What has me excited about this season

[OldSchool101]

As a sidenote. I am curious who will step into that 3rd Safety role. My darkhorse guess is a UDFA. Tre Sterling checks many of the boxes for a solid #3 (by later 2022 or 2023) He had a hand injury followed by an uninspiring combine run.
He does fit some needed check boxes.

He had early college success. In his first season on Defense (as a
2019 Sophomore) he was an honorable mention Big 12 selection.

The 2020 Junior became a staple of the OSU Defense. Led his team with 12 TFL and was the leading tackler overall. Has above average instincts and a nose for Turnovers. Led his Defense with 13 Tackles in their Bowl Victory over Miami. Also has a good ball sniffer, and just good schematic recognition of his opponent. He’s got that natural football player smarts.

As a 2021 Senior he Unknowingly Played on and off with a severe wrist injury (initially diagnosed as a sprain). It showed his willingness to play through pain and his dedication.

I feel like his instincts make up for his lack of ideal long speed. He does have good change of direction and short burst and a he’s a methodical finisher. He’s an above average Turnover producer and disruptive in the Box. I could see Sterling starting PS, then eventually winning a productive role on ST as a priority backup. Eventually a suitable #3 Safety (in the mold of a slight upgrade to last seasons Henry Black) He’s a long-shot, but if his wrist is healed he’s going to show up this preseason. I think we got a
6-7th Rounder type, but without the usual draft obligations.

 

[tynimiller]

Tre was a solid Day 3 target for me...fact we got him post draft amazes me and I like you will not be shocked if he plays his way to active roster.

 

[OldSchool101]

Tre was a solid Day 3 target for me...fact we got him post draft amazes me and I like you will not be shocked if he plays his way to active roster.

Yeah. Tre’s biggest obstacle I see?
is Shawn Davis.
Those 2 are in the same mold, but Davis (5th Round 2021) has 1 year leg up training in our D system, so he’s the incumbent and it’ll take stellar preseason to unseat him, which is why I say they’ll more likely PS him initially, going in favor of Carpenter or Davis.
Yeah. Hes definitely a player to watch though this preseason and might sneak up the food chain with a strong preseason

 

[Heyjoe4]

All that said and I agree with this. My “yards” statement does not imply we should throw out the entire book of statistical information either.
It’s simply an important mark to achieve for a Receiving core that has some ??

In addition though, I would prefer to see his Passer rating Stable or better in his 104.5 career range. That encompasses many of the aspects of success. If we surpass 4,000 passing and he’s over 104% Passer rating we’ll still be enough of a dangerous Offensive force. In that case, Most of our team success will come down to D and ST performance.

I'd be happy if STs simply didn't make so many mistakes. I'm sure Bisaccia will get more out of them than that. But hey, it would be a start.

 

[sschind]

That's an interesting point by sschind, that he'd prefer the best RB to the best WR. And it makes sense. Great RBs take more time off the clock and tend to wear down the DL. This is very clear in Q4 when then D is gassed. And the run game is needed to set up the RPO. Time of possession can be as crucial as takeaways in winning a game.

And yeah rmontro, that SF game was so close, a healthier backfield may have resulted in a different outcome. Oh well, it didn't. Onward!

Thats part of it. I also think that if you took the top 25 WRs and put them in the right situation ( QB, offense, etc.). Any one of them could realistically become the top WR in any given season. That may not be the same as the best but for one year they could be. If you take the top 25 RBs I think you could say the same about MAYBE 10 of them but more likely even less than that.

When you factor in what they get paid its an absolute no brainer/ for me.

 

[OldSchool101]

Thats part of it. I also think that if you took the top 25 WRs and put them in the right situation ( QB, offense, etc.). Any one of them could realistically become the top WR in any given season. That may not be the same as the best but for one year they could be. If you take the top 25 RBs I think you could say the same about MAYBE 10 of them but more likely even less than that.

When you factor in what they get paid its an absolute no brainer/ for me.

There’s some validity to that. The Receiver production comes largely from the Talent at QB mixed with OL production and relative to the competition Inside that room.

The RB (as far as rushing) really relies on some initial blocking and himself. We picked up a group of good run blockers in this draft and we’re about to get an injection in the arm of All Pro talent at OL. Add to that Watson was a very stout blocker in College. Keep an eye on him, he’ll run his guy into the stands or the ground.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Another aspect of this season, call it preseason in particular, is the status of Jordan Love. I’m more excited to explore his development than any other backup player. The more time that passes, the less the chances he will start as a Packers QB. That means we have an opportunity to recoup some 2020 draft capital.

While Preseason isn’t necessarily the ultimate litmus test of QB greatness, it might be all we have. Other than Jordan finishing a series or two in a game that’s already over or an outside chance of already locking a #1 Seed? We really hope to never see him start a game this entire season (at least in GB)

That’s why this Preseason might be an opportunity to offer some other team a glimpse of his potential. My guess is that we do have substantial “bench” talent when looking at OL, WR, RB etc.. That should offer Jordan a better leg up on his second series of preseason games. He’s only played in 2 partial preseason games, 1 regular Start and 1/2 game finisher thus far. So getting some more continuity in playing time (even if against mostly backups) could help his cause.

The preseason will most likely offer the best way to make an evaluation of Love this season but I highly doubt another team would be interested in trading for him solely based on it.

I'm not certain how good the back ups are on most teams, but the fact that we have a few players returning from season ending injuries in the past, while we had replacements good enough to get us into the playoffs may tip the scales in favor of the Packers.

Now, assuming all of them come back to their previous levels, that would be Bakh, Jenkins, Tonyan, Alexander, and even Z. Smith being available. I'm not saying necessarily from day one, but as the season progresses, this will work to make the team stronger, as they reach deeper into the season. The guys playing ahead of them will have gotten even better, and we should see a solid make up for a lot of positions.

The Packers lost players on the offensive line and cornerback who played a significant amount of snaps at both the offensive line and cornerback last season in Patrick, Turner and Sullivan this offseason. Adams definitely made up for the loss of Tonyan. Therefore I'm not sure the depth will be any better by any of the players you mentioned returning.

...and that was my point. Few people actually know and understand the position depth on all 32 teams, but you feel believe we have inferior depth compared to other teams without having direct knowledge of it. I don't have that knowledge either.

I think it boils down to you think other teams have better depth. I think virtually all teams have similar depth issues. Neither one of us knows so it's just opinions based on guesses.

Just for amusement, I went to two Rams forums. As the Super Bowl champs, they should have the best depth or be in your list of championship contending teams. While I didn't find a specific thread about depth, in several they discussed positions heading into training camp. They seem to lack depth at RB, OL, DL, edge rushers (don't even have a 2nd starter), and CB. They have elite players at many of those positions, but fans and writers are already worried about who steps up if the injury bug strikes.

The grass just always looks greaner in the neighbors' yard.

You're right about that. It's entirely possible the Packers have great depth compared to other contenders as well. I'm just worried about the inexperience behind the starters at several positions.

AR12 has a history of pouting when the machine doesnt function exactly the way he wants it. This is going to be the problem. The big question is if he will hit the open man no matter who it is. My instincts say nope - he will force it to his trust. I hope I am totally delusional but I see it every year.

There's no need to worry as you're being delusional

 

[El Guapo]

You're right about that. It's entirely possible the Packers have great depth compared to other contenders as well. I'm just worried about the inexperience behind the starters at several positions.

We all are. I think that's what makes each season interesting, is to see which players come out of nowhere to provide the depth that we didn't know that we had. At the same time, we'll realize that some of the guys that we thought would provide depth end up being duds.