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Green Bay’s defense adds safety net when ’Bama’s Clinton-Dix is there at 21
By CHRIS HAVEL
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix is a headline writer’s dream.
Whether he is the solution to Green Bay’s weak safety play and a nightmare for the NFC North’s pass-happy Bears and Lions remains to be seen. For their part, the Packers had to be thrilled he was there at 21. That’s because Green Bay’s list of favored best players still available appeared to be getting mighty short as Thursday night’s first round of the 2014 NFL Draft crept closer to the 21st pick.
Mock drafts had Packers GM Ted Thompson enamored of LSU receiver Odell Beckham Jr., inside linebackers Ryan Shazier of Ohio State and C.J. Mosley of Alabama, and North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron. Each of those was gone after Baltimore selected Mosley with the 17th pick. What few, if any, mock drafts predicted is Clinton-Dix still there at 21.
The Packers quickly moved to take Clinton-Dix – the second safety selected after Louisville’s Calvin Pryor went to the New York Jets at 18 – as a “plug-and-play” pick that is expected to start. Whether the Packers would have preferred either inside linebacker (Shazier or Mosley) or the other safety (Pryor) is unknown.
This much is clear: The Packers preferred Clinton-Dix to Northern Illinois’ safety Jimmie Ward (to San Francisco at 30) and USC receiver Marquise Lee (still available). What matters is whether Clinton-Dix can start and play at a high level. Thompson believes so.
“I think he’s a real all-purpose kind of safety,” he said. “He’s shown an ability to cover down in the slot. He’s good in run support … physical player … also can play well in the back end. I think like (Alabama) coach (Nick) Saban said at the start of the broadcast, ‘We think he’s got very, very good ball skills.’ And all three of those things are things that we look for in a safety.”
Clinton-Dix has ideal size (6-1, 208) along with good range and hands. He also is regarded as a smart player who can organize and direct an NFL secondary. And while he’s not off the charts in the measurable, he is a sure tackler who possesses enough speed (4.58 in the 40-yard dash) to cover slot receivers and hybrid tight ends. Clinton-Dix should be the starter alongside Morgan Burnett when the Packers travel to Seattle in the NFL’s season-opener. He is the first safety selected by the Packers in the first round since Alabama’s George Teague was drafted in 1993.
He also proved to be prophetic by posting an Instagram picture with a Packers jersey a few weeks ago.
“I posted that picture on Instagram and I got 300, 400 comments and posts on Twitter,” he told reporters. “I kind of went back and looked at
Green Bay and they could use some help on the defensive side of the ball period with the great offense they already have. It wasn’t really ‘til then where I was like, ‘Eddie (Lacy) might be right. I might end up in Green Bay seriously.”
Clinton-Dix seemed pleased but not surprised when his name was called at 21.
“Everything happens for a reason,” he said. “I put that picture of me with the Green Bay shirt up there two weeks before the draft and here I am a Packer.”
Packers’ fans should like this pick for several reasons:

• After the disastrous safety play last season, the Packers needed to infuse top-end talent at that position. They did so by not reaching for a second-tier player, and by not spending extra picks to move up.
• Clinton-Dix gives the Packers a chance to see if Burnett’s play will improve when paired with a high-caliber partner on the back end. If Burnett’s play improves that’s great. If not, Micah Hyde is still there. In fact, the future at safety could be Clinton-Dix and Hyde.
• Green Bay holds three picks going into tonight’s second and third rounds. They have the 53rd (second), 85th (third) and 98th (third) picks.

They could acquire a receiver (USC’s Marquise Lee and Vanderbilt’s Jordan Matthews are still on the board), a center (Colorado State’s Weston Richburg remains) and a tight end (Texas Tech’s Jace Amaro, Washington’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Iowa’s C.J. Fiedorowicz represent great value in the second/third round area).
Today, some will debate what Thompson would have done if Clinton-Dix was gone and nobody wanted to trade up with the Packers. Fortunately, we didn’t have to find out.

With four picks in first 98, Green Bay likely to infuse speed, talent at WR, DB
By CHRIS HAVEL
The Packers’ never-ending quest for a running back hit pay-dirt with the second-round selection of Eddie Lacy in 2013. Their annual, ongoing search for a pass rusher opposite Clay Matthews led them to draft DaTone Jones last April, and to sign veteran outside linebacker Julius Peppers in free agency this offseason.
So what will this weekend’s NFL Draft, which begins Thursday, produce at the intersection of “Team Need” and “Best Available?” Of course, that depends on what the NFL’s 20 teams who select before Green Bay will do.
History suggests Packers GM Ted Thompson will avoid selecting a skill position player in the first round. The last time he did was in 2005 when he chose Aaron Rodgers at No. 24. Common sense indicates Thompson’s past draft history will have absolutely no bearing on what the Packers’ GM does Thursday.
With that, here is the Packers’ first-round pick, followed by three likely players/positions Green Bay will focus on in Rounds 2-3:
Last week, I wrote that LSU receiver Odell Beckham Jr. would be an excellent addition at No. 21. Beckham would make an immediate impact as a kick and punt returner. He also would line up in some three- and all four-receiver formations. As previously described, Beckham is a slightly bigger, faster and more explosive version of Randall Cobb.
Beckham would be replacing James Jones – gone to the Raiders – as the No. 3 receiver, and all the other candidates in the return game, most notably Cobb. The problem is I’m not the only one who loves Beckham. So do the Steelers, Ravens and Jets, who select 15th, 16th and 17th. If Beckham is already gone the Packers have two choices: Sit tight or trade down. For the record, I don’t see Thompson trading up. If Thompson can trade down for more picks, I expect him to seriously consider Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward or one of the top receivers or tight ends still on the board in the late-first or early-second rounds.
Next to drafting Beckham, trading down is the Packers’ other great option. If they sit tight, it might be a reach to select Ward at No. 21, but it would be even more of a mistake to take a plummeting Ha-Ha Clinton Dix out of Alabama. Worse would be selecting Alabama inside linebacker C.J. Mosley, who is a good but not great player.
If Thomson sits tight, and Beckham is gone, there are two options:
Kyle Fuller, the cornerback out of Virginia Tech, is a Top 15 talent who still might be looking for a place to land at No. 21. For some of the same reasons I like Beckham, I also like Fuller. He would provide an answer at cornerback next season when Tramon Williams’ contract expires. He also would be of great value in a division with a collection of the game’s top quarterbacks and receivers. My best guess, though, is that Fuller also is gone by the 21st pick.
Anthony Barr, linebacker, UCLA also is a Top 15 talent and consideration at No. 21. Barr has been moving up on a lot of mock draft boards. He has great leverage and athleticism, a strong motor and excellent pass rush skills. Barr is 6-5, 255 with 4.6 speed in the 40. In Thompson’s mind, Barr just might be too good to pass up.
Let’s recap: If the Packers execute the pick at No. 21, my preferred order based on availability would be to take Beckham, Barr or Fuller. I can’t imagine that all three of these players would be gone by 21. The next-best move, if all three are gone and they can’t trade down, would be for Green Bay to take either NIU’s Ward at safety, or whichever tight end remains highest on their board. That would be either Washington’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins or Texas Tech’s Jace Amaro.
Frankly, Ward may be too high to take at No. 21, and either Seferian-Jenkins or Amaro would also be a reach. Thompson doesn’t like to reach.
So it’s Beckham, Barr or Fuller, depending on which is available at 21. If all three are gone it’s time to trade down. If that isn’t possible, it means there is at least one Top 15 talent still on the board.
Trust in Thompson to find him.

LSU’s Beckham Jr. would be imposing addition to unit
By CHRIS HAVEL
When most Packers fans consider which player their team should select in the upcoming NFL draft they focus on defense. They debate which safety will be available at No. 21? They wonder if an inside linebacker might solve their shortcomings against the run? Ultimately, they ask, “Might there be a pass rusher still on the board?”
The truth is the Packers’ greatest challenge is improving the defense, but the surest way to accomplish that is by upgrading the passing attack. Aaron Rodgers without receivers is like a ton of dynamite with no fuse. So who supplies the spark? James Jones is gone to the Raiders via free agency so he won’t be around to underrate.
Jordy Nelson is one of the NFL’s best receivers and Randall Cobb is one of its most explosive. Both are looking at multi-year, mega-bucks contract extensions between now and next offseason.
The Packers may be able to re-sign both, but I doubt it. Jarrett Boykin is a nice No. 4 receiver, and perhaps a good No. 3. But if either Nelson or Cobb is injured the Packers aren’t talented enough or deep enough with Nelson or Cobb, Boykin and a question mark.
Furthermore, the Packers’ punt and kick return game is still in the hands of a player-to-be-named. Safety Micah Hyde showed flashes, but he’s better at returning punts than kicks, and he’ll be busy on defense. Also, Cobb’s days as a return specialist should (better) be over. That’s why a receiver makes sense with the 21st pick.
In particular, LSU’s Odell Beckham Jr. would be a tremendous addition. Beckham Jr. is 5-11, 198 pounds. Picture a slightly taller, slightly thicker and faster, more explosive Cobb. That’s Beckham Jr. He would upgrade the Packers’ return game the first day of training camp. He also would represent a match-up nightmare for opposing defenses. Nelson, Cobb, Beckham Jr., a tight end and running back Eddie Lacy would be among the NFL’s most explosive units, especially with a solid offensive line and Rodgers pulling the trigger.
The Packers’ defense would be assisted by playing with a lead more often than not, or at least more often than it did last season. It could be argued that defense is the priority, and if the Packers want a receiver they can take one in the second or third round. This is reputed to be a very deep draft at receiver.
While this may be a deep draft at receiver, there is no question that Beckham Jr. is a special player who makes an immediate impact. The odds of getting such a player evaporate with every round. Also, the Packers wouldn’t be drafting to complement Nelson and Cobb. They would be drafting to replace either Nelson or Cobb.
To those fans still yearning for a defensive player here’s a compromise:
The Packers select Beckham Jr. at 21. They follow that up by packaging their second- and third-round picks to move up and draft Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward early in Round 2. The addition of Beckham Jr. and Ward would be immediate upgrades in team speed, playmaking ability and athleticism. The receivers, defensive backs and special teams’ return units would get an infusion of skill.
What position group has been Thompson’s best in the draft? Obviously, that’s quarterback with Rodgers. A close second would be receiver, with safety at or near dead last.
Thompson’s best pick at safety was his first when he chose Bethune-Cookman’s Nick Collins in the second round in 2005. After that, it has been Marviel Underwood, San Diego State, 4th, 2005; Tyrone Culver, Fresno State, 6th, 2006; Aaron Rousse, Virginia Tech, 3rd, 2007; Morgan Burnett, Georgia Tech, 3rd, 2010; and Jerron McMillian, Maine, 4th, 2012.
Thompson has been much more proficient selecting receivers. His first pick, Terrence Murphy of Texas A&M, was a promising talent when he sustained a career-ending neck injury as a rookie. Since then, Thompson has nailed it with Greg Jennings, W. Michigan, 2nd, 2006; James Jones, San Jose State, 3rd, 2007; Jordy Nelson, Kansas State, 2nd, 2008, and Randall Cobb, Kentucky, 2nd, 2011.
If the Packers select a receiver with the 21st pick don’t moan and groan. Be happy. It’ll be the most recent example of Thompson looking ahead, and realizing the importance of maintaining and likely upgrading the team’s greatest strength – the passing game.

NFL schedule due out this week; Green Bay faces impressive foes
By CHRIS HAVEL
The much-anticipated NFL schedule is expected to be released later this week. The avalanche of events it triggers throughout the league – and especially in Green Bay – seems endless. While fans rush to Event USA to take care of the off-the-field accommodations, I will handle the on-the-field aspect.
Here is my preferred schedule, and the Packers’ preferred results:

Monday Night, Sept. 8: Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field

The Packers’ defense might as well see where it rates against one the NFC North’s best offense south of Green Bay. It would mark the return of Julius Peppers against his former teammates. Now, wearing No. 56 and lining up opposite Clay Matthews, Peppers might be able to get reacquainted with Jay Cutler in a hurry. This would be the first of the NFL’s annual twin NFL Monday Night Games to open the season.

Sunday, Sept 14: Packers at Buffalo

The Bills aren’t very good, and come at a time when Green Bay will be fine-tuning the defense. If the Packers must go to Orchard Park, it might as well be coming off a short week and a tussle with the Bears.

Sunday, Sept. 21: Packers at Seattle

Better sooner than later especially against a team coming off a resounding Super Bowl victory. The Seahawks’ defense is good, but it hasn’t tried to stop Aaron Rodgers/Eddie Lacy yet.

Sunday, Sept. 28: Detroit at Lambeau Field

This is a difficult two-game stretch, but the Packers have owned the Lions in Wisconsin and that should continue.

Sunday, Oct. 5: New York Jets at Lambeau Field

If things go well, or as planned, the Packers could roll into the bye week with a 4-1 win-loss record.

Sunday, Oct. 12: BYE

Notes – Too early? I don’t think so.

Sunday, Oct. 19: Packers at New Orleans

The Saints are going to be very good, but Packers’ coach Mike McCarthy happens to be even better out of the bye week.

Sunday night, Oct. 26: Carolina at Lambeau Field

This will be a much-anticipated match-up between two of the NFC’s top teams. Panthers quarterback Cam Newton should be healthy after off-season surgery, and Rodgers should be coming off a big game in The Big Easy.

Sunday, Nov. 2: Packers at Miami

True, it’s a bit early for a second bye week, but if you must travel to Miami it’s apt to be cooler in November than September.

Monday, Nov. 10: Philadelphia at Lambeau Field

The Eagles’ LeSean McCoy tore up the Packers a year ago. This time, armed with Rodgers, Green Bay aims for redemption. This will be a significant mid-to-late season test for the Packers’ defense. Will it be much-improved under coordinator Dom Capers? How will Peppers fit? Does Matthews’ thumb, et al, stay healthy enough for him to be a Defensive Player of the Year candidate?

Sunday, Nov. 16: Packers at Tampa Bay

The Bucs are going to be better than many NFL “experts” think. They just aren’t going to be better than Green Bay. This should be the week Lacy begins to threaten 1,000-yards rushing, and Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb really make it difficult to know which receiver to resign.

Sunday, Nov. 23: Minnesota at Lambeau Field

Wouldn’t it be great if this were the game the Packers and Brett Favre publicly kissed and made up? It would be affirmation that Favre is no longer and only briefly played quarterback for the Vikings.

Thursday, Nov. 27: Packers at Detroit

Playing the Lions in Detroit is never a picnic anyway, so the Packers might as well take care of business on Thanksgiving Day.

Sunday, Dec. 7: Atlanta at Lambeau Field

Notes – It is better to play the Falcons later in the season. Receiver Julio Jones hasn’t been able to stay healthy, and quarterback Matt Ryan has managed to do little except put head coach Mike Smith’s job on the line.

Sunday night, Dec. 14: New England at Lambeau Field

The later, the better, when it comes to playing the Patriots. New England’s Tom Brady and the Packers’ Rodgers might go a long way toward deciding the question, “So which one is the NFL’s MVP?”

Sunday, Dec. 21: Packers at Minnesota

The Packers will be playing outside at Gophers Stadium and Rodgers is great with playing outdoors, so it’s probably a good division tune-up for the regular-season finale.

Sunday, Dec. 28: Packers at Chicago

I like the symmetry. The Packers open by unleashing Peppers on his former team, and close by watching Lacy dance on the Bears’ defense at Soldier Field.

SUMMARY:

Packers finish 12-4 to win the NFC North.

Green Bay’s concern focuses on upgrading its roster, rather than reacting to off-the-field problems

By CHRIS HAVEL
Imagine the disappointment and worry among Packers fans if recent headlines involved Aaron Rodgers, Randall Cobb, Clay Matthews and Tramon Williams instead of San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick, Quinton Patton, Aldon Smith and Chris Culliver.
Kaepernick, who is 21-8 as the 49ers’ starting quarterback, is set to receive a contract extension in excess of $18 million annually this summer. Patton, a promising young receiver, is expected to force his way into the starting lineup. Smith, one of the game’s top pass rushers, is looking at a $9 million salary in 2015 if the 49ers pick up his option. And Culliver, a starting cornerback on the 49ers’ vaunted defense, is pegged as a key player in an evolving secondary.
In the past two weeks, each player has been involved in off-the-field incidents that are troubling at best.
Kaepernick and Patton are being investigated as part of an incident involving a 25-year-old woman who may have been sexually assaulted. Culliver was arrested after a hit-and-run accident involving a bicyclist. He has been charged with a felony and two misdemeanors.
On Sunday, Smith was arrested at LAX for allegedly indicating he possessed a bomb. He has two other criminal cases pending.
Meantime, Packers fans should cross their fingers and count their blessings. In a quietly productive offseason, Green Bay’s biggest questions involving its key players are non-stories by comparison.
Rodgers and Matthews are coming off injury-plagued seasons, but both are in their prime, under contract and healthy going into 2014. Williams’ only contact with a bicyclist may be catching a ride to a training camp practice. Cobb’s lone concern is a well-deserved contract extension.
Even Julius Peppers, the team’s key free agent acquisition, comes with little or no baggage. The big question with Peppers appears to be: What jersey number is the linebacker/defensive end going to choose? In the NFC West – widely regarded as the best division in football – the bickering between 49ers and Seahawks fans focuses on which team’s off-the-field problems are worse?
In the NFC North, the key question is this: Have the Packers or the Bears improved their defense the most?While Seattle fans ought to be careful about reveling in the 49ers’ misery, nobody in Green Bay is gloating over other NFC teams’ misfortune. That won’t get the Packers closer to a Super Bowl berth. However, there is nothing wrong with Green Bay fans applauding their players for making solid off-the-field decisions.
Reaching the NFC Championship is difficult enough without disciplinary issues and controversial off-the-field entanglements. So much is talent and hard work, but part of it is timing and good fortune.
When the Packers signed Peppers, several Las Vegas sports books lowered their odds at reaching the Super Bowl from 15-1 to 10-1. Since 2009, Matthews (158) and Peppers (155.5) rank 6th and 7th with the most quarterback knockdowns/hurries.
Rodgers, whose career passer rating of 104.9 is No. 1 in NFL history, likely has heard the criticism regarding his waning offseason work ethic. All that will do is motivate the game’s top quarterback even more.Cobb and Williams merely were playing at a Pro Bowl level by season’s end last year. Both expect big things in 2014.
Compared with the 49ers, the Packers seem like choir boys. That used to be a reason to mock Green Bay. Somehow, there are fans who equate relentless on-the-field tenacity with dubious off-the-field behavior. That perception isn’t rooted in reality.
Top to bottom, the Packers have been quietly taking care of business this offseason. When they have made headlines it’s been for the right reasons. The same cannot be said of San Francisco.

Peppers a LB/DE without a # according to GB depth chart
By CHRIS HAVEL
This has been one of the best weeks in perhaps the most enjoyable off-season in recent Green Bay Packers’ history.
The Milwaukee Brewers swept the Red Sox in Boston to open the season 4-2, the Wisconsin Badgers swept into the Final Four before bowing out to Kentucky 74-73 in a classic semifinal game, and the Packers continued to make wise, prudent personnel decisions. That list now includes re-signing fullback John Kuhn to a $1 million, one-year deal last week. Talk about getting bang for your buck.
Kuhn is a Packers fan favorite because he is a winner who produces, plays hard and has a surname that’s fun to cheer and shout at the top of one’s lungs. “KUUUUUHN” also is a core special teams’ player on a unit that needs his heart, want-to and experience if it is going to improve under coordinator Shawn Slocum and assistant Ron Zook. Further, Kuhn shares his wit, knowledge and insight with his fans. The fullback’s key blocks at the most crucial times have won games.
For instance, his other-side-of-the-backfield block of ex-Bears defensive end Julius Peppers allowed Aaron Rodgers to complete a 60-yard touchdown pass to Randall Cobb in December to win the NFC North. Running backs coach Alex Van Pelt told ESPN, “I have to say he’s probably the best pass protector/third-down back in the league as far as protection. I don’t know if there’s anybody that’s (sounder) and doesn’t lose blocks. He wasn’t credited for one sack (against) this season. When he was in there in protection, he was outstanding.”
With Kuhn, 32, a most reliable pass blocker in the fold, the Packers’ offense exists without a great many needs. A top-end tight end in the upcoming May 8 NFL draft would be a nice addition, but even a mid-round pick would be fine in a unit with Andrew Quarless and Co. In fact, the Packers’ needs aren’t so glaring that you want to close your eyes. Realistically, GM Ted Thompson needs to add a productive, starting-caliber safety and inside linebacker to the current depth chart. The rest is trying to acquire good, ascending young players.
Here is one exception: Let’s suppose the Packers trade down in the first round because Thompson believes he can get the player he wants early in the second round, plus another second-round pick to go with it?
Surely, he would have to consider Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garappolo if he’s still there in the late-first early-second round. Garappolo IS going to be the best quarterback from this draft. If you haven’t seen film, I urge you to check out his work. He possesses ideal size (6-2 ½, 226), a strong pocket presence and a deadly quick release. That would be the only exception to otherwise taking the best safety or inside linebacker with the 21st pick. Clearly, if selecting a quarterback that high at least gives pause, the Packers’ roster is in pretty decent shape.
There has been talk of reshuffling the offensive line. Fortunately, it doesn’t involve the starting lineup. David Bakhtiari will open at left tackle, with Josh Sitton (left guard), J.C. Tretter (center), T.J. Lang (right guard) and Bryan Bulaga (right tackle) across the front. The backup plan is interesting.
It appears Derek Sherrod will be given a chance to secure the backup tackle job. Ideally, Packers’ head coach Mike McCarthy will feature an eight-man game-day offensive lineup of the starters plus a swing tackle (possibly Sherrod), a tackle-guard (Don Barclay) who could play center in a pinch and a center-guard (Lane Taylor). That’s pretty solid. Factor in Eddie Lacy’s ability to run the football and create play-action opportunities, and Rodgers could be in for one of the finest seasons of his career.
On another note, Julius Peppers still hasn’t selected a jersey number. The Packers’ depth chart did, however, add LB to his position this week. Peppers’ official position is now is listed as LB/DE on the roster. That could pave the way for him to be reunited with his college jersey number at North Carolina. If indeed Peppers wants to wear No. 49, he can only do so if A) he is listed as a linebacker, and B) if all the numbers in the 90s and 50s are already taken. Only a few 90s remain, and one in the 50s (No. 56). Obviously, the sooner Peppers is given a number, the quicker the Packers can begin to sell them.