Author Topic: Game Day 2012  (Read 28046 times)

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4215 on: January 11, 2013, 06:32:48 pm »

 Bob McGinn, beat writer
 

Green Bay - The San Francisco 49ers advanced to the NFC divisional playoff game Saturday night at Candlestick Park with the most minimal contribution imaginable from their rookie class.

Their opponent, the Green Bay Packers, might not even have had a winning season without their outstanding crop of rookies.

Once again, the Packers skewed young under the consistent direction of general manager Ted Thompson and prospered because of it.

"You don't keep young people for the sake of keeping young people," Thompson said Wednesday. "But in this day and age, that infusion of youth and having a little edge to them, that sort of thing, I think our veteran players appreciate it.

"I don't think anybody's here that doesn't deserve to be here."

On Saturday night, Green Bay's rookie contingent will include two starters, three situational substitutes and four others on the 53-man roster. Two others are on injured reserve.

Through 17 games, those 11 rookies have combined to play 132 games, including 28 starts.

In contrast, the 49ers' eight rookies have a collective total of 26 games played and no starts.

Other than No. 2 running back LaMichael James (27 carries), No. 3 tight end Garrett Celek (four receptions) and wide receiver A.J. Jenkins, the first-round draft choice who has yet to catch a pass, it's doubtful another 49er rookie will play from scrimmage.

San Francisco clearly was the better team four months ago in beating the Packers, 30-22. Almost unscathed by injury, the 49ers will field the same starting lineup other than at quarterback, where Alex Smith was benched for Colin Kaepernick.

The Packers had to play even more rookies than usual because of a torrent of injuries. Perhaps the fresh blood will help them overhaul San Francisco on Saturday night.

"I think as a group they've all come in and contributed," Thompson said of the team's rookies. "We'll see. But I think it's a capable group, and we look forward to seeing them grow up."

The Packers' first six selections in the April draft were defensive players. The playing time of the top five ranged from 62.5% for cornerback Casey Hayward, who made the all-rookie team, to 19.7% for linebacker Nick Perry, whose season ended after six games because of a wrist injury.

Hayward led rookies in interceptions with six and ranks second to Tramon Williams in passes defensed with 24.

Safety Jerron McMillian has played 51.4% of the time through 17 games, and defensive ends Jerel Worthy (38.5%) and Mike Daniels (21%) have played extensively as well.

Moreover, rookie free agent Dezman Moses has seven starts at outside linebacker and has played 40.3%.

The seven rookies who have played from scrimmage on defense have played 2,670 snaps, or 13.7% of the available defensive plays. Coach Mike McCarthy and defensive coordinator Dom Capers wanted versatile players with speed, and this rookie class provided that.

"They've come in and done what was asked of them," Thompson said. "A couple of them are now on injured reserve. That's the breaks of the game, but they contributed before they got hurt."

Worthy suffered what appeared to be a serious knee injury in Game 14. Safety Sean Richardson, who was starting to be a major factor on special teams at mid-season, suffered a neck injury that ended his season after 11 games.

The Packers began the draft with 12 selections and ended with eight players after Thompson drafted up to take Worthy, Hayward and linebacker Terrell Manning.

"Whether it bears out that I made a mistake on somebody, we'll see," Thompson said. "Obviously, it's a little soon to judge or rate a draft class, but I think over the long haul we've got some pretty good players out of it."

On offense, the group of rookies wasn't doing much until the call went out to Don Barclay at right tackle in Game 13. In all, Barclay has played 387 of the 500 snaps that rookies have played on offense.

Where would the Packers be without Barclay?

"We'd have gotten somebody else playing there," Thompson replied. "The NFL is the next man up. But Don has done a good job."

Barclay has been the stalwart of the class of 21 undrafted rookies signed by the club in 2012. Richardson is down but three others besides Barclay remain on the 53.

"We put a lot of effort into the college free agency stuff," Thompson said. "Our scouts work very hard to find guys that can maybe carve a niche onto the team."

Of the 76 players that Thompson has drafted since 2005, 12 presently are starters, 14 are backups, six are on injured reserve or physically unable to perform, two are on the practice squad and Mason Crosby is the kicker.

Of the 41 other players, 31 spent at least some time on Green Bay's 53-man roster.

When the season ended, 15 of those 41 were on NFL rosters: tackle Breno Giacomini (Seahawks); guards Daryn Colledge (Cardinals), Jamon Meredith (Buccaneers), Caleb Schlauderaff (Jets) and Jason Spitz (Jaguars); quarterback Matt Flynn (Seahawks); running back Brandon Jackson (Browns); fullback Quinn Johnson (Titans).

Defensive ends Lawrence Guy (Colts), Dave Tollefson (Raiders) and Jarius Wynn (Titans); linebacker Brady Poppinga (Cowboys); cornerback Pat Lee (Lions); safety Tyrone Culver (Dolphins); and long snapper Clark Harris (Bengals).

Two players, cornerback Brandon Underwood (Cowboys) and linebacker Ricky Elmore (Redskins), were signed to future contracts for 2013 in the last week.

Of the 24 that are out of football, three were forced to retire prematurely because of neck injuries: wide receiver Terrence Murphy, linebacker Jeremy Thompson and safety Nick Collins. A fourth, defensive end Johnny Jolly, remains under indefinite league suspension, a league spokesman said Wednesday.

Everyone else managed to sign a contract with another team after leaving Green Bay. Everyone, that is, with the exception of defensive tackle Justin Harrell, who never got another chance after Green Bay cut him on July 28, 2011.

"It's an interesting statistic but I don't know if there's any special pride that you take in that," Thompson said, referring to the league-wide interest in his selections other than Harrell.

"I'd rather it be that everyone I ever drafted was still on our team and contributing, but it doesn't work that way. We try to take good football players and hope for the best."

***

TED THOMPSON ON THE ROOKIES

Here is what Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson said this week about his 2012 draft choices and college free agents (round and overall pick in parentheses; Nick Perry and Sean Richards are on injured reserve; B.J. Coleman and Andrew Datko are on practice squad):

(1-28) Nick Perry, OLB, Southern California: "He's got rare strength and power, and the ability to set the edge. It's a shame he got hurt (wrist), but we expect him to make a strong comeback next year. We asked him to do stuff he didn't do in college. Obviously, he is better at some things than others. But physically and ability-wise, he's fine. I think he's going to be a good player for us. As a rookie, you try to bring guys in and let 'em play to their strengths. That's what our staff did. As you grow, you try to augment that."

(2-51) Jerel Worthy, DE, Michigan State: "He's a very energetic player. He has a lot of confidence in his ability. We think he has a bright future. Too bad he got hurt (knee). We'll have to wait and see how that plays itself out. It's unusual that when you come into the pro game you see that you could be better if you did certain things in training. He's a pretty natural football player and will be a good player in our league. He's got a little bit different style. You try to use what they do best. He's got a twitch to him. That will always be one of his strengths."

(2-62) Casey Hayward, CB, Vanderbilt: "We've put him in a lot of different spots. He's had to move around because of injuries. We like what we see. He's kind of a quiet kid but appears to be pretty confident and knows how to play the game. He's had a lot of success, especially from an interception standpoint. I had calls from his coaches at Vanderbilt the minute we picked him saying how pleased we were going to be with him. All that's (born) fruit. He has seemed to be pretty comfortable wherever we've put him."

(4-132) Mike Daniels, DE, Iowa: "He's got a little juice. Pretty natural football player. Not as long and tall as some of our guys but he has done a good job. He had to overcome some injury things coming out of college and has done a good job doing that. I think he's done pretty good (as a base end). He's a natural hands player, which obviously helps quite a bit in there. With exposure and play time, I think he'll continue to improve. He's got a lot of potential there (rushing the passer). There are techniques and nuances those guys have to learn. He's still learning it, but he's a true football player in terms of his attitude and wanting to contribute."

(4-133) Jerron McMillian, S, Maine: "He's got a lot of talent. Physical. Likes to mix it up a little bit. Has contributed on special teams and also played a lot in different packages. I haven't noticed anything from a negative standpoint. We're not huge on small-school guys, but we don't penalize them, either. At the end of the day, you've got to be able to play and look the veterans in the eye, and I think he can do that."

(5-163) Terrell Manning, LB, North Carolina State: "He was a little banged up throughout some of the season. He recently started playing more on the 46 (game-day roster) and does a good job on our special teams. We think he has a future as a linebacker. We liked what we saw in college, and we still like him. I think he's a football guy. Oh yeah, sure (he has starter qualities). He's a pretty active guy."

(7-241) Andrew Datko, T, Florida State: "Absolutely (he has a future). He continues to improve. He has done a good job of working his way through some physical things. I'm no expert on it (his surgical shoulder), but there's a lot of moving parts in a football player's game, especially in the offensive line. He's very professional. He wants to be good. We like his future."

(7-243) B.J. Coleman, QB, Tennessee-Chattanooga: "He's done a good job. He works with our coaches and Aaron (Rodgers) and Graham (Harrell) every day. That kind of exposure is invaluable. The off-season will be big for him. He appears to be a serious football guy in terms of wanting to get better."

(FA) Don Barclay, T-G, West Virginia: "He really likes to play the game. He's not overwhelmed by it. We like him. I think physically he's fine. Technique-wise, I'm sure there are things we need to work with. He's doing fine where he is. The fact we've used him at a lot of different spots is not unusual. We do that with almost all of our young guys and project these guys that we think are going to be on the 53 because you need that flexibility on Sundays."

(FA) Jarrett Boykin, WR, Virginia Tech: "He came in and did everything we asked. He's got a toughness to him. He's a really good pass catcher, and we thought he deserved a spot on the team. He's physical and has good size and catches the ball really well."

(FA) Dezman Moses, OLB, Tulane: "He's got a physical nature to his game, which I think our defensive coaches appreciate. Fits in very well. You wouldn't know he's a rookie. Just comes in and plays. He's a good contributor on special teams. He knows how to play the game. He's got some instincts and feel for the game."

(FA) Sean Richardson, S, Vanderbilt: "All football. Loves the game. Really wants to be a professional football player. We like what we saw. I wouldn't speculate on that (availability for 2013 because of a neck injury). We'll see."

(FA) Greg Van Roten, G, Pennsylvania: "I think he's primarily an interior guy. Got better all the way through . . . the summer. He started out on our practice roster and has worked his way up. (High intelligence) always helps anybody. Physically, he's a capable player in his own right."
 

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4216 on: January 12, 2013, 08:45:19 pm »
Did you catch that face nask on Juan Harris where they dragged him to the ground?  They dropped a flag and, then picked iu, calling it "incidental contact".  What the hell is "incidental contact" Buck and Aikman were both questiobaibg that.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4217 on: January 12, 2013, 08:47:11 pm »
Harris says "kiss my ass" and runs for a TD.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4218 on: January 12, 2013, 08:55:34 pm »
Jeremy Ross dropped the lick-off.  I feel sorry for the lid.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4219 on: January 12, 2013, 09:05:28 pm »
Rodgers  is little off his game tonight.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4220 on: January 12, 2013, 09:09:03 pm »
Kaepernick is for real.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4221 on: January 12, 2013, 09:12:16 pm »
Thpmpson intended to draft Kaepernick before SF drafted him in feront of them.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4222 on: January 12, 2013, 09:18:10 pm »
GB has their RB of the future - Juaun Harris.

hibernationsuxs

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4223 on: January 12, 2013, 09:23:15 pm »
Like the harris kid, he is running strong.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4224 on: January 12, 2013, 09:25:31 pm »
Jones - Breakout year.  Comes through again.

Breakout year for MLB Brad Jones, too.

otto105

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4225 on: January 12, 2013, 09:33:16 pm »
Not true.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4226 on: January 12, 2013, 09:38:35 pm »
If Kaepernick keeps running that much he WILL eventually have a serious injury.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4227 on: January 12, 2013, 09:47:52 pm »
Sitton out.  Oh, oh, sack

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4228 on: January 12, 2013, 09:49:41 pm »
Kaepernick's passing accuracy is definitely suspect.

packrat

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Re: Game Day!
« Reply #4229 on: January 12, 2013, 10:06:14 pm »
This game shows how much GB must improve the O-Line.