It’s been more than ten years since the Green Bay Packers’ safety room was stable.
The gap Nick Collins has left on the back end ever since he suffered a neck injury that ended his career in 2011 cannot be overstated.
During this time, they haven’t done nothing. Ha Ha Clinton Dix was acquired by the Packers with a first-round pick in 2014, but despite a few flashy plays, he significantly underperformed compared to where he was selected. The following spring, they would double-dip at defensive back, selecting Damarious Randall and Quinten Rollins in the first and second rounds, respectively.
Neither player lived up to expectations as a cornerback at the next level.
They purchased a safety named Darnell Savage with another first-round pick in 2019. Savage has continued to be a dependable starter on defense even after defensive coordinator Joe Barry replaced Mike Pettine.
But to suggest that Savage hasn’t been steadily slipping away for the past two seasons would be naive. Adrian Amos, who excelled in Green Bay after inking a lucrative free-agent contract one month prior to Savage’s selection, was the only real band-aid.
After his contract expired, he made a signing with the New York Jets for the current campaign.
At safety, the Packers will need to make some crucial choices in the spring.
Their two starting safeties, Savage and Rudy Ford, as well as Jonathan Owens and Dallin Leavitt, who are both important players on special teams, are anticipated to become unrestricted free agents. Tarvarius Moore, Anthony Johnson Jr., and Owens were the three newcomers the Packers hired to help bolster the room during the off-season.
, a seventh-round selection who has missed every game this year.
The Packers should try to trade for Carolina Panthers safety Jeremy Chinn in an effort to add some consistency to a position group that can only be characterized as arguably the weakest on the roster.
The fire sale of the Panthers should benefit the Packers.
The Panthers are the only unbeaten team in the league after five weeks.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the team may be planning a fire sale as they want to recoup some of the draft capital they lost when they traded for quarterback Bryce Young in the off-season.
The No. was given to them. 1 overall pick from the Chicago Bears in exchange for wide receiver D.J, first- and second-round picks in 2023, a first-round pick in 2024, a second-round pick in 2025, and first- and second-round picks in 2024. Moore.
That hasn’t exactly been advantageous for the Panthers thus far.
Through the first month of the season, Moore, who some may find surprising, has established himself as one of the league’s top pass catchers, and Bears quarterback Justin Fields has also seen a rise in play.
The Packers would be wise to seize the moment if there was a chance to purchase Chinn.
He is currently under contract, and like a few other Packers’ safeties, he will become a free agent in March.
The 25-year-old would, however, become the team’s best safety right away if a long-term contract were reached; this would be a much better course of action.
The Packers had the chance to select Chinn in the 2020 draft, but they selected AJ Dillon at No. Instead, 62 in total.
Two picks later, Chinn was gone from the board.
This season, the Packers’ running game has been led by Dillon, a former Boston College tailback, as Aaron Jones has been recovering from a hamstring injury.
With his 6’3″ height and 220-pound weight, Chinn can play many different positions and could be a revitalizing addition to the Packers’ defense.
Chinn has experience playing as a nickelback, inside linebacker, free safety, and even as a free safety.
According to Breer, the versatile defender has lost favor in Ejiro Evero’s defensive scheme, which is why he’s rumored to be on the trade market.
After Chinn was viewed as a “superhero” by some people inside the building upon Evero’s arrival, it’s an unexpected development.
Panthers linebackers coach Peter Hansen told ESPN on May 31 that his team views him as a superhuman.
Simply put, we have no idea which cape he’ll don on any given day.
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The Packers’ defense would have a lot of trouble figuring out how to use Chinn.
Chinn’s ability to play multiple positions could give Barry more flexibility in how he deploys some of his defensive backs.
With Eric Stokes’ return, the Packers will already have to move some pieces around.
Stokes has until October 24 to be activated from the physically unable to perform list and added to the 53-man roster.
Rasul Douglas would likely move inside and Keisean Nixon would likely be forced out of the lineup altogether, allowing Stokes to fill in on the perimeter.
With Chinn’s arrival, things could become more complicated, but it wouldn’t be a major issue.
It doesn’t help that the Packers don’t frequently use three safeties on the field at once — at least not as frequently as they did under Pettine.
This attitude might alter if Chinn were to enter the picture; in contrast to Owens or Leavitt, the Packers would probably feel much more pressure to use him on the field.
Chinn has been credited with 15 solo tackles this season, five assisted tackles, and two missed tackles, per Pro Football Focus. He has nine stops, which is crucial for the Packers, who have struggled to stop opposing rushing attacks this season.
He has had trouble covering receivers; opposing quarterbacks have completed eight of their ten pass attempts against him for 95 yards, one touchdown, and a passer rating of 139.6 points, indicating that he is a poor cover man.
Chinn has the highest passer rating among league safeties who have seen at least 10 targets this season in their coverage.
The next closest player is Kyle Dugger, who has been targeted 15 times and has a score of 139.
Someone like Chinn, who has had little success in Carolina, might benefit from a change of scenery.
He has only thrown two interceptions in 47 games while also deflecting 17 passes and forcing three fumbles, two of which were recovered for scores.
According to Pro Football Reference, he has only 294 tackles through three seasons with the Panthers, down from 294 while playing a career-low 55 percent of their defensive snaps.
However, for a team that has gone above and beyond to emphasize their well-documented youth movement, he wouldn’t go against the grain or contradict their newfound belief in getting younger.
Chinn’s past shortcomings don’t necessarily indicate that the Packers should be cautious with their approach.
Despite being 2-3 and coming off back-to-back defeats, the season is still alive.
With Jordan Love as their new starting quarterback, the Packers always anticipated a sporadic season.
The rest of the team needs to learn how to win, and they must do so together.
With Chinn in the mix on defense, his presence and expertise may be advantageous both on and off the field. The Packers cannot ignore the potential for more leadership in the secondary and are in dire need of a tough defender to help with run support.