Nick Barnett (1 Viewer)

[BearsFan]

What impact does this move have on the value of Barnett and Hawk comparatively?

Link

AJ Hawk will replace Nick Barnett as the Packers' "Mike" inside linebacker in Dom Capers' new 3-4 defense.

Both will likely be three-down players, but Barnett will do more cover work and Hawk will be the attacking, blitzing interior linebacker. Hawk will have to shed more blockers, but his lack of ideal short-area quickness is less of a problem in the 3-4 set. He's a decent bet to lead Green Bay in tackles.

 

[Roz]

What impact does this move have on the value of Barnett and Hawk comparatively?

Link

AJ Hawk will replace Nick Barnett as the Packers' "Mike" inside linebacker in Dom Capers' new 3-4 defense.

Both will likely be three-down players, but Barnett will do more cover work and Hawk will be the attacking, blitzing interior linebacker. Hawk will have to shed more blockers, but his lack of ideal short-area quickness is less of a problem in the 3-4 set. He's a decent bet to lead Green Bay in tackles.

I have Barnett so I'm gonna show a bit of favor but i feel his talent wont be lost by the switch. He'll still find the ball carrier. Hawk was under utilized last year and this is a move to get him back on track to be the ideal ILB that they drafted him for. NB will still get his tackles and now in coverage deflections and possibly picks.

 

[Fighting Noles]

I'm not as sure....3 of the 4 years prior to last years' lost injury season, NB was a Top 7 LB in FBGuys scoring (the other year he was ~ 15th I believe). He was definitely a LB1 draft pick in most scoring systems (non real BIG PLAY HEAVY). Now in '09, most of the staff has him ranked as a LOW LB2, High LB3 (20-30). That's a decent drop, & a good bit IMO could be the change from 4-3 MIKE to 3-4 ILB (& now, not the "tackling" ILB). Recovery from injury could also be a concern but I think the change in scheme has more to do with it.

 

[bcr8f]

JSOnline

Biggest adjustment: "The hardest thing for Nick Barnett and A.J. Hawk is at some point they have to learn to hit and get away from people," said Brian Noble, the former Packers inside linebacker in both the 3-4 and 4-3 from 1985-'93. "In a 3-4 defense, you have to take linemen on and what these guys have been used to in a 4-3 is that they just fly around and make plays. They never had to really take anybody on.

This is what he said after the story

More 3-4 talk

By Greg A. Bedard of the Journal Sentinel

May. 26, 2009

Thanks to the many of you that emailed about my 3-4 story from Sunday. Glad you enjoyed it, or at least learned one or two things you didn't know before.

I did not want to pen an end-all and be-all on the Packers' new defensive scheme because the truth is nobody, not even coordinator Dom Capers and the rest of the Packers, know exactly how this defense is going to look come Week 1, Week 8 or Week 15.

All I wanted to do was find out what factors were going to prove the most difficult for each position to master in the switch from the 4-3 to the 3-4, because the success of this season will rest on two things, the health of Aaron Rodgers and how quickly the entire defensive unit comprehends the new scheme so they can fly around without thinking. Any player that has to think their way through a play is dead from the start in the NFL. They don't stand a chance. The more they understand, the quicker they play.

So I called a few guys who certainly know more than I do about the 3-4 scheme. I actually made about 25 calls, but I think the looming holiday weekend didn't help my callback rate. Such is life for us knights of the keyboard.

A few of the people I talked to -- Merril Hoge , Gilbert Brown and Brian Noble-- gave me more stuff than I could use in the story/graphic. All of it was interesting. So here's what was left on the cutting room floor: