Football Outsiders examines how Jimmy Graham’s arrival
Bart Starr Jersey White , Jordy Nelson’s departure affects Packers In the midst of seismic shifts within the Green Bay Packers’ front office and coaching
staff, the team said goodbye to longtime wide receiver Jordy Nelson while
welcoming All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham. These related decisions continue to
generate debate among fans and media and could play a significant role in how
the Packers offense performs this season. As such, we thought it wise to consult
Football Outsiders’ Scott Kacsmar about the Graham-Nelson exchange. For more
than a decade, Football Outsiders has provided insight into the NFL using
statistics and their proprietary metrics available nowhere else. They recently
released their 2018 Almanac, which you can purchase here.Below, you can find
Kacsmar’s thoughts about Nelson, Graham, and the Packers offense.APC: With Jordy
Nelson out and Jimmy Graham in, what changes do you expect to see for the
Packers offense?From what the Packers have shown thus far in the preseason,
Kacsmar’s comments make sense. They have lined up Graham primarily in the
slot
Corey Linsley Jersey , including on his scoring connection with Aaron Rodgers last Thursday. Graham, already a monster in the red zone, gives Rodgers
with a skyscraping target absent from Green Bay’s roster in recent years. Along
with Pro Bowl wideout Davante Adams, the Packers should enjoy plenty of success
near the goal line.Still, Kacsmar’s point about the Packers’ wide-receiver depth
provides reason for caution. Adams and Randall Cobb can all do damage, but the
team has historically offered Rodgers more firepower at wideout. Graham can
mitigate those concerns somewhat given his skill set, but Green Bay needs
someone else to step up. Geronimo Allison will give Rodgers a steady target, but
the third-year receiver might have already peaked. J’Mon Moore hasn’t shown much
to suggest he can become an impact player in 2018. Perhaps Marquez
Valdes-Scantling or Equanimeous St. Brown can develop into a playmaker at some
point this season, but late-round rookies rarely contribute much so soon.For
those reasons, the Packers could still bring in some veteran assistance at the
end of the preseason. While the team probably doesn’t have Dez Bryant on its
radar
Kenny Clark Jersey White , an experienced pass catcher could make a difference for the offense, especially should one of Green Bay’s starters miss time with an
injury. Despite the personnel issues on the edge, the team got a 10.5-sack
season from an unexpected source."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections The APC
PodcastPackers Film RoomFantasy Football Advicegot a 10.5-sack season from an
unexpected source.CSTShareTweetShareSharePackers 2018 Roster Grades: Outside
Linebacker group had age and depth issuesBenny Sieu-USA TODAY SportsOver a two
week span, Acme Packing Company takes a look at each position group on the Green
Bay Packers and provides grades and insight on how they performed in the 2018
season. Tuesday’s analysis looks at the outside linebacker group.The Packers
opened the season with two former Pro Bowlers at the outside linebacker
position, as Nick Perry and Clay Matthews were the two highest paid defensive
players on the roster. At the end of the day, it was Kyler Fackrell who put up
the best numbers over the course of the season, but other younger players did
not see much playing time and the veterans did not play up to their usual
abilities.It was not a strong showing from the group as a whole, and it hurt the
pass defense all season.StartersClay Matthews2018 Stats: 29 solo tackles, 7 TFL,
3.5 sacks
Womens JK Scott Jersey , 1 FFThis was just the third time that Matthews has started all 16 games in a season.Despite the relative health, he managed to have
his worst statistical season.This was the first time he had single-digit tackles
for loss in a season with 16 starts.Yes, he had one or two sacks taken away on
frustrating penalties, but he was less of a pass rushing force.Matthews was
slower and was not able to bend the corner on his pass rush.He still believed
greatly in his athleticism and tried to run around blocks, undercutting them
rather than taking on the block and holding the edge.He did not do himself any
favors entering his free agency.Nick Perry2018 Stats: 15 solo tackles, 2 TFL,
1.5 sacksPerry had trouble staying on the field this year.He was only available
for nine games this season, the fewest since his rookie season.Even when he was
on the field, he did not provide much of a pass rush.This was his worst
statistical season.Perry managed well at being able to hold the edge in the run
game.He was still valuable in taking on blocks and keeping contain.That said, he
did not provide edge rush in the passing game.BackupsKyler Fackrell2018 Stats:
29 solo tackles
David Bakhtiari Jersey , 12 TFL, 10.5 sacksFackrell stepped in frequently this season. He filled in for the seven starts that Nick Perry missed.Fackrell
was not a consistent pass rusher, but he found the quarterback more than all the
other OLBs combined.Fackrell also finished second to Matthews in total
snaps.While Perry got more starts, Fackrell played 58.5% of the defensive snaps
this season.Fackrell was not consistently effective and earned six of his sacks
in just two games (including the now infamous phantom sack where he never
touched Josh Allen). But while he was not a game breaker every week, he was
still the most effective pass rusher on the team this year. Reggie Gilbert2018
stats: 27 solo tackles, 4 TFL, 2.5 sacksReggie Gilbert finished 2017 with
several big games and made fans very excited about his potential.He never did
find that success on the field this year.Gilbert was available in all 16 games,
but did not manage to beat out Kyler Fackrell for a start during the
season.Still, Gilbert is the youngest of the outside linebackers on the active
roster this season and should continue to grow into the position.Kendall
Donnerson2018 stats: no statisticsDonnerson did not make the 53-man roster until
week 14.He spent most of the season on the practice squad after joining the team
as a seventh-round draft pick out of Southeast Missouri State.He has incredible
measurable athleticism, but he did not see the field at all this year.Overall
Grade: C-The starters in this unit lacked burst and athleticism.Whether due to
injury or age
Womens Quinten Rollins Jersey , Perry and Matthews did not get consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks.There was not much depth behind the starters
to make up the difference.In a position where teams routinely rotate speed
rushers, the Packers only had four outside linebackers for most of the year.The
Packers ended the season with 44 sacks, but only 18 of those came from this
position group.Consider that Dean Lowry, Mike Daniels and Kenny Clark combined
for 11 sacks.It was not a good year for the outside kinebackers.Fackrell’s
double-digit sack season was the lone shining light statistically.
