Green Bay Packers: Making the case for ILB Zach Vigil

By Keegan Matheson | May 2, 2015

The Green Bay Packers surprisingly enter round four of the 2015 NFL Draft without a new inside linebacker. Ted Thompson targeted Damarious Randall in round one before double-dipping at the position in round two, showing once again that the Green Bay Packers value the best player available over need. Entering day three, roster makeup alone insists that the Packers should add an inside linebacker at some point, and the name to watch is Zach Vigil of Utah State.

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Late-round prospects can appeal to teams based either on untapped physical potential or college production, and Vigil fits into the latter category. His final season with Utah State saw Vigil collect 159 tackles, 20.5 tackles for losses and 9.0 sacks. Despite posting such eye-popping numbers after replacing Bobby Wagner, Vigil was not invited to the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

At his pro day, Vigil impressed with a 4.66-second 40-yard dash and 26 reps of 225 pounds. All draft classes feature a stat monster near the lower half, but rarely does the prospect come with NFL-ready measurables like Vigil. In 2014, he was recognized as the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year.

The majority of scouting reports you will find pigeonhole Vigil as a 4-3 linebacker, but I struggle to follow that line of thinking. If featured in a 3-4 scheme, Vigil has the physical skills to track tight ends in coverage over the heart of the field while still contributing in the tackling game. Vigil broke up four passes in his final season at Utah State, and his mental game encourages me to believe that he can become more.

While he is by no means an elite coverage linebacker, his awareness and ability to read plays help him to cover any deficiencies. Vigil has fantastic reactions to the opposing quarterback, and the ability to diagnose plays is something that the Green Bay Packers have long coveted on the inside. As the leader of Utah State’s defense, recognizing these passing situations as they unfolded was Vigil’s responsibility.

Vigil would enter Green Bay as a competition piece with Carl Bradford, the 2014 fourth round pick who has become the forgotten man despite his potential. A pick such as Vigil is a necessity, in my opinion, when we look back to the 2014 season.

Both A.J. Hawk and Brad Jones were named as the expected starters to open the season, but former seventh sound pick Sam Barrington had become the focal point of the linebacking corps by late in the season. Furthermore, this pushed Clay Matthews to the inside position, limiting his All Pro abilities from the edge. Not only to the Packers need talent at this position, they need suitable depth to survive without kicking Matthews inside once again.

As Saturday begins to move forward, I expect to see Vigil’s name called in the sixth or seventh rounds. There are clearly reasons that a prospect falls to this point in a draft, but I consider this Utah State star to be a hidden gem that could add valuable competition and intelligence to the Packers’ linebacking corps.

Next: Packers find unlikely corner in Damarious Randall

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