8 Days Until Training Camp: Third-Down Pressure

Green Bay's third-down pass rush was feeble, so perhaps some credit should go to defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
Rashan Gary sacks Brian Hoyer on third down vs. the Patriots. (Photo by Wm. Glasheen/USA Today Sports Images)
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Philadelphia Eagles, who won the NFC last season, led the NFL with 32 sacks on third down. The Green Bay Packers, who fell a win short of the NFC playoffs, finished last in the NFL with eight sacks on third down.

With eight days until the first practice of training camp, finding a way to turn up the heat needs to be at the forefront of defensive coordinator Joe Barry’s mind.

The third-down pass rush went from bad to worse the minute star outside linebacker Rashan Gary went down with a torn ACL. He had four third-down sacks in the first six games. After he was injured in Week 9 at Detroit, the Packers had just two third-down sacks the rest of the season and only one over the final six games.

Obviously, getting Gary back from the knee injury will provide a lift. So, too, could the presence of first-round draft pick Lukas Van Ness. More playing time for 2022 first-round pick Devonte Wyatt could be a boost, as well.

“The sacks are the things that get talked about all the time,” Barry said during an answer about Wyatt, “but just to be an all-around, disruptive player. He has that ability, he has that quickness, he has that athleticism. So, just to be a disruptive force, obviously in the passing game, but the run game, as well.”

While Barry is an easy target for critics, due in part to his Charmin-soft run defense and sometimes-curious coverage approaches, he deserves credit for cobbling together a winning third-down defense without having a winning third-down pass rush.

The Packers finished eighth with an opponent conversation rate of 37.6 percent. That’s the third-lowest rate since they won the Super Bowl in 2010.

If Green Bay can crank up the heat on opposing quarterbacks, it would play straight into the hands of its ballhawking secondary. The Packers finished third with seven interceptions on third down. Moreover, they were the only team better than plus-1 in interceptions (seven) vs. touchdown passes allowed (four).

Third-down sacks are an issue the offense must address, too. Green Bay gave up 18, 12th-most in the league and making it minus-10 offense vs. defense. Only three quarterbacks went down more than Aaron Rodgers. A strong offensive line should help, as should Jordan Love’s mobility so long as it becomes the blessing of escape-ability vs. the curse of holding onto the ball too long via indecision.

Countdown to Packers Training Camp

9 days until training camp: One-score games

10 days until training camp: 10 most important Packers

11 days until training camp: 11 drops too many

12 days until training camp: What history says about replacing No. 12

13 days until training camp: Replacing Mason Crosby

14 days until training camp: Previewing the 14 opponents

15 days until training camp: Aaron Jones, touchdown machine

16 days until training camp: Two months until Week 1 at Bears

17 days until training camp: 17 is the unmagical number

18 days until training camp: LaFleur’s magic touches?

19 days until training camp: 19 1,000-yard challenges

20 days until training camp: 20 reasons for optimism

21 days until training camp: 21 Packers rookie tight ends

22 days until training camp: Fourth of July fireworks

23 days until training camp: No. 23, Jaire Alexander

24 days until training camp: From No. 1 to No. 24 in red zone

25 days until training camp: From No. 1 to No. 25 in tackling

26 days until training camp: The key to the defense is No. 26

27 days until training camp: 27 sources of inspiration

28 days until training camp: At least they’re consistent

29 days: Keisean Nixon’s surprise stardom

30 days until training camp: 30th in key defensive stat

31 days until training camp: A killer No. 31 ranking

32 days until training camp: 32nd-ranked receivers

33 days until training camp: No. 33, Aaron Jones, is a great player

34 days until training camp: Plus-34 in turnovers


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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.