With free agency still fresh, and the draft coming soon, it may seem like the whole league is being shuffled. This year, some of the top listed free agents came from Green Bay’s roster. The list included T.J. Lang, Nick Perry, Eddie Lacy and Micah Hyde. The loss of some of the most popular players has Packer Backers wondering what the plan is for the draft. But what about right now? What about the current roster – who can emerge as the new Eddie Lacy, or the new T.J. Lang? I’d like to know who will step up for the 2017 Green Bay Packers?
Who Will Step Up for the 2017 Green Bay Packers?
Lacy & Lang 2.0 – Who’s Next?
Green Bay, of course, is notorious for selecting and developing raw talent right out of the draft. Homegrown players have become synonymous with the Packers brand. With the exit of free agents like Eddie Lacy and T.J Lang, Green Bay has lost more value than they’ve gained at the time of writing. In other words, they will likely get some compensatory draft picks next year. We now know that from 2017 and on, compensatory picks can be traded, thus making them more valuable than previously. But what about now, before the draft? Who does head coach Mike McCarthy have now that can step up and fill the shoes of players who have exited Green Bay? Such players can potentially be worth more in the future than they were when they first signed with Green Bay.
Exit Eddie Lacy
Eddie Lacy arrived with a bang. In his first season in the NFL, he earned himself an Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, rushed for 1,200 yards and scored 11 touchdowns. His second season also went really well, and he again beat the 1,100-yard marker. An upbeat, “clean” personality that fit in well with the Packers’ culture helped him gain popularity amongst the fans. And who doesn’t love watching a guy with such a low center of gravity bulldoze his way through enemy defenses? He felt like a throwback to an earlier era. In Titletown, where everything is built on history, that’s a good thing. Despite issues with ballooning weight staring in 2015, and an ankle injury in 2016, Lacy brought joy to many Packer fans with his play.
Enter Ty Montgomery?
To my mind, though, the shoes left by Lacy can be filled relatively easily. When Lacy dealt with injury, the combination of Ty Montgomery and Christine Michaels seemed to work for the Packers. I think it’s Montgomery, preferably in combination with another player, who can best fill them there shoes. Montgomery, however, is nothing like Lacy. They are two different players, with two different styles, now playing the same position. What I’m after is that I hope to see Montgomery in the backfield next year. Where a pass would have previously gone to Lacy, it should go to Montgomery now. And he has been very successful at this already. At this point, Montgomery is currently the only running back under contract with the Packers. He was drafted as a wide receiver in the third round back in 2015, behind the Pack’s first and second choices, Damarius Randall and Quniten Rollins. Back then, the Packers were looking for a player who could be their return guy.
Ty Montgomery in the Draft
In college, Montgomery had been a gangly kid, one of the most talented players in that slot for a while. His long arms and big hands made him difficult for an opponent to get around. The drawback was that he seemed to have difficulty focusing, and dropped the ball with some frequency. Then he injured his shoulder playing for Stanford. To boot, he showed up to the combine ten pounds too heavy for his frame. The year before, he was ranked second nationally. Had he come up then, he may have been considered a good choice in the first round. The extra weight, though, seemed to have slowed this previously fast player down. The Packers staff saw something in Montgomery beyond a kid who had just come off of a disappointing season. Perhaps they saw a talented player who could be coached, and they probably chose to focus on his versatility. Either way, they got away with a steal.
The Running Back Who Learned How to Play Receiver
What they got was a wide receiver with the build of a running back, or, as he says, the “running back who learned how to play receiver.” The scouts didn’t even question whether he was versatile or not – that was a known fact. While playing for Stanford and Alabama, he had lined up in just about every offensive formation. The idea was that he would be a slot receiver and a kickoff returner. Fate changed that plan last season, when James Starks and Eddie Lacy both went down with injuries. Coach McCarthy had to find himself a full-time running back, and Montgomery fit the bill.
Flash and Awe vs. Sneak Attack
While Lacy brought some flash and awe when he arrived in Green Bay, Montgomery showed up quietly. A pleasant personality made it easy to fit into Green Bay’s culture. Let’s call it a sneak attack. It doesn’t hurt that, statistically, Green Bay’s offense has played better with Montgomery than with Lacy. We can still watch Lacy play, now that he’s signed with the Seattle Seahawks. I’m not going to lie, I’ll miss the excitement of watching him play for Green Bay. But I also feel that we now have another player to be excited by on the Packers roster – Montgomery.
Exit Lang
At the end of the day, replacing Lacy isn’t as much of a concern as replacing Lang. Free agency has not been kind to the offensive line in general. The whole line needs to be addressed at this point, so it really isn’t just about replacing one player. There is no doubt that Green Bay has talent, though. Mike Daniels, Bryan Bulaga, Nick Perry and company are still wearing the Green and Gold. It’s figuring out how to tweak it. Now, I know that Kenny Clark isn’t going to replace Lang – they play different positions and whatnot. But if I were to pick an up and coming player that I feel can grow on this line, Clark is that guy.
Enter…Kenny Clark?
While Lang can be considered a “known”, reliable asset, Clark is one of those players who never really gets the spotlight. Not because he doesn’t deserve it, but because of the slot he plays in. Much the best place kickers, defensive tackles seldom get much press coverage. They still have to fit well with the team, and we expect them to show up every game. We expect them to be reliable. Perhaps that is why we don’t notice a guy like Clark, who goes about his business “back there.” He’s in the melee of bodies while the camera follows the ball forwards. Sometimes, that’s too bad.
The Great Wall of Green Bay
As with Montgomery, there was no thunderclap when Clark signed on. However, there was no need for that kind of down lineman. The team needed a brick wall, and Kenny Clark can be very good in that regard. I spent last season replaying all the plays Clark was on the field for, so I could watch him. Yes, he was a bit uneven this season, but let’s not forget that he was a rookie. Selected in the first round in the 2016 draft, Clark has proven his value to the team without much fanfare. I think we can begin to rely on him to show up every game and be steadfastly reliable. I believe he can grow to become an even sturdier brick wall than he is now. That’s why I bring him up here.
Who will Step up for Green Bay?
The Green Bay Packers have talent on the offensive line. I, like many others, are hoping that Ted Thompson, Coach McCarthy, and the special teams coaches have a plan. That plan will have to address some of these now glaring weaknesses. At the end of the day, however, I trust the team – players and coaches combined – to fix this.
