M.M.M.D 1.0

[Cheesehead Craig]

Doesn't he have to have flowing dreds in order to be in the Packers secondary? That alone disqualifies him.

[red]

Sure, Ron Wolf is long retired, but "midgetry," the hatred or intolerance of short people, is still alive in some places. DuJuan Harris' signing may have opened up Thompson's mind a bit.

Seriously, some of the finest safeties in the NFL in the past decade are/were under 6'. Collins, Ed Reed, Bob Sanders, Earl Thomas.

Thompson needs to think outside the box. Joyner will be an awesome NFL FS, APRH. The guy can cover. The same can't be said about a lot of the fraudulent safeties in the league today.

there's a big difference with the guys that are just under 6' and a guy thats 5'8

and the to have to go up against guys that are 6'4-6'5 like we have all over the NFCN?

no thanks

[mraynrand]

This discussion is bringing back all those good old memories of Buckley defending Irvin and Harper, is it not?

[Guiness]

This discussion is bringing back all those good old memories of Buckley defending Irvin and Harper, is it not?

It does, but of course it could also turn out like Tyrann Devin who is looking like a pretty damn good pickup.

[call_me_ishmael]

No way do they draft a hobbit, period. 5'8". Woof. Hell no. Not even as an UDFA.

[mraynrand]

It does, but of course it could also turn out like Tyrann Devin who is looking like a pretty damn good pickup.

ya, you pick guys who can play and put them in the right circumstances. Buckley ended up with a nice career once DCs realized you shouldn't put him in man coverage against huge receivers.

[Rodgers12]

No way do they draft a hobbit, period. 5'8". Woof. Hell no. Not even as an UDFA.

Burnett is 6'1". Richardson, 6'2". Aaron Rouse was 6'4". Those guys can't cover, can't blitz and can't tackle worth a lick.

Earl Thomas is more like 5'9" if you take away the dreads, and he's the best safety in the NFL.

[pbmax]

Burnett is 6'1". Richardson, 6'2". Aaron Rouse was 6'4". Those guys can't cover, can't blitz and can't tackle worth a lick.

Earl Thomas is more like 5'9" if you take away the dreads, and he's the best safety in the NFL.

Tackling has nothing to do with height. Richardson is the best tackler in the secondary and he is the tallest. He might have shortfalls elsewhere, but tackling/height is not one of them.

[Rodgers12]

Joyner seems woefully short for a Ted Thompson safety. I'm not going to be so ignorant to say he's not on Ted's board but he would have to fall far enough to represent a value that Ted can't pass up. Ed Reynolds is a lot more likely to be a Packer IMO but I really hope not. He is great at jumping routes but has AJ Hawks hips which makes him look stupid in man coverage and even stupider in open field situations with ball carriers.

AJ Hawk hips? WTF?

Reynolds has the potential to be a very good "strong" safety. The guy's a Harrison Smith clone, the guy Thompson should've drafted in 2012 instead of Perry.

Check this out:

[Rodgers12]

Tackling has nothing to do with height. Richardson is the best tackler in the secondary and he is the tallest. He might have shortfalls elsewhere, but tackling/height is not one of them.

Richardson is slow as a sloth. He definitely cannot cover. Missed his shares of tackles last season; looked average at best tackling to me.

[Rodgers12]

there's a big difference with the guys that are just under 6' and a guy thats 5'8

and the to have to go up against guys that are 6'4-6'5 like we have all over the NFCN?

no thanks

Joyner doesn't have to cover tall recievers/TEs. Capers could use Joyner like he did with Collins (and like the Seahawks are now doing with Thomas): Let the guy roam the middle of the field and all over the place. In man coverage, Joyner likely would be covering short slot receivers anyway on fake blitzes.

Note that I also advocate drafting another safety, Ed Reynolds. Dude can cover and cover TEs.

[Bretsky]

First off....thanks for having the stones to post this. It's an awesome mock draft and gives all of us time to learn about players we might not have known about otherwise.
Overall I like the draft.........minus the 1st round pick.........it'd be awesome if you hit on a few of them. I did a mock last year...will this year as well....and of course...I hit on no picks

BTW..............the homer in me really wishes you would have inserted Badger ILB Borland as our third round pick. After all, he was the second best LB in Wisconsin last year..

[woodbuck27]

No way do they draft a hobbit, period. 5'8". Woof. Hell no. Not even as an UDFA.

A hobbit...in the Packers defensive backfield.

That's funny. X10. Good one !

[Anti-Polar Bear]

This is "My Mastery Mockery of a Draft," version 1.0, pre-combine and pre-compensatory picks. These are the players Ted Thompson should draft. Granted, not many folks have ever heard of these players. As the draft draws nearer and nearer, however, keep these dudes in mind.

Keep in mind that I hold a Master's in Mock Draft from the Mel Kiper Jr. School of College Football Scouting and Hair Design at the prestigious ESPNU.

Round/Player/Pos/College/Comment

1. Lamarcus Joyner, S, Florida St: 5'8" but a Bob Sanders clone. Runs a 4.5ish 40. Despite diminutive stature, hits like a wrecking ball. Physical as a horny goat. Excellent coverage skills. Unless Ted Thompson trades up, the Packers have no chance at mofo safety Clinton-Dix. Pryor is another tall, slow safety, a la Morgan Burnett.

2. Ed Reynolds, S, Stanford: 6'2", 205 lbs, 4.5 40. This guy would allow the Packers to play Joyner at "free," a la Nick Collins, a la Earl Fucking Thomas. Big, physical and fast. Had 6 picks in 2012; a ballhawk.

3. Yawin Smallwood, ILB, Connecticut: Lori Nickel would love to interview this guy in a locker room. Tall (6'4") and physical. Not as fast as former Bear great, Brian Urlacher, but a poor man Urlacher nonetheless.

4. Adrian Hubbard, OLB, Alabama: 6'6" 252 lbs. A pass blocking OLB with pass rush potentials (7 sacks in 2012). Physical and is a distant relative of Goliath.

5. Kenall James, CB, Maine: 6'0" and runs the 40 in 4.3 seconds. Fast and physical, even at 175 lbs. Needs to add 10 lbs to be even more physical.

6. Howard Jones, OLB, Shepherd: 6'4" 238 lbs, 4.4 40. Nobody knows where the fuck Shepherd is. Would be a 1st round pick if played at Alabama. 35 sacks in 47 games. Fast and physical.

7. Nick Perry, S, Alabama: Has prototypical size (6'1" 212 lbs). 4.55 40. Played in only 2 games in '13 due to injuries. Physical when healthy. Not a ball hawk (O pick in NCAA career) but has ok coverage skills. Better than MD Jenning.

Overview:

Ron Wolf once tailored an entire draft toward stopping former Packer-killa, Randy Moss. Colin Kaepernick currently owns the Packers. "Kap" is a modern day Packer-killa, and he isn't going away for a long time - unlike Moss, whom the Vikings stupidly got rid of. If Thompson is smart, he'd tailor a draft toward stopping Kap by drafting many a-fast and physical defenders.

Told y’all Todd shoulda drafted Joyner.

[Anti-Polar Bear]

I know, Joyner was a drama queen on Hard Knocks. Dude threatened to quit football and go work at Walmart after Fisher and Williams refused to start him. But...., per ESPN:

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/22667577/los-angeles-rams-place-their-franchise-tag-lamarcus-joyner

[Joyner] excelled when given a chance to play safety under defensive coordinator Wade Phillips in 2017....Earned the third-highest grade among safeties by Pro Football Focus, finishing with three interceptions...Allowed a 31.8 passer rating when targeted and 0.36 yards per coverage snaps, ranked 12th among 59 safeties, according to Pro Football Focus...Was one of only two safeties to not miss a tackle in the passing game, and he also covered slot receivers when needed...Is an aggressive hitter with great ball skills.

Meanwhile in Green Bay, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix has morphed into an abomination.