The season is over, and while cheese heads everywhere should be annoyed, if not devastated by the Packers’ self destruction to the infuriatingly good Seahawks in the last five minutes of the game, the season itself was a success. 12-4 and first in the division with a win over the Cowboys in the divisional round is a good season.
Another bright spot on the year was the performance of some young players. Micah Hyde became the punt returner, with two touchdowns and stepped into a new role for the defense. Randall Cobb finally got to see a full season as Aaron Rodgers’ number two target. Finally, Eddie Lacy may have had fewer rushing yards than his rookie campaign but he added to his receiving and touchdown totals.
Younger than these guys however, are the Green Bay Packers draft picks from 2014. Now seems like a great time to take a look back and evaluate their performances throughout 2014. To start out, picks from rounds 1-4 will be considered.
Green Bay Packers 2014 Draft Class: Rounds 1-4
First Round: Ha Ha Clinton-Dix: A-
He isn’t just a great name, folks. He’s also a bright young player for the Packers and the team’s number two tackler all season. He added a sack and an interception to his rookie year stat total. He added two picks against the Seahawks but ultimately his performance that game might be remembered just as much for missing potential third and fourth interceptions late in the game. Overall, though, 93 total tackles on the year (2nd on the team), along with his demonstration of both good coverage abilities and the toughness to step up in run support is a great showing and fans should expect big things from the rookie out of Alabama in the future.
Second Round: Davante Adams: B
The Packers’ round two pick, Davante Adams, led the country in receptions and receiving touchdowns in 2013, playing for Fresno State. He caught 38 passes in 2014 for a total of 446 yards and three touchdowns. He had three games over 75 yards and one game over 100 in week 13 when he caught six passes for 121 against the Patriots. In the divisional round of the playoffs, he caught seven passes for 117 yards and a touchdown, helping the Packers narrowly edge out the Cowboys.
Were he not so vastly overshadowed by Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, who caught for 1,519 with 13 touchdowns and 1,287 with 12 touchdowns respectively, his numbers may have been higher. He was the team’s third in receiving yards however, and showed he has the talent to make an impact in the league. Unfortunately, he and Aaron Rodgers did not seem to be on the same page enough times to keep him from being graded an “A”. Such problems can be solved with experience however.
Third Round: Khyri Thornton: D
Thornton’s grade would have been higher if he had made it out of the preseason. Unfortunately, he sustained a hamstring injury and spent his rookie season on the injured reserve. The defensive end/tackle was drafted out of Southern Miss. and was believed to have been of use as a utility defensive lineman. He recorded six tackles over the course of four preseason games, but ultimately made little impact on the team prior to his injury. He remains somewhat of a variable when looking ahead to the 2015 season.
Third Round: Richard Rodgers: B-
2014 was not the Packers’ strongest year in terms of tight end production. With the departure of injury prone Jermichael Finley, they were left with Andrew Quarless, Brandon Bostick, and third rounder Richard Rodgers, drafted from California. There were some other lesser known tight ends who competed for the spots, such as Justin Perillo and Colt Lyerla, but neither did anything past the preseason.
Rodgers and Quarless combined for 49 receptions for 548 yards and five touchdowns, essentially sharing the starting tight end duties. Rodgers became known for his sure hands and good speed for the position. That quarterback who shares the same last name as him said that he found Richard to be one of his favorite new receivers and claimed that he had some of the best hands on the team.
Fourth Round: Carl Bradford: D
Bradford was taken in the middle of the fourth round, and was regarded as a pass rushing outside linebacker but not much else. He made a big impact in college switching between linebacker and defensive end for Arizona State. He showed decent speed and good tackling against ball carriers but had little to offer in the way of coverage abilities.
For the Packers, he saw action in two preseason games, recording eight total tackles, with seven against the Kansas City Chiefs but wasn’t able to make it into any regular season action. With Clay Matthews in Green Bay for three more seasons, Julius Peppers signed on for two, along with younger linebackers such as Sam Barrington, Jayrone Elliott and Nick Perry stepping in as backups when needed, it is uncertain whether Bradford will have a place on the team any time soon.
Stay tuned for rounds five through seven as well as the undrafted rookies.
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