The Green Bay Packers made eight picks during the 2019 NFL draft and signed several others during college free agency, adding an influx of first-year talent to the roster. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be going through and reviewing the 2019 season for all of the Packers’ top rookies.

Next up: safety Darnell Savage, the 21st overall pick and the Packers’ second first-round draft selection in 2019:

Season stats

Savage produced 55 tackles, two interceptions, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles, one tackle for a loss and one quarterback hit over 14 regular season games. He tallied 10 more tackles and another tackle for loss in two playoff games. The rookie safety allowed 17 completions and two touchdown passes in coverage and produced two total pressures over 17 blitzes. He also missed eight tackles. PFF recorded Savage as allowing only 188 yards into his coverage.

Snap counts

Savage played 863 defensive snaps (83 percent) and 100 special teams snaps (23 percent) during the regular season. He played another 114 defensive snaps and 18 special teams snaps over two playoff games, giving him 977 defensive snaps, 118 special teams snaps and 1,095 total snaps in 2019. He played 100 percent of the defense’s snaps in 13 games and at least 96 percent of snaps in 15 of 16 games overall. He left Week 5 with an ankle injury and played just 19 snaps.

Best game

Week 3 vs. the Broncos. Savage recorded his first career interception and was effective in coverage, against the run and as a blitzer. He didn’t allow a single completion into his coverage, and PFF credited Savage with two pressures and a run stop. He got off a block and chased down Royce Freeman along the sideline to create a tackle for loss.

Worst game

NFC Championship Game vs. 49ers. Like many of his teammates, the rookie safety was out of position and struggled to make tackles for much of the afternoon against the 49ers run game. He took a bad angle on Raheem Mostert’s first touchdown. He got bowled over by Deebo Samuel and nearly gave up a long touchdown. He missed a diving tackle on Mostert in the open field. And he took himself out of the play with a bad read on Mostert’s third touchdown run.

Best play

INTERCEPTION! @PrestonSmith94!#MINvsGB | #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/KLEq51tN8E

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 15, 2019

In Week 2 against the Vikings, Savage created a turnover with his rare blend of speed and instincts. Kirk Cousins attempted to fit a throw into a tight window, but Savage read the route in front of him, closed the space in an instant and got a hand on the ball at the catch point, deflecting the pass into the waiting arms of Preston Smith for an interception near midfield.

Season recap, future outlook

Like any rookie safety thrust into a starting role, Savage went through some growing pains as he adjusted to the speed of the pro game and the many intricacies of playing safety in an NFL defense. But it’s hard to look at Savage’s first season and not be encouraged by his rare play speed, reliability in coverage and playmaking ability. He reads and reacts in the blink of an eye and can get to any spot on the field in a hurry, shrinking the field for the defense. He also intercepted a pair of passes, forced two fumbles and created another turnover with a pass deflection. Rarely did he get beat for big plays or fooled by quarterbacks over the top. His knowledge of the defense and sideline to sideline speed allowed the Packers to play veteran Adrian Amos closer to the line of scrimmage. A necessary area of improvement is in tackling. He missed over 12 percent of his total tackle attempts and seemed to regress tackling in the open field as the season wore on. Too often, he found himself out of position and lunging at the legs of ball-carriers. It’s easy to envision Savage as the Jaire Alexander of the safety position. Add in more confidence and a higher comfort level in everything about the job and Savage could turn all his talent and an impressive rookie season into a legitimate step toward becoming a difference-maker in Year 2.

Season grade

Savage, the first defensive back taken in the 2019 draft, immediately won over coaches and teammates and latched onto a starting job at safety. There was no question he belonged. His talent was obvious. Production as a first-year safety can be difficult to create, but he found ways to produce big plays and avoid allowing them. An ankle injury sidelined him in October and the defense suffered, a sure sign of his impact. His future is bright. B

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