Packers Huddle

So, through 3 rounds we have a general direction that our offense is going. It is no longer the Mike McCarthy match-up offense. This Draft is a clear indication that this offense is moving philosophically away from everything we are used to and much more towards what so many of you seem to envy in SF.

I thought it would be good to collect some thoughts about what we know about Matt LaFleur in his time prior to GB, some of the things he showed last year, and what similar offenses like SF and LA do in order to better understand our personnel and some of the decisions being made over the past few days.

Having a more ball control offense might be a bonus, especially seeing our team plays in northeast Wisconsin. Perhaps Gute and MFL don't see WR as the huge need we fans do after getting his #2 in Funchess? Getting a big back to pick up tough yards was an issue they wanted to address. Now they have 2 young TEs they can put out there together. With Rodgers' declining mobility having a good running game to keep pass rushers honest will help keep Rodgers from getting hammered. They also grabbed someone they felt could be a future franchise QB. They might have thought there won't be many times a guy like Love is still there late in the first in the future as long as we are drafting late in the 1st.

On defense they must be hoping Kirksey is the answer at ILB. This wasn't the greatest IDL class either. We can still bring back Tramon after the draft and hope King can stay healthy.

NCF wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:12

This Draft is a clear indication that this offense is moving philosophically away from everything we are used to and much more towards what so many of you seem to envy in SF

This is the thing that stands out to me the most.

The fanbase collectively has some 49ers envy. And yet, the 49ers split their carries among 3 RBs. They have a TE who loves to block AND a FB/H-back who plays a third of their snaps and is widely considered a valuable role player. They have good, but not great, WRs.

We are moving in that direction. We've known for a long time that MLF is a bit more Kyle Shanahan than Sean McVay... but we also have adopted the Cooper Kupp-style big slot of the Rams.


I have two concerns:

• The degrading athleticism of the OLine, losing Bulaga and adding Wagner; Billy Turner is mediocre. If we're going to run a successful run-first ZBS-based offense, we need to stay on top of the evolving OL prospects and maintain that as a strength.

• Team speed. The 49ers have speed in Marquise Goodwin and Richie James. Their TE who loves to block runs a 4.5, not a 4.7. Mostert burns. Their "slower" guys are fast guys. Deebo and Emmanuel Sanders a but under 4.5 guys. Their FB runs a 4.7. The Rams have made sure to have at least one blazer along with their "not slow" guys. I think this scheme benefits a ton from having versatility matchups... but also from having just some speed mismatches mixed in to relax some coverage elsewhere and keep defenses from loading the box and playing purely to stop power.

YoHoChecko wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:35

Team speed. The 49ers have speed in Marquise Goodwin and Richie James. Their TE who loves to block runs a 4.5, not a 4.7. Mostert burns. Their "slower" guys are fast guys. Deebo and Emmanuel Sanders a but under 4.5 guys.

Keep in mind, Emmanuel Sanders is now a Saint. The 49ers have Deebo and drafted Aiyuk, but otherwise their #2/3 is likely Kendrick Bourne who ran a 4.68. Jalen Hurd, Dante Pettis, & Marquise Goodwin don't see the field. Rumors are Goodwin is still available for trade, but he seems to have fallen out of favor with the team.

YoHoChecko wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:35

Team speed. The 49ers have speed in Marquise Goodwin and Richie James. Their TE who loves to block runs a 4.5, not a 4.7. Mostert burns. Their "slower" guys are fast guys. Deebo and Emmanuel Sanders a but under 4.5 guys. Their FB runs a 4.7. The Rams have made sure to have at least one blazer along with their "not slow" guys. I think this scheme benefits a ton from having versatility matchups... but also from having just some speed mismatches mixed in to relax some coverage elsewhere and keep defenses from loading the box and playing purely to stop power.

This is my biggest concern with our roster. No speed to stretch the field. I am always concerned with ultra fast "track athletes' at WR, who can't run routes or catch the ball...but I do we can find a way to prevent teams from loading the box so much.

NCF wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:48

YoHoChecko wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:35

Team speed. The 49ers have speed in Marquise Goodwin and Richie James. Their TE who loves to block runs a 4.5, not a 4.7. Mostert burns. Their "slower" guys are fast guys. Deebo and Emmanuel Sanders a but under 4.5 guys.

Keep in mind, Emmanuel Sanders is now a Saint. The 49ers have Deebo and drafted Aiyuk, but otherwise their #2/3 is likely Kendrick Bourne who ran a 4.68. Jalen Hurd, Dante Pettis, & Marquise Goodwin don't see the field. Rumors are Goodwin is still available for trade, but he seems to have fallen out of favor with the team.

I know; I'm not talking about the future. I'm talking about a team who runs the same general scheme as us and who utilized various skillsets and our fans were envious. And I'm talking about making our team look more like their success. Maybe without their team speed this year, they flop. Last year, they had team speed (among other things) and succeeded.

I am advocating for utilizing a version of this scheme that can run down your throats, but also scares you with speed and big plays enough to force the defenses to respect that option. And I'm pointing out that a team that is viewed as a bully, the 49ers, also had a value on team speed that made them more dangerous. I don't care about the 49ers next year until they're on the field with us. I'm comparing their offense from last year to the vision of our offense moving forward in a similar scheme.

YoHoChecko wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:55

NCF wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:48

YoHoChecko wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 10:35

Team speed. The 49ers have speed in Marquise Goodwin and Richie James. Their TE who loves to block runs a 4.5, not a 4.7. Mostert burns. Their "slower" guys are fast guys. Deebo and Emmanuel Sanders a but under 4.5 guys.

Keep in mind, Emmanuel Sanders is now a Saint. The 49ers have Deebo and drafted Aiyuk, but otherwise their #2/3 is likely Kendrick Bourne who ran a 4.68. Jalen Hurd, Dante Pettis, & Marquise Goodwin don't see the field. Rumors are Goodwin is still available for trade, but he seems to have fallen out of favor with the team.

I know; I'm not talking about the future. I'm talking about a team who runs the same general scheme as us and who utilized various skillsets and our fans were envious. And I'm talking about making our team look more like their success. Maybe without their team speed this year, they flop. Last year, they had team speed (among other things) and succeeded.

I am advocating for utilizing a version of this scheme that can run down your throats, but also scares you with speed and big plays enough to force the defenses to respect that option. And I'm pointing out that a team that is viewed as a bully, the 49ers, also had a value on team speed that made them more dangerous. I don't care about the 49ers next year until they're on the field with us. I'm comparing their offense from last year to the vision of our offense moving forward in a similar scheme.

I also tire of the 49 er comparison, it only matters when we play them!
We are a team in transition obviously, the one thing is we still have the primA-Donna at QB for 2 years... he is supposed to be the difference maker, so this is his time to shine.

At least someone gets it.

NCF wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 16:56

At least someone gets it.

If the first pick were a WR instead of a QB of the future, NO ONE would be seeing this run-game focused draft as a knock on AR. They'd see it as helping him and taking pressure off.

But taking Love set the tone and cast the narrative and it's gonna take a lot of TJ Lang tweets to put the fan hate back in the bottle.

I love running the football, and I love being tough and smashing people in the mouth. One thought I have with this though is the type of team that runs the ball really well and often, usually doesn’t need to pay a qb top dollar, and usually has enough money to buy an elite defense because they don’t need an elite qb.

Just feels less necessary if the plan is to run 75% of the time.

Not a complaint, Just a thought.

Drj820 wrote: ↑

25 Apr 2020 18:49

I love running the football, and I love being tough and smashing people in the mouth. One thought I have with this though is the type of team that runs the ball really well and often, usually doesn’t need to pay a qb top dollar, and usually has enough money to buy an elite defense because they don’t need an elite qb.

Just feels less necessary if the plan is to run 75% of the time.

Just a thought.

I don't think that's been the model since the Trent Dilfer Ravens, though. That was a theory for a time, but the 49ers paid Jimmy G pretty lofty money to be a smashmouth team. The Titans drafted a top ten QB and then signed Tannehill to a big money extension after the success last year to be a smashmouth team. The Rams moved on from Gurley before they moved on from Goff. The Ravens spent draft capital to trade up and take a first round QB to be a smashmouth run-first team.

Again, without a 1st round QB, the idea of making this team a much better running team would be seen as supporting Rodgers, making it easier on Rodgers, making Rodgers more dangerous because Ds have to respect the run. But people are just painting a frame based on our first pick to make it sound like running the football is in some way unnecessary with Rodgers.

I'm a big fan of passing; I'm a big fan of running to pass--meaning the reason you assemble a good running game is to set up the passing game for success by forcing defenses to respect it. I'm NOT big on paying RBs or over-drafting them. I'm not someone who thinks you run the ball 30 times to win; I think you run because you're winning not that you win because you run more. I'm not a fan of going more than 40% run plays in this NFL. A late second is the fringe of what I'm willing to pay for a RB, so I wasn't thrilled with that value.

But still, I'm established as a big passing game fan, and even I can understand that establishing a consistent run threat with a variety of run styles HELPS Rodgers, not makes him overpaid or less relevant or anything of the sort. It's just silly season in Packers fandom right now.

Gutey Conference Call on packers.com right now

First Q: not much defense; will you be active signing more free agents now?
Gutey: Yeah, maybe. Drafted ended one part of things and we'll sit back and re-assess

Q: What do you have at nickel CB?
Gutey: Chandon Sullivan, Jaire, Josh Jackson, lots of versatility, even Darnell Savage. We have a lot of guys we like.

Q: No WRs in the draft... talk a little about CFL kid?
Gutey: it's the way everything fell early in the draft; didn't get some of the guys we had really really high; later, not opportunity to get early-impact guys at the position. Some guys take more time. We have a couple guys like that who are still young and emerging (names them all). We feel good about the group; there are some guys with a real chance to emerge.

Q: Is there a letdown that you don't get to get together with the guys and kick back together?
Gutey: Everyone is in this sort of thing, but yeah, it is a bit of a letdown not to be able to be together after a big thing that comes down to three days.

Q: Three 6th round OL?
Gutey: I'm pretty excited about all of thos eguys; there was a run in the 4th. We're happy all three were there.

• Runyan: LT at Michigan, excited about his versatility; we're penciling him outside now and may experiment with him inside. Good culture and fit

• Hansen: 47 starts at C; enough size and versatility to kick out to G if we need it. Model of consistency

• Stepaniak: Would have gone higher without the injury and will likely be on the dshelf again; grit, strength, power. Has the traits to turn into a relaly strong candidate

Q: Given that early picks won't contribute much, is there pressure on last year's class to step forward?
Gutey:
First, obviously the QB that may be true, but I'm not putting any limitations on the RB and TE.
Second, All teams are counting on veterans and young players. There's a learning curve; it takes some time. It's normal in the NFL to count on 2nd and 3rd year players improving more so than on your rookie class

Q: RB, H-back, 3-OL... how much of a priority is getting Matt's running game going?
Gutey: I don;t think it's just about the running game. Rodgers is your QB, gotta protect him. It was important to add to the OL because we lost some guys from last year. Wanted to make sure we had some young players

Q: WRs; are all of us just wrong about this or is this a signal about going to a run-based offense.
Gutey: I wouldn't read much into this. And I certainly won't comment about all of you being wrong... We really liked the players we have; we have guys really coming into their own. If the board had fallen differently, we would have picked one. The talk about the transition to a different type of offense, I don't see that. Matt's talked to you guys about how he likes to run to set up the pass, and that's still what we're doing.

Q: Talk about Martin; what it shows that he played through knee injury
Gutey: Great size, great length; he can run, can really run. Do your due dilligence and go back to 18 you see a more dynamic player. He has versatility, can play both size; size, length and speed. You'll see more of what we saw in 2018

Q; Stopping the run. Gerald Willis only addition.
Gutey: Certainly, I expect us to get better in that area. I like the young guys we have; Lancaster entering his 3rd year. Montravis entering his 4th year it's a big year for him. Keke going into his second year, we're expecting a jump. Certainly we have to improve that, it was an achiles heel sometimes. I like the group; if we stay healthy I think we can address it.

Q: Concerns about the rookie class getting up to speed without coming in? What're next steps?
Gutey: That'll be a challenge; I have a lot of faith in our coaches to get this done, but it'll be a challenge around the league. I appreciate our coaching staff and how they're thinking outside the box in this situation.

Q: In last two drafts, you took advantage of strengths in the draft; CBs were strong 2 years ago, EDGE rush last year. This year it's WR. Maybe you don't need a guy this year, but down the road will you feel the impact of not getting these guys?
Gutey: We thought the top was unusually strong, but I don't know that beyond that we thought it was as strong as a lot of other people did. Once there was a run early, we thought with the guys we had, we didn't have many guys who we mocked to actually make our team next year.

Q: TCU DB, one year starter, no pro day, no combine
Gutey: We had a time on him coming into this lucky enough; 4.4 guy. Late bloomer, took off this year; really like his upside. His best football is ahead.

Q: Not a lot of additions to DL and WR, how much are you counting on coaching? Young WR coach, issues stopping the run last year; not much added.
Gutey: We always count on the coaching staff. A lot of receivers are going into the 3rd year and that's when guys sort of take off. Jordy, Davante... they weren't super productive early and took off in year 3. Roster work is 365 days a year. We didn't want to reach for positions of need. Rookie classes aren't expected to make the kind of impact of the 2nd and 3rd year players are

Q: Jordan Love; possible that he's your backup this year? Could he be ready to play this year if you need him?
Gutey: Once you're on the roster everyone needs to be ready to play. For a young QB, that's a lot to pout on him, but if that happens and the situation arises, which we don't expect, we'll need to have him ready to play. We really like Tim Boyle, entering year 3. But if you're on the roster, you need to be ready to play.

Q: Garvin, bigger and less fluid than Kyler; is that a theme?
Gutey: not a theme, we like to have a mix. Kyler was unique being 6'5" and able to play in space and we think we have guys that can fill that void. You like to have guys who can win with power, with speed, with athleticism.

Q: OL testing, athletic fits? (aside from Runyan)
Gutey: I think so; both have good quickness, they're very strong and stout at the point; and they're very smart. Gotta be able to be quick mentally. No athletic deficiencies that will keep these guys from playing.

Q: No one looks back at 2005 as the Nick Collins draft; if you take Love, you say it doesn't affect Rodgers, but doesn't it start the clock? Aren't you saying you're planning on him playing at some point?
Gutey: We moved from Brett to Aaron because of what Aaron did in his first three years here. That has to happen for Jordan. He has to do the work and be able to do that. We drafted him because he has talent, but that's not enough in the NFL. You gotta work, you gotta earn it; you gotta become a good enough player. We have one of the best QBs to ever lace 'em up, and we're shooting for championships as long as he's here, and we expect him to be here for quite a while. Jordan has a long way to go, ya know? I mean we like Jordan, that's why we took him, but the importance of that position is something to me that can't be overlooked; I've talked to we'll always look at the QB spot and if we feel like we have a chance to acquire a player who can be a difference-maker we're going to look at that.

Remember last year when there was always this awkward push and pull between what was Lafleurs offense, and what was Rodgers? And was a playcall Lafleurs or did Rodgers change the call at the line into what he wanted?

One takeaway from this draft is that struggle isn’t going to exist as much anymore. This is lafleurs offense, Rodgers plays qb in the offense, and if he wants to argue on the sideline, change play calls, and not accept a game plan...someone lafleur likes is on the roster ready to step in.

MLF conference call on now. Praising Gutey, happy to talk to the media (can't believe he's saying it)

Q: What was the conversation like with Gutey regarding Jordan?
MLF: Yeah, no, we definitely spent some time with Jordan; had a facetime interview with himself and Hackett. Takeaways: humble guy, extremely talented. Love the accountability he took for everything, good plays or bad plays. That gives you a chance when you have that mindset. The talent is there. He's a good thrower, a fearless thrower. Never thought we'd be in the situation like we were

Q: Aaron's gonna be the leader of the team for a long time. What's "a long time" mean?
MLF: Aaron is by far the best QB I've ever been around; you could argue, I think he's the best to ever play the game. He can play until he doesn't want to play anymore.

Q: How much have you helped your offense? Allow you to put the kind of offense you want on the field?
MLF: Yeah, you never know how the draft is going to go, and Gutey did a great job and it's our job to figure out what our players do well and put them in position to succeed. We're excited about these guys and also the guys on our roster.

Q: Evolving offense from year one to year two: what kind of stamp can you put on it, virtual or otherwise, to make the offense move forward?
MLF: Last year we put together plans without being on the grass with any of these guys. After a full year, we have a much better idea of who we are and what we do well and use that to put the plan into place. The first install from last season and what it's going to be this season, it's night and day different.

Q: not much help for run defense, kept Mike Pettine; how do you avoid a repeat of last seaosn and NFCCG particularly
MLF: We had a conversation abotu what we can do differently. Everyone looked inward, players and coaches, into what we can do better. And we're looking forward to implementing that and improving that in the offseasona nd once we get into training camp?

Q: What's virtual offseason program look like?
MLF: the NFL has put guidelines in place: 2 hours a day for classroom and 2 hours a day for workouts. We're doing virtual classroom activities; meetings recorded then put out to ipad; followed up by quizzes, and 20 minutes live to recap and answer questions.

Q: How do you plan to do what you do coaching young QBs (RGIII, Kirk Cousins, Mariota, Goff as position coach/OC) while also HC
MLF: That's the balance. Gotta manage your time. I'm surrounded by good coches who can help me out and make these guys the best they can become

Q: What's it like to walk the line from the starter being your guy and you love him, but the new guy needs to be trained and prepared and you're excited. In terms of relationships with each guy
MLF: That's our job as coaches. All the QBs need to get the coaching and we have a great group, I love those guys, and yada yada

Q: Any thought to Taysum Hilling Jordan Love (package)
MLF; I haven't put a lot of thought to that, to be honest. But we're always trying to find new ways to stress defenses, but I really haven't put a lot of thought into that.

Q: How do you feel about receiver group?
MLF: We have a lot of confidence in our receiving corps. Adams a true #1 in this league. Allen Lazard, what he brought from a physicality standpoint (references a big play). Jake Kumerow made big plays for us last year--need to find ways to get more involved. Then you look at MVS and the speed that he has and he has to take the next step and we're going to be all over him to try and help him do that. EQ is returning and I'm really excited about him beign back in the fold and you add Devin Funchess and I can't wait to start working with a big guy with a lot of talent. Lists the other guys (Taylor, Sheppherd, Begelton). We have talent and depth.

Q: How incorporate Dillon; 3 distinctly different RBs
MLF: It's a physical league. You need to have talented runners; we definitely have some depth, factor in Dexter Williams, Tyler Ervin. We have good competition and am looking forward to how those guys respond to that.

Q: Deguara, Danny Vitale or more?
MLF. Yeah. I love Josiah. He is extremely versatile. What he brings to the offense is we can be in the same personnel grouping, line him up on the line of scrimmage, or in a wing alignment, or in the backfield. That adds stress to a defense where they don't know what you're going to do. He's so gritty, cites a play that was shown in a team meeting to the Packers last season (chasing down the INT for a tackle)

Q: Runyan; guard, tackle?
MLF: I think it suits his skillset best to kick him inside

Q: Josiah, Kyle Juschyck role?
MLF: We will try to emulate some of that stuff

Q: Do you anticipate balancing coaching/supporting all the QBs with AR's potential successor in the same room being a challenge?
MLF: No, Aaron's a pro, yada yada

Q: Divvy up RB touches. Committee? Big guy/small guy?
MLF: It'll be interesting to see how these guys compete. Jones and Williams have proven it. Dillon has to come in and prove it.

Q; Did Henry's run through the end of the season and playoffs have an impression on you having coached him before?
MLF: Absolutely it did, but I don;t want to compare AJ to him except that they're big humans. Big strong backs in cold weather are just hard to tackle. We're excited.

Ok, I'm tired of typing.

Oh, and I did all of this in the wrong thread. SORRY GUYS

You typed that all out yourself?! Freaking awesome job!