Green Bay Packers: Clay Matthews should be on the 2018 roster

The Green Bay Packers need to make some improvements on defense. Their pass rush is definitely no exception. Nevertheless, Clay Matthews has a place.

The Green Bay Packers have a ready-made excuse for their 7-9 record this past season. An injury to Aaron Rodgers clearly derailed the season. Losing someone of his caliber obviously isn’t going to help a team. Nevertheless, it’s impossible to overlook other problems. One of those problems was the pass rush. Their 37 sacks this season were good enough for 17th in the NFL. They were 19 behind the Pittsburgh Steelers in first place.

This was highlighted by the personal numbers too. Clay Matthews led the team with 8.5 sacks, which was 25th in the NFL. Behind him was Nick Perry with seven (41st in the NFL). After that though, no one on the team had more than five. While those numbers are exactly terrible, there’s plenty of room for improvement.

With all that in mind, the Packers making a few moves (whether through the draft or free agency) to make additions to their pass rush seems imminent. Usually, holding onto the top pass rusher seems like an obvious move. Nevertheless, there’s been some “it’s time to move on” calls from fans.

This could be due to a few things. First off, Matthews hasn’t had double digit sack totals since 2014 and had just five in 2016. Then there’s the fact that six of his sacks came over his last six games (three in one day). This means there were a lot of zero-sack days on the board. Finally, he’ll be 32 in May. While that’s not exactly old, it could easily be assumed his best days are behind him.

Matthews still brings a few things to the table though.

First off there’s an almost unmatched intensity that he brings. Then there’s the age, which could actually come in handy. With such a young defense, there’s always need for a veteran voice. Matthews would be a great tool to use to mold young players.

Finally, there’s his production. While he’s not dominating each week like he used to, Matthews still gives the Packers a solid pass rusher. He has experience at both interior and outside linebacker, and isn’t a complete liability in coverage. His ability to take over games might be fleeting, but there’s still some hope there.

Next: 2018 NFL Mock Draft: Conference Championship edition

If the Packers want to rebuild their offense, some older pieces will have to be moved. It’s not time to cut ties with Clay Matthews yet though.