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We've all been dissing on Nate Hobbs, and rightfully so. He's played like doo doo as an outside corner, and Guter should be embnarrassed about this signing. But what we don't talk about as much is the fact that Javon Bullard is definitely not living up to his second-round-pick draft status.
He's been playing the slot much more so than safety, but as Justis Mosqueda noted today, when the defense faced an obvious passing situation against Pittsburgh, they moved Hobbs to the slot (unless they went to dime). It's also been noted, by TV announcers, by ACME and the Urinal-Scented, that Bullard is a liability when he's covering someone on a pass play.
He seems pretty good against the run - from what I've seen, he's a sure tackler and he's not afraid to stick his nose in there. But Evan Williams has clearly beaten him out at safety, Bullard's original position. In fact, as Justis Mosqueda noted today on his article on snap counts, while Bullard did play safety at times, rotating with Williams, when it was Bullard's "turn" the team put Williams back out there in a crucial situation toward the end. So it would seem the team thinks Williams is a better safety than Bullard.
But Nate Hobbs was signed in part because he's supposed to be tough against the run - physical, good tackler. And since Nate Hobbs is not working out as an outside corner, and since he's supposedly as good a defender against the run as Bullard (or almost as good), and since he's better as a slot corner against the pass than Bullard, the logical move is to put Hobbs in as your full time slot guy, and leave Bullard as the dime guy and substitute.
Bullard seems a man without a home, without a true position. He's not good enough to beat out Williams at safety, and when the Packers wake up from their fever dream about Hobbs being an outside corner, then Bullard wil not really have a position any more. Or not many snaps, at least.
George Cumby remarked elsewhere that Bullard seems really smart and likeable and funny, and maybe the Packers fell in love with his personality, but they keep playing him a lot of snaps when his skills seem to indicate he's really just a slot defender who can play the run only.
I wonder sometimes if players get more snaps just to justify the draft status, or to give them every chance to show they were worthy of that draft status, even if the results are less than optimal.
In short, I don't think he's living up to his second round status, and I'm not sure how he fits into this defense except as a situational guy who ought to get maybe ten snaps a game. Like Malik Heath or John Fitzpatrick.
What say you?
He's been playing the slot much more so than safety, but as Justis Mosqueda noted today, when the defense faced an obvious passing situation against Pittsburgh, they moved Hobbs to the slot (unless they went to dime). It's also been noted, by TV announcers, by ACME and the Urinal-Scented, that Bullard is a liability when he's covering someone on a pass play.
He seems pretty good against the run - from what I've seen, he's a sure tackler and he's not afraid to stick his nose in there. But Evan Williams has clearly beaten him out at safety, Bullard's original position. In fact, as Justis Mosqueda noted today on his article on snap counts, while Bullard did play safety at times, rotating with Williams, when it was Bullard's "turn" the team put Williams back out there in a crucial situation toward the end. So it would seem the team thinks Williams is a better safety than Bullard.
But Nate Hobbs was signed in part because he's supposed to be tough against the run - physical, good tackler. And since Nate Hobbs is not working out as an outside corner, and since he's supposedly as good a defender against the run as Bullard (or almost as good), and since he's better as a slot corner against the pass than Bullard, the logical move is to put Hobbs in as your full time slot guy, and leave Bullard as the dime guy and substitute.
Bullard seems a man without a home, without a true position. He's not good enough to beat out Williams at safety, and when the Packers wake up from their fever dream about Hobbs being an outside corner, then Bullard wil not really have a position any more. Or not many snaps, at least.
George Cumby remarked elsewhere that Bullard seems really smart and likeable and funny, and maybe the Packers fell in love with his personality, but they keep playing him a lot of snaps when his skills seem to indicate he's really just a slot defender who can play the run only.
I wonder sometimes if players get more snaps just to justify the draft status, or to give them every chance to show they were worthy of that draft status, even if the results are less than optimal.
In short, I don't think he's living up to his second round status, and I'm not sure how he fits into this defense except as a situational guy who ought to get maybe ten snaps a game. Like Malik Heath or John Fitzpatrick.
What say you?
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