Carl Bradford snagged by Green Bay Packers
Carl Bradford celebrates a first quarter sack against the Arizona Wildcats in the 87th annual Territorial Cup at Sun Devil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Green Bay Packers have drafted a boom-or-bust, love-him-or-hate-him outside linebacker with the 21st pick in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft, as Arizona State Sun Devils OLB Carl Bradford will join the Packers defense next season. The Pack aren’t short on talent at edge rusher with the likes of Clay Matthews and Nick Perry, and it will be interesting to see how often the disruptive pass rusher, who was an undersized DE at ASU, plays for the Packers as a rookie.
Bradford is a “one for the future” kind of prospect for Packers ace GM Ted Thompson, and we’ll see if he found a gem in the tools-y Sun Devils product, who is one of the most athletically gifted players in the front seven in this year’s class. The Packers did well to land a high-upside guy in the fourth round, and we’ll see if he can become a true playmaker on the Packers defense.
Coaching could dictate just how good Bradford is in the NFL, and he made plays all over the field in college. This is a great pick on paper for the Packers, who probably decided to go with the best player on the board here. The Packers need playmakers on defense, and it’s worth it for them to scoop up a guy like Bradford in the fourth in the hopes that he can become that kind of an impact player on their defense.