Before last season, Mike McCarthy and Dom Capers sat down and mapped out a three-year plan to take the Green Bay Packers from a better-than-average defense to a championship-caliber unit.
Phase one was mostly a success. At its best, Green Bay’s defense in 2015 kept offenses out of the end zone, pressured the opposing quarterback into mistakes and made games winnable for a flawed offense. At its worst, the defense bled passing yards and endured extended sack droughts.
Statistically, the Packers probably finished the season where they belonged — 15th in total defense (346.7 yards per game), 12th in scoring (20.2 points per game) and tied for seventh in sacks (43). It was a solid showing by most accounts, but not quite to the level of the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.
“You always want to do better,” McCarthy said at this week’s NFL owners meetings. “I think the biggest thing is the pressures, we’re getting there, we’re creating matchups and you look at it, it was definitely a positive, our scheme evaluation. And you don’t just stop there, it can be better.”