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With a first-year starting quarterback and first- and second-year players littering the offensive depth chart, the Green Bay Packers understand the need for Joe Barry’s talented defense to shoulder the load early during the 2023 season.
At the annual shareholders meeting on Monday, president Mark Murphy admitted the Packers defense will be in the spotlight to open the year.
“I think you’ll see, our defense probably will have to carry us a little bit in the early season,” Murphy said, via Tom Silverstein of PackersNews.com.
Murphy acknowledged there will be “ups and downs” with Jordan Love and noted the youth of the wide receiver room, which is headlined by seven players selected in the last two drafts. The Packers are also expected to lean heavily on two rookie tight ends, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft.
While Love and the receivers and tight ends grow up together, the Packers must get by with a strong running game, consistent defensive play and mistake-free special teams.
Barry’s defense struggled for much of the 2022 season but finished strong, giving up 20 or fewer points in each of the last five games. Can they pick up where they left off to open 2023?
The Packers begin the season with games against Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears, Desmond Ridder and the Atlanta Falcons, Derek Carr and the New Orleans Saints, Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions, Jimmy Garoppolo and the Las Vegas Raiders and Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos. While teams change and quarterbacks grow, the Packers’ first six games hardly looks like gauntlet from a defensive perspective. In fact, none of the team’s first six opponents made the postseason in 2022.
Complicating the process is the uncertain injury timeline of outside linebacker Rashan Gary, who will open training camp on the PUP list. He is still recovering from an ACL injury suffered on Nov. 6 of last year. The Packers need Gary, an elite edge rusher, to set the tone at the line of scrimmage and pressuring the quarterback.
Barry’s group has question mark along the defensive line, where TJ Slaton and Devonte Wyatt are stepping into important roles, and at safety, where there isn’t a sure-fire starting option to open training camp. Then again, edge rusher could be a major strength if Gary returns healthy and Lukas Van Ness can contribute early, and the cornerback group, led by Jaire Alexander and Rasul Douglas, is a good one. The inside linebackers could take a big step forward if De’Vondre Campbell stays healthy and Quay Walker enjoys a second-year jump.
Maybe the biggest question mark is Barry, who has never coordinated a top defense. Can he put all the pieces together in 2023? The talent is there, but his two seasons as a coordinator have been nothing if not disappointing, given all the resources put into building out the defensive depth chart at all three levels.