Williams: He's pretty much a fully formed player and a valuable asset expecially at his cost. I don't expect, not does this team need, some next step forward. He's shown subtle, incremental development over 3 years. There may be some more, but I would not expect it to be dramatic or necessary.

Patrick: Barring the unlikely Linsley cut or an interior line injury, he's not going to see many snaps. He might be making a jump behind the scenes but you'd never know.

St. Brown: The one thing I've disliked in his game is how he rounds off his route breaks. You get some of that with long striders like St. Brown but with him it pronounced. That makes a CB's job in man coverage a lot easier. What I think I've noticed on the plus side his route running against zone and maybe a knack for the scramble drill, in other words finding his own space in plays that call for it. But if a receiver is giving away too much in man coverage, his utility is limited.

You might like those assessments less than the coloring outside the lines.

Make your own thread...I made it and posed a specific question. Clearly you don't understand the discussion outlined in the first post...it's okay, no hard feelings

 

[HardRightEdge]

Make your own thread...I made it and posed a specific question. Clearly you don't understand the discussion outlined in the first post...it's okay, no hard feelings

Somehow I knew you wouldn't like that.

 

[tynimiller]

Somehow I knew you wouldn't like that.

 

[PackAttack12]

All the way with you on EQ. IMO, he could have been a huge contributor for a Packers offense that had it stuck in the mud far too often. I think he has a big 2020 season.

Two others: Savage and Sternberger. Savage because another year of seasoning. I think he becomes a huge disrupter this season. Jace moreso because we might not have any other choice. He’s going to have play big times snaps.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

In my opinion the Packers absolutely need Gary and Sternberger to step up. I'm going with Reggie Begelton as a surprise pick for my third one.

Patrick assumes Linsley will be released which is a big assumption. As it stands these are depth and rotation considerations.

Patrick could have a significant impact even with Linsley retained as soon as a starting offensive lineman is forced to miss time because of injury.

 

[HardRightEdge]

Patrick could have a significant impact even with Linsley retained as soon as a starting offensive lineman is forced to miss time because of injury.

To be sure, but if Linsley was retained, which I expect, Patrick is a needed depth player but a depth player nonetheless as I stated.

The point being, you could single out any number of projected depth players who would be required to step up. In fact, starters at nickel/dime corner and nickel/dime ILB could come out of the current roster of DBs pending the draft.

 

[Fredrik87]

Ok here's mine.

ESB I'm with you all the way on that one.

Tramon or Sullivan depending on if Tramon gets resigned.

Marcedes Lewis.

 

[AmishMafia]

Chandon Sullivan Maybe the biggest surprise of last season for me. He played smart and aggressively. Seemed to have a good instinct. Suspect he was getting and taking lots of advice from Tramon. More experience and he may develop into a solid starter towards the end of the season.

Kingsly Keke of all the rookies last year, I was most surprised by Keke (very close to K'dar). I could definitely see him getting substantial playing time this coming season. When he did play last year he really looked like he was going all out. I think he will be a handful for OL.

Aaron Rodgers Many think he played well, I think he played poorly, by his standards and average by NFL standards. With a 2nd year in the offense and more practice time with the newer WRs I expect him to play much better. QB is much tougher than WR. A WR needs to know the route tree. The QB needs to know all the route trees and the blocking scheme and running plays. Its understandabke that this takes some time for a QB, even with such an experienced QB as AR. Certainly an upgrade at WR will help, but there were to many poorly thrown balls and missed opportunities which are solely ARs responsibility.

 

[Poppa San]

AR12 -- after another camp will mesh with at least a few receivers not wearing #17.
King -- Will bloom off the full year of playing healthy.
Tonyan -- time to shine.

 

[GleefulGary]

- KeKe, do you love me?

- Sternberger

- Funchess

 

[Pkrjones]

I'll play...

1. ESB showed potential as a rookie and spent '19 on the shelf. I'm hoping he comes back hungry & ready to claim a significant spot in the top 4 rotation.
2. I thought Tonyan would've made his splash last year but had problems with blocking so his snaps were spotty. Without Graham wasting snaps I think Tonyan will come to play in '20.
3. Burks' injury in TC took away valuable preseason experience. He was never able to take snaps away from Goodson or Martinez once the season started. Both are gone so I'm hoping we see a much more confident Burks flying around & making plays in '20.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Burks' injury in TC took away valuable preseason experience. He was never able to take snaps away from Goodson or Martinez once the season started. Both are gone so I'm hoping we see a much more confident Burks flying around & making plays in '20.

Unfortunatley Burks not being able to receive a significant amount of snaps on defense while the Packers were in dire need of an upgrade at inside linebacker last season doesn't instill any confidence in him having an impact moving forward.

 

[PackAttack12]

Aaron Rodgers Many think he played well, I think he played poorly, by his standards and average by NFL standards. With a 2nd year in the offense and more practice time with the newer WRs I expect him to play much better. QB is much tougher than WR. A WR needs to know the route tree. The QB needs to know all the route trees and the blocking scheme and running plays. Its understandabke that this takes some time for a QB, even with such an experienced QB as AR. Certainly an upgrade at WR will help, but there were to many poorly thrown balls and missed opportunities which are solely ARs responsibility.

The rest of your response is why I'm perplexed as to why you say he played poorly. By your own admission, it takes time to adjust to a new system, with the least talented group of receivers he's ever had. And a whole lot of inexperience. I know you seem to be a lot higher on our pass catchers than me and many others, but it's simply not comparable to years past.

Additionally, there were some rumblings that the offense was handicapped to a certain degree in not being able to utilize the no huddle, hurry up offense because guys couldn't seem to catch on. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the dysfunction on offense was because of a similar issue. Not saying Rodgers wasn't a part of that, but I'd lean toward the thought that the 10+ year vet and multiple time league MVP was far ahead of the others in the learning curve.

I'm with you all the way on some poorly thrown balls by Rodgers. There's no question that he wasn't as sharp as he's been in years past, and as you allude to especially by his all time great standards. And truthfully, this goes back to 2018. There's been injuries and other stuff going on, but without question for two years he hasn't been a top 3 quarterback of all time, the way his career trajectory was going up until early 2017. He's still played at a very high level though in my opinion.

Perhaps this is splitting hairs because in the big picture, I feel we're on the same page. My stance though is that he has played much better than some are giving him credit for, especially late in games when the money's on the table.

 

[Mondio]

He certainly looked average at times, but there were plenty of times where he showed he's certainly not your average NFL QB. I tend to believe new system, subpar players, etc all played a role over anything else and will improve

 

[AmishMafia]

The rest of your response is why I'm perplexed as to why you say he played poorly. By your own admission, it takes time to adjust to a new system, with the least talented group of receivers he's ever had. And a whole lot of inexperience. I know you seem to be a lot higher on our pass catchers than me and many others, but it's simply not comparable to years past.

Additionally, there were some rumblings that the offense was handicapped to a certain degree in not being able to utilize the no huddle, hurry up offense because guys couldn't seem to catch on. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the dysfunction on offense was because of a similar issue. Not saying Rodgers wasn't a part of that, but I'd lean toward the thought that the 10+ year vet and multiple time league MVP was far ahead of the others in the learning curve.

I'm with you all the way on some poorly thrown balls by Rodgers. There's no question that he wasn't as sharp as he's been in years past, and as you allude to especially by his all time great standards. And truthfully, this goes back to 2018. There's been injuries and other stuff going on, but without question for two years he hasn't been a top 3 quarterback of all time, the way his career trajectory was going up until early 2017. He's still played at a very high level though in my opinion.

Perhaps this is splitting hairs because in the big picture, I feel we're on the same page. My stance though is that he has played much better than some are giving him credit for, especially late in games when the money's on the table.

He either played poorly or he didnt. Adapting to a new system is a reason. You may blame it on the WRs, by giving the benefit of the doubt to AR basrd on his past. But watching the games I saw him make bad throws. I saw him not make throws to open WRs. Even if it is 5 or 6 plays per game that he missed, that's significant. Imagine another 80 receptions distributed to GMo, MVS, and Lazard. That would make them statistically look much better. Then there is the lack of in-game leadership. Used to be nearly his greatest asset. I dont see as much anymore. I saw him glaring at the sidelines and I didnt see him encouraging his offense.

This has been hashed over a bunch of times and I dont expect to change any AR fans mind.

This is a thread on who we think will step up. I think AR will step up. I'm a positive thinker, but I'm also a realist when it comes to assessing our own players.

 

[PackAttack12]

He either played poorly or he didnt. Adapting to a new system is a reason. You may blame it on the WRs, by giving the benefit of the doubt to AR basrd on his past. But watching the games I saw him make bad throws. I saw him not make throws to open WRs. Even if it is 5 or 6 plays per game that he missed, that's significant. Imagine another 80 receptions distributed to GMo, MVS, and Lazard. That would make them statistically look much better. Then there is the lack of in-game leadership. Used to be nearly his greatest asset. I dont see as much anymore. I saw him glaring at the sidelines and I didnt see him encouraging his offense.

This has been hashed over a bunch of times and I dont expect to change any AR fans mind.

This is a thread on who we think will step up. I think AR will step up. I'm a positive thinker, but I'm also a realist when it comes to assessing our own players.

MVS would have run the wrong route and GMo would have dropped it

Like I said, there's certainly a lot of improvement for Rodgers this year over last. And even going back two years. I'm not absolving him from that. I'll say it again: he missed more throws last year than we should expect from him.

And I agree with you. He either played poorly or he didn't. I'm going with he didn't. Not great, not poor. He won a lot of football games this year especially in the 4th quarter making big plays to extend drives and bleed the clock.

13-3 is set in stone. The quarterback has a lot to do with that.

New system isn't an excuse. The lack of great playmakers (less Davante) aren't an excuse. They are explanations. In my opinion, you have to look at it through the vacuum of what is the most you could have realistically expected under the circumstances. We were never going to see 40+ TDs with a 115 passer rating this past year.

You're right. We aren't going to change each other's minds. We'll agree to disagree. But what we will definitely agree on is that we both hope to see the best possible version of Aaron Rodgers this season.

 

[gopkrs]

Gonna go out on a limb. So many of you think Geronimo is a bum. I say that if Stafford stays healthy and realizing that Detroit already has its starting receivers; Geronimo will first of all make the team and then contribute during the season.

 

[tynimiller]

I think far too many want to live in this world where Aaron either player poorly or didn't at all. Dear freaking Lord folks, logic and our eyeballs tell us there were times he tossed the pigskin poorly...there were times he tossed it just like he has in the past MVP years and WRs either missed it/fumbledit/weren't in the right spot.

 

[Mondio]

Gonna go out on a limb. So many of you think Geronimo is a bum. I say that if Stafford stays healthy and realizing that Detroit already has its starting receivers; Geronimo will first of all make the team and then contribute during the season.

I do not think he's a bum at all. I think he has a problem with ball security and that is what brought his time to an end here, but I think he is still the type of player that can be in that 30-40 catch range and a couple TD's fairly regularly. He made some big time catches for us again last year and took some good shots doing it at times too. He just didn't stay consistent and take that next step.