Green Bay Packers must shift defensive focus to tackling

By Keegan Matheson | Sep 15, 2015

New year, same story for the Green Bay Packers run defense. With the reported loss of Sam Barrington at inside linebacker for the remainder of 2015, the front seven loses one of its better run defenders ahead of Marshawn Lynch and Jamaal Charles coming to town.

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Scheme and personnel changes will obviously be coming as the coaching staff adjusts in the coming weeks, but this Green Bay Packers defense is going nowhere until their tackling improves from a fundamental level. Head coach Mike McCarthy was quick to express his displeasure with the tackling effort following Sunday’s game to Weston Hodkiewicz of Press-Gazette Media.

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“We did not tackle very well. We had double-digit missed tackles. It’s something we talked today emphasizing. Playing run defense gap integrity is very important.”

Improving the gap integrity, as McCarthy alluded to, will help the Packers to find an improved balance across the front seven, something that was lacking in week one as Matt Forte rushed for over 140 yards. Even the gazelle Jay Cutler managed 31 yards on the ground. With Russell Wilson just days away on the calendar, that’s not going to cut it.

Health will continue to impact the Packers’ struggle for improved tackling, but I’m not just talking about Sam Barrington. Safety Morgan Burnett could be a solidifying force if he’s able to return from injury this week, and therein could lie the schematic change Green Bay needs.

Sam Shields, Casey Hayward, Quinten Rollins and Damarious Randall may need to carry the load against the passing game as Green Bay brings Burnett closer to the line of scrimmage, an area he excelled in during a strong 2014. Micah Hyde was an admirable replacement versus the passing game of Chicago, but was not able to fill Burnett’s shoes against the run.

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix would then be left to ballhawk or assist in coverages, something I’m more comfortable with than him playing the run as a primary defender. I liked his run game potential out of college, but as he continues to drop his eyes and lunge at opposing running backs with poor technique, I’ve grown less certain in that area of his game. For now.

Without these changes in place first, this conversation cannot progress to more advanced measures of improving the defense. Marshawn Lynch’s all-NFL power will stretch this unit thin on Sunday, and if Russell Wilson is able to get into the open field, he’ll have as favorable a matchup as he could hope for in terms of tackling. Green Bay needs to make a change on this side of the ball, but it’s got to start from the ground up.

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