0xbt

The Packers decided to go in a new direction with their EDGE rushers this off-season Justin Vogel Jersey White , bringing in two new Smiths." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesAcme Packing Company homepageHorizontal - WhiteAcme Packing Companya Green Bay Packers communityFollow Acme Packing Company online:Follow Acme Packing Company on TwitterFollow Acme Packing Company on FacebookFollow Acme Packing Company on InstagramLog in or sign upLog InSign UpSite searchSearchSearchAcme Packing Company main menuFanpostsFanshotsSectionsPackersOddsAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 321 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections The APC PodcastPackers Film RoomFantasy Football AdviceCDTThis is the fourth and final installment of a series examining the free agent moves around the NFC North division.After last years dabbling in the shallow end of free agency, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst took off the organization’s water wings and waded deeper into the pool. He added key pieces to a defense that lacked depth last season, while cutting bait with some familiar faces.The new signings by the Packers changed the draft strategy of the team and how analysts might have looked at potential picks. There is still great advantage to adding a pass rusher in the draft, despite signing Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith as edge rushers, but now the need is less dire if the right prospect isn’t there with one of the team’s first two picks at 12 or 30 overall.Both Smiths have sack numbers that are lower than one would like to see from stud pass rushers given the large sums of money they received, but their situations can be seen as a cause for the lack of production. Preston logged 53 pressures in 468 pass rushing stats last year, which ranks among the league’s best. As we’ve heard quite clearly this off-season, it’s about how well disrupt the quarterback that’s important.Za’Darius Smith put together 8.5 sacks last season, but in limited action. There’s reason to think that perhaps the production was a flash in the pan, or alternatively, could mean that more opportunities for him to be disruptive will mean even greater sack production.The Packers also added a young safety in Adrian Amos. Not only was he taken from a division rival, but he helps plug a glaring weakness after Ha Ha Clinton-Dix was dealt to Washington last season. Eddie Jackson got a lot of the shine in Chicago, but his former teammate, Amos, is a skilled safety who allowed Jackson to do what he could in certain cases. Amos is a sound tackler who can provide run-game support in the box as well as cover deep.Bringing in new players weren’t the only moves the Packers made this off-season. They cut bait with long-time Packer Clay Matthews III by letting him walk in free agency and released Nick Perry just two years after signing him to a hefty extension in 2017. Matthews was an aging EDGE who probably wasn’t worth a new contract given that he’s mostly rotational pass rusher at this point. Perry, meanwhile, had one good year just in time to earn a fat extension Womens Muhammad Wilkerson Jersey , but around that, his time in the NFL has been marred by injury and spotty play. It was time to cut ties with the linebacker and start fresh. Gutekunst can now shift his focus to the draft without having urgent needs looming over the Packers’ two draft picks in the first round. Another EDGE? Adding a tight end in addition to re-signing Marcedes Lewis? An offensive lineman? All options are on the table.Major AdditionsZa’Darius Smith, EDGEAdrian Amos, SPreston Smith, EDGEBilly Turner, OLRe-signedMarcedes Lewis, TEGeronimo Allison, WR (RFA)Departed in Free Agency/ReleasedClay Matthews, EDGE (Rams)Nick Perry, EDGE (unsigned)Randall Cobb, WR (Cowboys)Bashaud Breeland, CB (Chiefs)Jake Ryan, ILB (Jaguars) As the rare showdown approaches between Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady, the man who will be charged with stopping Rodgers is glad that he doesn’t have to do it very often.“Well, he killed us the last time we played him,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick told reporters on Wednesday, referring to a 26-21 loss at Green Bay that featured Rodgers averaged 9.7 yards per attempt. “I mean http://www.packerslockerroom.com/authentic-demetri-goodson-jersey , he’s a great player. He does everything well. He reads coverages well, very accurate throwing the ball. He’s got a great touch down the field, short, intermediate. They get a lot of catch-and-run plays. A lot of that is because of his great accuracy. He puts the ball right on the receiver and doesn’t have to break stride and can just keep running with it. Very mobile in the pocket, extends plays, really good vision down the field, uses the cadence well, is a good situational player. I mean, he’s one of the great quarterbacks in the National Football League; no question about it. He does everything good. He can even play golf. He’s a good golfer, too.”Belichick mused for a moment that maybe he’d like to see Rodgers more than once every four years, before quickly talking himself out of that idea.“I guess it would be good if we played him more than that, but you know what I mean,” Belichick said. “I’m in no rush to see him every week. I wouldn’t want to be in that division.”With everyone else comparing Rodgers and Brady this week, it made sense to get Belichick’s views on whether he’d want to have to try to stop Brady.“Yeah, well, I’ve never played against Tom Brady,” Belichick said. “So I’m glad he’s our quarterback. He’s a great quarterback. He’s won a lot of games for us and hopefully he’ll win a lot more and we’ve won a lot of games because of him Muhammad Wilkerson Jersey White , but I’ve never played against Tom Brady so it’s a different context. I’d say playing against Aaron Rodgers is very, very difficult. He’s as good as anybody that I鈥檝e faced and we’ve faced a lot of good ones through the years. That’s not to take anything away from anybody else. I’m just saying the guy is a great player. He can do everything that a quarterback needs to do consistently. He does it well. He throws a lot of touchdowns. He doesn鈥檛 throw very many interceptions. The receivers make a ton of yards after he gets them the ball, and a big part of that is him getting them the ball in space, on the run, so that they can continue to gain positive yards after the catch. He doesn鈥檛 make them work for the ball. He gets out of some plays that very few guys can get out of. He’s got tremendous production down the field. Once again, he leads the league in touchdowns-to-interceptions. He leads the league in big plays. He’s thrown however many long passes to however many different receivers. It’s not all one guy. He’s a great player.”But Belichick realizes, as everyone should, that it’s not really a showdown between the two players.“Yeah, well, they’re not going to be on the field at the same time,” Belichick said.Still, they’ll be on the same field in the same game, and Belichick continued to gush about Rodgers, when asked about his mobility.“Well, look, he only runs when he has to run,” Belichick said. “He doesn’t go back there and just start running around for free exercise. If he can throw it http://www.packerslockerroom.com/authentic-deshone-kizer-jersey , he’ll throw it and put it on the money and give the receiver the ball and let him play with it, let him run with it. If he needs to extend the play and there is space for him to extend the play, he’s very good at extending it. He’s fast, he’s quick, he’s got good pocket presence. He doesn鈥檛 run a lot but when he does run he’s gained some big plays — 20, 25, 30 yards running the ball if there’s nobody right there because he’s got that kind of speed and judgement. But there are plenty of plays where he just buys another second, buys a couple more seconds and then it’s 50 yards downfield. It doesn鈥檛 go down in the books as a scramble, but it’s an extended play and it’s due to his ability to get out of trouble but it’s also — his accuracy down the field is remarkable and he makes some unbelievable throws and it’s to everybody. It鈥檚 not just one guy. He just sees a little space down there wherever the defender is. He puts the ball where the receiver can get to it and the defender can’t get to it and it’s 50 yards. It could be over his head, it could be outside, it could be inside, he could under throw him, he could back-shoulder him. He’s got tremendous accuracy, a quick release and great vision. He sees guys coming at him but he doesn’t really see them. He just sees the receiver and puts the ball where it needs to go.”As a result, the Packers often go where they need to go. But not nearly as frequently as the Patriots do. Which raises an interesting question: What if Rodgers was a Patriot and Brady was a Packer? How many rings would each guy have?