minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">GREEN
BAY, Wis. — mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:
minor-latin">In a hurry to fix a defense that struggled mightily last season,
the Green Bay Packers selected pass rusher Nick Perry with the 28th pick in the
2012 NFL draft.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Perry, who
played three seasons at USC after redshirting in 2008, recorded 9.5 sacks last
season to lead the Pac-12. Perry also had a team-leading eight sacks as a
freshman, becoming only the eighth USC player to lead the team in sacks more
than once in his career.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Though he
played defensive end in college, Perry will be expected to switch to outside
linebacker in the 3-4 defense that coordinator Dom Capers employs in Green Bay.
After he ran an impressive 4.58-second 40-yard dash at the combine, the Packers
believe Perry should be able to adjust.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"He
obviously has the explosion you look for," Capers said after the pick was
made. "It'll be a little bit of a transition. He's played more with his
hand down (as a 4-3 defensive end) than he's played standing up (as an outside
linebacker).
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"One of
the qualities we look for, the first thing is the guy's ability to rush the
passer. We think he's a guy who has the speed to come off the corner and
certainly has the size and the power where he can convert that from speed into
power in terms of rushing the passer.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"The No.
1 criterion in my mind is the explosive ability to come off the edge. That's my
top priority. There's some technique things we'll have to teach him. There's
some other guys (drafted in the first round) that will be going through a
transition, too.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"We
think he'll be able to make the transition for us. We're excited."
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Perry
expressed some concern during the combine about switching to outside linebacker
in the NFL, telling reporters at the time he was more comfortable as an end in
a 4-3 defense.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Even after Perry
officially became a member of the Packers on Thursday night, he still didn't
sound thrilled about moving to linebacker.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"I can't
control it," Perry said in a phone interview. "I love playing
football. I'm here to do whatever it takes to compete, whatever I can do to
help the team. I'm glad to be a Packer. I know it carries a lot of weight, and
I'm ready for the challenge."
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Perry's
weight, at 271 pounds, is a bit much for a pass-rushing outside linebacker by
NFL standards, but his speed and athleticism — including an impressive 38-1/2 inch
vertical jump at the combine — should help his size from becoming too much of
an issue.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"I think
I'm comfortable with my weight," Perry said. "I feel like I'm fast
and I'm able to get it done, to cover as well at my weight now or even if I
dropped. So I don't think that's really an issue."
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Packers
general manager Ted Thompson agreed.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"I can't
speak for him, but he can carry his weight pretty good," he said.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Capers was
also not overly concerned.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"He's
271 pounds, he's a big guy for the position, but I don't think there are many
guys his size that run a 4.5 (40-yard dash) and have that vertical jump,"
Capers said.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Thompson and
Capers are hoping Perry will be the solution to the Green Bay's drastic
drop-off in sack production. The Packers were second-best in the NFL in sacks
in their 2010 Super Bowl-winning season but fell to 27th in the league in 2011.
The lack of pressure on opposing quarterbacks also contributed to Green Bay's
defense becoming the worst in NFL history by allowing an average of 300 passing
yards per game.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"Our
Super Bowl year, I thought we rushed the quarterback as good as anybody in the
league," Capers said. "We were able to get more pressure, and the
pressure helps the coverage, and the coverage helps the pressure. Last year, we
weren't pleased really with either area. What we're looking to do is go back to
work and find a way to get back to pressuring the quarterback like we did a
couple years ago and cover a lot better."
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">If Perry
performs well in training camp and wins the starting job, as he'll be expected
to, the Packers hope that he and fellow outside linebacker Clay Matthews can
form a strong pass-rushing duo for years to come.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">The two
already know each other well. During Matthews' senior season at USC, Perry was
being redshirted, and the two have stayed in touch ever since. In fact,
Matthews was one of the first people to reach out to Perry and congratulate him
on being drafted by Green Bay.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"I
played with Clay my freshman year, and since then we've been boys," Perry
said.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">When the
Packers opted to go with Perry, they passed on several other intriguing
defensive prospects, including Alabama outside linebacker Courtney Upshaw,
Michigan State defensive lineman Jerel Worthy, Nebraska outside linebacker
Lavonte David, Clemson outside linebacker Andre Branch and Notre Dame safety
Harrison Smith, among others.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">But in the
end, Thompson believed in Perry the most.
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">"He's a
tremendous physical specimen," Thompson said. "At the end of the day,
we thought he would make a really good addition to our outside linebacker position.
We feel good."
