And your 53 is. . . . . .

[rbaloha1]

Interesting roster.

Merling's versatility won a roster spot.

TT strikes again with street free agents, Boykin, Moses and Richardson.

Is Boykin a faster Antonio Freeman?

[gbgary]

Interesting roster.

Merling's versatility won a roster spot.

TT strikes again with street free agents, Boykin, Moses and Richardson.

Is Boykin a faster Antonio Freeman?

and barclay.

[Fritz]

Zombo just won't go away, even though he hasn't played since 1988.

[denverYooper]

Zombo just won't go away, even though he hasn't played since 1988.

Funny, it just snuck up on me this morning that Zombo didn't get cut.

His sense of fashion would seem to indicate that he's stuck in '88. Maybe the Packers really want a throwback on the roster.

[Iron Mike]

Zombo just won't go away, even though he hasn't played since 1988.

All of the bench shots I see in-game of Clay Matthews are of him goofing w/Zombo. Maybe he's sticking around 'cuz Clay wants him around.

[Iron Mike]

All of the bench shots I see in-game of Clay Matthews are of him goofing w/Zombo. Maybe he's sticking around 'cuz Clay wants him around.

Yeap. Quite the bromance going on there:

[Fritz]

Ewww.

[pbmax]

Interesting roster.

Merling's versatility won a roster spot.

TT strikes again with street free agents, Boykin, Moses and Richardson.

Is Boykin a faster Antonio Freeman?

Thompson said at the press conference it was his size. More typical of 3-4 DE than Muir, who everyone has pegged to go to a 4-3 team again.

[RashanGary]

Thompson said at the press conference it was his size. More typical of 3-4 DE than Muir, who everyone has pegged to go to a 4-3 team again.

I saw that. Looks like they do want some of that prototype length. We have enough inside quickness. Merling fits into our base really well. He's just starting to get into shape too. He could have more upside than he's shown so far. He's only 27.

It will be interesting to see how the line rounds into shape this year. Merling, Neal and Wilson all fit that 3-4 base mold. Merling more than the other two.

Pickett is an excellent nose. Raji can play nose, but seemed to get a lot more big-time plays when he was shooting gaps, going after the QB.

Worthy and Daniels have the inside Quickness to get after the passer or disrupt plays behind the line, although they are very young. Raji is your best bet to really get after it inside. Will they open him up like they did two years ago is the big question.


We'll have to see who steps up from the group. There are a lot of ways this could shake out. I like the variety though.

[RashanGary]

I remember quite a few plays this preseason where Raji and Wilson were getting shoved around in the run game. I really don't recall many where Merling was being pushed around. I could be wrong though.

[pbmax]

Thompson on DLine, first sentence is about Muir, next is Merling. Not sure if Merling is the same kind of pressure guy as Muir, but this kind of choice is necessary with two other smaller D line who will be tasked with providing the nickel pass rush.

"A very passionate young man, but the NFL is like a wheel it goes round and round like a wheel, you never know when somebody might be back," Thompson said. "In the case of Phillip, we thought he played very well. We thought he especially gave us a little inside push on that last game. Body-type, a little bit longer and taller that sort of thing.”

[Lurker64]

I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that as things were shaking out, the only people on the team who were a 3 down (base, nickel, dime) kind of player on the DL were Raji and maybe Wilson. We have another one available after week 4 with Neal, but we had a lot of nickel-only guys (like Daniels and Worthy) and a lot of base only guys (like Pickett and maybe Wilson). So Merling kind of makes it for versatility, and the fact that he fills kind of the same niche as Neal, so if he ends up sucking in the regular season, you can cut him for Neal.

[Harlan Huckleby]

gave us a little inside push on that last game. Body-type, a little bit longer and taller that sort of thing.

Merling is longer and taller that sort of thing - i.e. a defensive end, of which they have more than enough. Muir is a stout nose tackle, where they are wanting.

Both guys have been in pros for 5 years, so it's not a youth move.

[Lurker64]

Merling is longer and taller that sort of thing - i.e. a defensive end, of which they have more than enough. Muir is a stout nose tackle, where they are wanting.

It's actually kind of the opposite. The Packers have a bunch of squatty solidly built DL, and it's not like Muir is actually all that great against the run (he'd be the #3 NT anyway behind Raji and Pickett and I bet Worthy could get you out of a game at the nose), whereas in terms of longer, 2-gapping, active against the run DL they've got just Wilson and Neal (who is suspended) in addition to Merling.

Muir's best contributions to this team would be in the locker room, where he could have probably really helped some of the young DL. Merling's best contributions, on the other hand, would be on the field. I mean, it's not like Merling doesn't have more natural talent, since he was chosen #32 overall whereas Muir went undrafted and has been cut at least 5 times.

[rbaloha1]

Trust TT on selecting Merling over Muir. Explosive power with length.

Combined with Neal could help with a fourth quarter pass rush.