Bretsky
09-22-2006, 12:52 AM
Something more
Kampman no longer just a nice guy who works hard
By LORI NICKEL
lnickel@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Sept. 21, 2006
Green Bay - A sports banquet gave him the "Nice Guy" Award in 2004. The Sporting News named him one of their NFL "Good Guys" in 2005. At the end of last season, USA Today named him to their "All-Joe" team.
Maybe one day Green Bay Packers defensive end Aaron Kampman will be able to put Pro Bowl on top of that résumé so everyone can stop giving him consolation prizes and instead give him a little credit.
Not that getting our approval matters much to Kampman.
"No," he laughs. "It doesn't change how I do things."
But the truth is, Kampman wasn't invited to the NFL combine when he was playing college ball at Iowa, he wasn't asked to the Senior Bowl, and he flew under the radar for so long in tiny Green Bay that he's lived with the overachiever label for most of his five-year career.
Now that he and Philadelphia's Trent Cole happen to be leading the NFL with four sacks each, and teams like New Orleans had to double team him to keep him off its quarterback, it's time to accept Kampman as the real deal.
"That's a compliment to you," Packers defensive ends coach Carl Hairston told Kampman after the Saints game. "So you should be proud for how far you've come. That's called respect."
Kampman leads the Packers' defensive linemen with 10 tackles. He's forced two fumbles, recovering one that led to the Packers' first touchdown of the year last week against New Orleans. He stuffed heralded rookie Reggie Bush on a tackle for a loss.
Whether he's fast or talented enough to make scouts gush is one thing. But clearly he lacks nothing in effort, which separates him from the pack and makes the most of the talent he does have.
This off-season, Kampman trimmed five pounds off his frame to put him in the low 270s range. It may make him faster on the pass rush.
"The best conditioned football player is going to be the one that gets the most sacks," Hairston said. "He's a well-conditioned athlete and he's relentless, and that's the key to being a great pass rusher. If you're relentless all the time, you get sacks. He just keeps coming, he never stops."
Never resigning to a double team or backing down from a block, Kampman has worked hard on getting better leverage on his opponent and keeping his balance as he runs around the edge of the offensive line.
"People say he's not fast, but he does a great job working the leverage," Hairston said. "He's got a great punch, when he punches a guy, the guy stands straight up, so he gets up under pretty good."
Such effort isn't always rewarded with a sack or two a game, which is why that statistic can be misleading. A high sack number doesn't always equate to the best defensive linemen. But it can be a good indicator, and there's no argument that when Kampman brought down Drew Brees three times, it was an adrenaline lift for his team and a crowd boost at home.
There's a saying in basketball that players get rebounds by desire, not talent. With sacks, at least in some situations, that may also be true.
"There's all kinds of different ways to get sacks," said Kampman. "There's what you can call an effort sack, a recovery sack. A 'get the guy running around the corner' sack, or I get double teamed and still get one."
Whatever works, said Hairston.
"We were talking the other day, I said it doesn't say how you got the sacks," said Hairston. "It just says you got 'em. So I try to continue to put that relentless thought in their minds: that's how you get them."
It hasn't hurt that Kampman could build off of a stellar season last year by not needing to learn an entirely new defense.
His first two years in Green Bay, he played under defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. Then in 2004 he was under Bob Slowik. Last year, it was Jim Bates. As former defensive line coach Bob Sanders took over for Bates this year, it made the transition smoother for Kampman, he said.
Still, it was an uncertain off-season for Kampman. When Mike Sherman was fired, Kampman wasn't sure what direction the Packers were going. He wondered if the team would adopt a three-lineman, four-linebacker defense.
"That would have been a huge deal," said Kampman. "I knew I would have to start eating. If I'm going to be a 3-4 end, I better not be 265, 275, I better be 295."
Kampman also had to wait until the day before the free agency period began to get a lucrative four-year, $21 million contract extension from the Packers.
The investment may be paying off for the Packers. Green Bay is allowing an average of just 2.7 yards per rush in its first two games. It's a good start and a positive reflection on the defensive line, but clearly not enough yet to win games.
"We've looked at our defense," said Kampman. "And we've had 120 plays where they average about 2.9 yards run and pass. We've had 14 plays where they've gotten something like 400 yards of all the offense that we've given up. So, yeah, in the end, the key is to eliminate big plays and get turnovers."
Kampman no longer just a nice guy who works hard
By LORI NICKEL
lnickel@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Sept. 21, 2006
Green Bay - A sports banquet gave him the "Nice Guy" Award in 2004. The Sporting News named him one of their NFL "Good Guys" in 2005. At the end of last season, USA Today named him to their "All-Joe" team.
Maybe one day Green Bay Packers defensive end Aaron Kampman will be able to put Pro Bowl on top of that résumé so everyone can stop giving him consolation prizes and instead give him a little credit.
Not that getting our approval matters much to Kampman.
"No," he laughs. "It doesn't change how I do things."
But the truth is, Kampman wasn't invited to the NFL combine when he was playing college ball at Iowa, he wasn't asked to the Senior Bowl, and he flew under the radar for so long in tiny Green Bay that he's lived with the overachiever label for most of his five-year career.
Now that he and Philadelphia's Trent Cole happen to be leading the NFL with four sacks each, and teams like New Orleans had to double team him to keep him off its quarterback, it's time to accept Kampman as the real deal.
"That's a compliment to you," Packers defensive ends coach Carl Hairston told Kampman after the Saints game. "So you should be proud for how far you've come. That's called respect."
Kampman leads the Packers' defensive linemen with 10 tackles. He's forced two fumbles, recovering one that led to the Packers' first touchdown of the year last week against New Orleans. He stuffed heralded rookie Reggie Bush on a tackle for a loss.
Whether he's fast or talented enough to make scouts gush is one thing. But clearly he lacks nothing in effort, which separates him from the pack and makes the most of the talent he does have.
This off-season, Kampman trimmed five pounds off his frame to put him in the low 270s range. It may make him faster on the pass rush.
"The best conditioned football player is going to be the one that gets the most sacks," Hairston said. "He's a well-conditioned athlete and he's relentless, and that's the key to being a great pass rusher. If you're relentless all the time, you get sacks. He just keeps coming, he never stops."
Never resigning to a double team or backing down from a block, Kampman has worked hard on getting better leverage on his opponent and keeping his balance as he runs around the edge of the offensive line.
"People say he's not fast, but he does a great job working the leverage," Hairston said. "He's got a great punch, when he punches a guy, the guy stands straight up, so he gets up under pretty good."
Such effort isn't always rewarded with a sack or two a game, which is why that statistic can be misleading. A high sack number doesn't always equate to the best defensive linemen. But it can be a good indicator, and there's no argument that when Kampman brought down Drew Brees three times, it was an adrenaline lift for his team and a crowd boost at home.
There's a saying in basketball that players get rebounds by desire, not talent. With sacks, at least in some situations, that may also be true.
"There's all kinds of different ways to get sacks," said Kampman. "There's what you can call an effort sack, a recovery sack. A 'get the guy running around the corner' sack, or I get double teamed and still get one."
Whatever works, said Hairston.
"We were talking the other day, I said it doesn't say how you got the sacks," said Hairston. "It just says you got 'em. So I try to continue to put that relentless thought in their minds: that's how you get them."
It hasn't hurt that Kampman could build off of a stellar season last year by not needing to learn an entirely new defense.
His first two years in Green Bay, he played under defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. Then in 2004 he was under Bob Slowik. Last year, it was Jim Bates. As former defensive line coach Bob Sanders took over for Bates this year, it made the transition smoother for Kampman, he said.
Still, it was an uncertain off-season for Kampman. When Mike Sherman was fired, Kampman wasn't sure what direction the Packers were going. He wondered if the team would adopt a three-lineman, four-linebacker defense.
"That would have been a huge deal," said Kampman. "I knew I would have to start eating. If I'm going to be a 3-4 end, I better not be 265, 275, I better be 295."
Kampman also had to wait until the day before the free agency period began to get a lucrative four-year, $21 million contract extension from the Packers.
The investment may be paying off for the Packers. Green Bay is allowing an average of just 2.7 yards per rush in its first two games. It's a good start and a positive reflection on the defensive line, but clearly not enough yet to win games.
"We've looked at our defense," said Kampman. "And we've had 120 plays where they average about 2.9 yards run and pass. We've had 14 plays where they've gotten something like 400 yards of all the offense that we've given up. So, yeah, in the end, the key is to eliminate big plays and get turnovers."