The 90 to 1 Green Bay Packers roster countdown: No. 10 – Darnell Savage

First-round pick Darnell Savage is fast. Can he make an impact quickly?

The Green Bay Packers, and their 90 players on the roster, are in the midst of their first training camp under coach Matt LaFleur. In an annual tradition from my 11 years at Packer Report, I rank the players in order of importance from No. 90 to No. 1. This isn’t just a listing of the team’s best players. Our rankings take into account talent, importance of the position, depth at the position, salary and draft history. More than the ranking, we hope you learn something about each player. (Note: The start of this series can be found with my former employer.)

No. 10: S Darnell Savage ($2,275,943 cap)

How bad was the Packers’ safety corps last season? Eight players took snaps at safety last season. Of the group’s three interceptions, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix had them all – and he was traded at midseason.

Like he did at outside linebacker, general manager Brian Gutekunst chose big, bold changes rather than smearing lipstick on a pig. After signing veteran Adrian Amos in free agency, he moved up nine spots in the first round to select Darnell Savage. During his senior season at Maryland, he intercepted four passes. At the Scouting Combine, he ran his 40 in 4.36 seconds, making him the second-fastest defensive back to test in Indianapolis.

“He’s obviously a premier athlete,” Gutekunst said after making the selection. “He’s been an impact player for Maryland for a number of years. Certainly, his football character was something that really attracted to us. But he’s able to close the gap from centerfield to the hash. Really aggressive, physical player, able to take the ball away. And he really fit what we’re trying to do there in the back end.”

Savage had a promising series of offseason practices but missed the first five practices of training camp after having a wisdom tooth removed.

“It’s hard for any football player,” he said upon his return. “I love the game of football. I just love being out there playing. It’s fun. But, at the end of the day, those guys know what’s best for me. I trust the medical staff and everybody who makes the decisions.”

During his absence, Savage leaned on his “older brothers” to help him keep up to speed. One of those brother figures is Tramon Williams. The oldest defensive back in the NFL at age 36, Williams replaced Clinton-Dix at safety last season and has been there to share his wisdom with the 21-year-old.

“Even before we stepped on the field, I recognized how smart the kid was,” Williams said. “Most rookies, you don’t see that right away. Like you wonder, ‘OK, can he pick up this? Can he do this? Can he do that?’ But, man, this kid pretty much knows what we’ve put in already and he’s asking for more.”

Can Savage make an immediate difference? That remains to be seen because the track record for rookie safeties isn’t fantastic. Over the previous 10 drafts, only 17 rookie safeties intercepted at least two passes while starting at least 10 games, according to Pro Football Reference. With his speed and ball production in college, Savage garnered some comparisons to former Packers star Nick Collins. A second-round pick in 2005, Collins started all 16 games but intercepted just one pass. In fact, he had only four thefts in his first three seasons before a breakout season of seven interceptions in 2008.

Savage’s absence at the start of camp showed his importance. Raven Greene has a chance to be a regular contributor this season but never got close to making a big play. There’s simply nobody in the safety corps who can cover ground like Savage.

“He’s going to be that guy – I can tell. We definitely got a steal,” star receiver Davante Adams said. “I know we got him early, but I still think that he could have gone even earlier just based on what he’s doing out there. He plays like a vet, he knows how to practice and he’s smart, man. You can tell just the way he operates around the facility. Just a real cool guy. I like his personality, too. I think we’ll be having him around for a while.”