Green Bay Packers bring in undrafted rookies as outside linebacker prospects
Odds are the Green Bay Packers arent finished adding outside linebackers to their roster.
After General Manager Ted Thompson decided not to draft one last week, the Packers had to turn to alternate sources to challenge Brad Jones for the starting job to replace Aaron Kampman at left outside linebacker.
Maybe later this summer or in training camp theyll trade from one of their deepest positions, such as guard, for an outside linebacker. Maybe theyll pick up one cut by another team in August or early September.
But for now, theyre taking a hard look at the three undrafted rookies they signed immediately after the draft ended last Saturday: Tim Knicky of Stephen F. Austin, Frank Zombo of Central Michigan and John Russell of Wake Forest.
All of us have a shot, Knicky said Friday, the first day of the Packers rookie orientation camp. Depends on how many they want to take and how we play. Great opportunity.
In the draft, the Packers best chance of finding a starter was TCU outside linebacker Jerry Hughes at No. 23 overall, but Thompson passed over him to select Iowa tackle Bryan Bulaga.
After the draft, the Packers hit the undrafted rookie market hard looking for unheralded prospects to challenge Jones, who as a seventh-round draft pick last season was a credible replacement for Kampman the final six games, and the remaining backups.
The returnees are Brady Poppinga, who is primarily a core special-teams player; Cyril Obiozor, who made the practice squad as an undrafted rookie last year and was promoted to the 53-man roster the final five games; and Robert Francois, who signed with Minnesota last year as an undrafted rookie, was cut when the Vikings signed Brett Favre in August, and then was out of the league until the Packers signed him to their practice squad for the final four weeks.
In the scramble to sign rookies after the draft, the Packers targeted Knicky, who put up big sack numbers at the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) level; Zombo, a college defensive end whom some NFL teams projected as a tight end; and Russell, an undersized but productive defensive tackle at Wake Forest who is making a major change to standup linebacker in the NFL.
The Packers appeared to have Knicky rated highest of the three heading into this weekends camp, because he worked ahead of the others with Francois on the No. 1 defense (Poppinga and Obiozor are not eligible for the camp)in Fridays practice. At 6-foot-4 and 255 pounds, Knicky has the length and bulk for the job, and he was an effective pass rusher in college with 24 sacks and 50 tackles for a loss in his three seasons as a starter. At his campus workout, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.63 seconds, which is in line with good prospects at that position.
Hes smart, said Marc Lillibridge, the former Packers scout who is Knickys agent. He had a 30-something on his Wonderlic (intelligence test). He eats and breathes football, a Texas kid, hes got that going for him. The skys the limit for this guy.
Knicky was a receiver in high school in Austin, Texas, until moving to defensive end his senior year. At little more than 200 pounds at the time, he was unrecruited and went to Stephen F. Austin as a walk-on.
He added weight, blossomed and played most of his college career as a light, 230-pound defensive end. He had 12 sacks last season even though he played much of the year on a sprained ankle.
Knicky also had offers to sign with Denver and San Diego, which run 3-4 defenses, and Jacksonville, which runs a 4-3. His college statistics suggest he has pass-rush ability, but hell have to show he can play at the point of attack in the run game and in coverage after rarely dropping back as a defensive end in college.
A lot of (teams) wanted to know if I could play standing up and move around, that was really the big question, Knicky said. I showed I could pass rush, but I was a little too small to be that defensive end, and they wanted to know if I could do that standing up. I went to the Texas (vs.) The Nation game and showed people I could stand up and move around. I think that helped.
Zombo (6-3) also played defensive end in college but weighed in the 265- to 270-pound range, and for the move to the 3-4 this offseason dropped to 254 pounds. He was a first-team all-state receiver at Stevenson High School in Sterling Heights, Mich., but switched to defensive end in college instead of remaining on offense because Central Michigan plays a spread attack that rarely implements a tight end.
Zombo had 22 sacks in three seasons as a starter, including six last season. He occasionally dropped into coverage on zone blitzes on one drop against Northern Illinois he returned an interception 27 yards for a touchdown but always played with his hand on the ground, whereas the Packers 3-4 outside linebackers line up in a standing position. He ran the 40 in 4.71 seconds at his campus workout and did drills at defensive end, outside linebacker and tight end.
Detroit offered him a contract as a tight end.
Ive (played defense) the last five years of my life, Zombo said. So I think I have a better shot at making a team and being an influence as a defensive player, outside linebacker.
Russell is making the most difficult transition of the three. He was an undersized interior defensive lineman at Wake Forest, where as a 251-pound freshman he started at three-technique tackle in the Orange Bowl. He played at a little more than 280 pounds his final three years and had some teams looking at him as a 3-4 defensive end.
Russell doesnt have the preferred length of an outside linebacker at 6-2 7/8, but he said he more naturally weighs about 260 pounds, and had 3-4 teams Kansas City, Dallas and Buffalo looking at him at that position along with the Packers. Since last weekend, hes dropped from 282 pounds to 276 pounds and expects to be under 265 by the start of training camp. He ran the 40 in 4.94 seconds at his campus workout and will have to improve his speed and quickness as he drops weight to have a chance to succeed.
Im looking forward to playing outside, Russell said. I feel a lot better than I did on my pro day. Im ready to give this thing a shot.