Time for Packers to put trust in rookies
GREEN BAY – It’s never too late in the season to switch things up, even if you’re 10-3 and control your destiny when it comes to home-field advantage in the playoffs.
The Green Bay Packers did that on defense Sunday and if they’re smart, they’ll expand on it Saturday night against Carolina and beyond.
It’s easy to play it safe at this juncture of the season, hoping things will resolve themselves at troublesome spots only to find with less than a month left in the regular season that they haven’t.
So, when defensive coordinator Mike Pettine either mandated or agreed with someone’s suggestion that rookie inside linebacker Krys Barnes – and not veteran Christian Kirksey – should be the guy directing the defense and guarding the middle, it was a bold move.
But it had to be made. Kirksey was signed in March to a two-year, $16 million contract to replace departed free agent Blake Martinez. He had played just nine games in the previous two years with Cleveland due to injuries. He was a high-energy tackling machine in 2016 and ’17, totaling 278 tackles, six sacks and eight pass breakups.
But the 28-year-old had played a different inside position with the Browns, one where he didn't have to set the defense, was free to roam sideline to sideline and didn't have to deal with the enormous load Pettine puts on his ‘Mike' linebacker in coverage.
“He is not an anchor,” an AFC scout said when Kirksey signed with the Packers. “He's a run-and-chase player with some cover ability.”
The way things played out, Kirksey made too many mistakes in coverage, wasn't always correcting alignment mistakes and was missing too many tackles. He wasn't built to play the position he was in, but the Packers had signed him to play that spot and needed his leadership and experience on the field.
“We thought Kirksey hasn't played as well (as Barnes) and has not been a good tackler,” said a pro scout of an opponent on the Packers' schedule.
It was during the season opener that the Packers found out that Barnes' strong performance in training camp wasn't a fluke. He had to fill in for injured rookie Kamal Martin at the inside position opposite Kirksey and played exceptionally well in a victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
He started the first three games, but when Kirksey injured his right shoulder against New Orleans and Ty Summers proved inadequate at the ‘Mike' position, Barnes was shifted over. Martin came back after a five-game absence and the two rookies started against Houston and the rematch with Minnesota.
Barnes took some lumps – including shoulder and calf injuries – during his time as a starter, but after the San Francisco game in Week 9, he led the team with 48 tackles, including a sack and two tackles for loss. In 281 snaps, he missed just three tackles and didn't give up a 20-plus-yard completion and shared responsibility on just one touchdown pass.
The Packers were playing OK run defense with Barnes in the middle, ranking as low as ninth and as high as 15th.
Then, Barnes tested positive for COVID-19 and was sidelined for three weeks. It's not known if Pettine planned on keeping Barnes at the ‘Mike' position and moving Kirksey to the weak side, but it was a moot point with Barnes out. Kirksey came back the same week Barnes went on the reserve/COVID-19 list and had been starting in the middle with Martin on the weak side.
That was until Sunday against the Detroit Lions.
Finally having Barnes at full strength, Pettine started Kirksey and Barnes in the nickel package and then pulled Kirksey off the field when he went to his signature dime defense with one of the safeties playing inside linebacker.
It appeared Barnes and Kirksey shared some of the ‘Mike' duties, but Barnes was the one who stayed on the field when Pettine went with a single linebacker on the field. He also was the one making calls in the huddle and presnap.
There were times when Kirksey was the lone linebacker in the dime, too, but it might have been a case where Pettine didn't want to wear out his rookie in his first snaps from scrimmage since returning from the COVID list.
Kirksey wound up playing 46 snaps to Barnes' 40 and making four tackles to Barnes' three. Neither had a pass-breakup, tackle for loss or forced fumble.
But there's no question, the Packers feel Barnes can be their starter in the middle and while a rotation might still be in place Saturday against Carolina, it wouldn't be surprising to see Barnes' playing time increase as the weeks go on.
“I think that's something that we're still kind of always working through and trying to figure out to get your best 11 and have them play at a high level,” coach Matt LaFleur said of his inside linebackers. “But ‘KB,' he brings a physical presence. He certainly has great instincts, is able to communicate really well to make sure everybody else is doing their jobs.
“And that's what you love about him. He's just super intelligent and he doesn't play like a rookie. He plays like a vet and just his ability to communicate, get everybody on the same page. It makes everybody else better.”
The run defense against the Lions was outstanding, holding the backs to 34 yards on 13 carries. How much of that was the return of Barnes and how much of that was a mediocre Lions running back corps will probably be determined in the next two weeks when the Packers are set to face Carolina's Christian McCaffrey (although he may not be back yet from injury) and Tennessee's Derrick Henry.
If Pettine is willing to go a step further in boosting his defense, he might also want to give rookie safety Vernon Scott some more playing time. The 6-2, 202pound Scott was a physical presence against the Lions, knocking the ball out of tight end T.J. Hockenson's arms after a long reception and closing quickly on running back D'Andre Swift in the flat.
Scott got to play because Raven Greene is on injured reserve. He played in the deep middle as much as he did at the line of scrimmage and looked confident in his assignments and very quick to the ball.
It's the time of the year when great teams start to find their groove and maybe it will take two rookies to help the Packers' defense get on track. The way things have been going with that unit, it's worth finding out.
Taking the safe route won't change a thing.