Mike Pettine calls Montravius Adams Packers' 'most improved' defender
By Zachary Jacobson on Jul 30, 2019 with 3 Comments
-- Releasing Mike Daniels was certainly one of the more shocking moves to come out of the Green Bay Packers' organization this offseason. Shocking at first, but an understandable decision that was soon digested by the masses as a necessary one.
Whether you want to attribute the decision to Daniels' age, his injury-plagued 2018 campaign or the desire to allocate funds to another source, i.e., defensive line teammate Kenny Clark's contract extension on the horizon, there's one fact that was made abundantly clear.
The Packers have the utmost confidence in their defensive line. Otherwise, this move likely wouldn't have ever happened.
One shining example of that is the leap Montravius Adams has taken into his third season -- his second under defensive coordinator Mike Pettine, which only plays into his favor.
"If I had to vote somebody who was most improved from a year ago, it'd be Montravius. It's been pretty obvious with him," Pettine said on Monday. "When I first got here in the spring, my opinion wasn't real high -- and he knows that. It was one where we challenged him and I think Jerry Montgomery has done an outstanding job with [Montravius]."
Adams, a third-round pick made by the Packers in 2017, played in all 16 games last year en route to 20 tackles. He also registered 1.5 sacks along with a forced fumble. It was his play down the latter stretch of the season that evidently altered Pettine's initial opinion of him.
"He came back from the offseason, lost a bunch of weight," Pettine said. "But going back to the season and by the end of the year, he was playing some quality minutes for us and made some plays.
"I wouldn't have predicted that coming out of training camp."
It's that late-season confidence that may have helped Adams hone in on his own potential and energize his young career entering a pivotal season.
Adams played just under 20 percent of the Packers' defensive snaps last year, finishing behind Clark, Daniels, Dean Lowry and Tyler Lancaster. Sans Daniels, those four names will likely make up the starting defensive front this coming season, including the addition of fifth-round pick Kingsley Keke.
But if the Packers can get the return they're hoping for on Adams, their run support in the interior likely won't take much of a significant blow with the loss of Daniels, who had been a force there for several seasons.
"He's a guy we're going to depend on, he's already shown flashes of it. ... I just think that the confidence at the end of last season that he got getting out there and playing, I think really propelled him into the offseason to show back up in April ready to go. He's been impressive since the day he came back."
Montgomery, the Packers' defensive line coach credited with Adams' development, was well ahead of the curve. As far back as the team's OTA slate in May, he commended the shape Adams returned to the building in.
Said Montgomery: "He was a lot different player last year than he was the year before, so he's taking the right steps. The guy came back in tremendous shape. He looks a lot different body-wise than he did a year ago. Like, he understands this is how he provides for his family and I need to do all I can to be the best player I can be. He's working every day. Is he there? No, but neither is anybody else this time of year. But he definitely is a lot further along today than he was last year at this time."