Packers Lose Starting Linebacker Sam Barrington For The Season

LB Sam Barrington is not my favorite player, he had a huge negative grade from Pro Football Focus in 2014 and a slightly negative grade on his only 16 snaps of 2015, but it never helps to lose a starter for the season.

"Different schemes, different players" will replace Sam Barrington. More from Coach McCarthy: http://t.co/B6C5ATnrnM pic.twitter.com/OrZ2uZDfn5

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 16, 2015

The Packers have already previewed their defense without Barrington. They played most of the Bears game without him, and the different schemes involved a lot of Nate Palmer and Clay Matthews. They were the only other inside linebackers who played last week. LB Jayrone Elliott unexpectedly received some playing time, but maybe that was because LB Nick Perry was stinking up the joint (his negative 4.3 grade from PFF was the worst of any defender last Sunday) and he wasn't playing just so Matthews could spend more time inside.

It's going to be a rocky ride for Palmer, who's new to the inside backer position, still playing with a splint on his injured hand, and now has to wear the speaker helmet for the coaches instructions on the field. Maybe with an extra week to prepare, they'll plan on working rookie Jake Ryan into the defense, though he didn't take the field against the Bears (except on special teams). Without a lot of depth on the inside, the loss of Barrington might become a big problem if Palmer struggles with his role on defense.

Position Review: Outside Linebacker

I was hoping to get through my review of every position before training camp practices began (Today! July 26th!) but it was not meant to be. It looks like training camp is starting out muggy and with a chance of thunderstorms, but not blazingly hot.

Position Reviews (Defense): Inside Linebacker, Defensive Line
Position Reviews: Offense

Clay Matthews. The Claymaker is arguably the best defensive player in the NFL, but even a die-hard Packer fan like myself has to admit he's probably a step behind J.J. Watt's unbelievable 2012 season.

Nick Perry. Though he played last preseason and six regular season games, it felt like a lost season. The transition from college defensive end to NFL linebacker was going to have some rough patches, but coach Kevin Greene likes what he sees in Perry and thought he had figured out pass coverage by Week 5 (right before he was out for the year after wrist surgery). His pass rush ability has been always been there, he opened the 2012 preseason with a sack against the Chargers, and he could become a major factor because he won't command many double-teams. The return of Perry (replacing the little that Erik Walden did), plus the addition of first round pick DE Datone Jones, could transform their pass rush next season.

Dezman Moses. An outstanding training camp brought him to the forefront last preseason, but by the end of the regular season, he wasn't offering much more than Walden. Still, he recorded four sacks as a part-time player. He's got the potential, but he's got to show improvement.

6th round pick Nate Palmer. He's the highest profile college DE converting to NFL OLB in camp. He seems like a bit of a project, drafted more based on his pro day results than his play at Illinois State, but I expect he'll make the roster because they need someone to replace Walden and Frank Zombo.

7th round pick Sam Barrington. Back in April, I wrote that he looked like an inside linebacker prospect. But there are at least five inside backers ahead of him on the depth chart. So while I expect him to make the roster, his short-term future might be outside. We'll have to wait for the preseason to begin and see where he lines up.

If the Packers keep all the guys who were on the team last year, plus their two new draft picks, that's ten linebackers for the 53-man roster. They won't keep more linebackers than ten. The last three guys are either in case of injury or fighting for the practice squad spot.

Andy Mulumba, Donte Savage, Jarvis Reed. This year's group of undrafted college DEs who will get a chance at OLB. It looks like Reed, the player formerly known as Jarvis Wilson, did play some linebacker in college too. Not much separates them at this point and they'll have to prove themselves on the field starting August 9th against the Cardinals.

2013 NFL Draft: Rounds 4-7 Packer Selections on Defense

I wrote about the five offensive players drafted by the Green Bay Packers on Saturday in an earlier post, and this one is about the four defensive players selected in rounds 4-7. There were 11 draft picks in all, and that doesn't even include all the undrafted free agents, with a slight six to five advantage to the offense after a defensive heavy 2012 draft.

5th round, Iowa CB Micah Hyde. He's listed as a cornerback, but he looks like a safety for the Packers.  He recorded 78 tackles and 14 pass defenses as a senior, so he seems like a player who's used to playing closer to the line of scrimmage and someone with good ball skills. The knock on him is that he looks better suited for zone coverage, which would make him a better fit for the Packers at safety instead of trying to run with receivers along the sidelines as a press corner. He'll help his cause if he can produce on special teams in kick and punt coverage.

5th round, Mississippi State DE Josh Boyd. He's a strong (32 bench press reps), high-energy guy who's not big enough to be a nose tackle on a 3-4 defense but doesn't have enough of a pass rush to be a highly regarded 4-3 tackle prospect. He should be able to hold up fine as a 3-4 DE for the Packers and he looks to be similar to DE C.J. Wilson. He doesn't really fill a need, but provides depth. The defensive line needs to get better next season, so if he can emerge in training camp, he could beat out another lineman for a roster spot. He might be a candidate for the practice squad, if he can slip through waivers.

6th round, Illinois State OLB Nate Palmer. Every year, the Packers are looking for a college DE to convert to OLB, and this year it's Nate Palmer. He also started a thing by being a player from Illinois State, and then the Packers went and signed a couple undrafted free agents from there too. There are a couple linebacker spots available to replace Erik Walden, D.J. Smith, and Frank Zombo, so this might be a good opportunity for him. He impressed scouts at his pro day, but I'm not sure about a guy who couldn't get playing time at Illinois so he decided to transfer to Illinois State.

7th round, South Florida ILB Sam Barrington. I had to dig a little to find out more about him, at first I thought he was an outside LB prospect, but instead he looks like someone who will play inside after watching his college highlight video. He's a solid tackler who can blitz up the middle and drop back in pass coverage. He seems a little undersized to me, but he may look just fine once he puts on a Packer uniform. As I mentioned with Palmer above, there are some roster spots available at linebacker, so Green Bay could be a good team for him.

Overall, GM Ted Thompson adds more depth to a young defensive group that was re-loaded last April, so these players are going to have to stand out because there might not be enough roster spots for them. But the Packers could use another defensive back and they never can have enough linebackers. It's not obvious what the Packers got with these players, so we'll have to wait and see how they play in the preseason.