He definitely can be, but it's safe to say that so far he hasn't shown, aside from a few glimpses here and there, that he can be a great safety. He is still solid though, and he certainly hasn't been a bust up to this point. But we should get more out of him then we are.
His production hasn't even come close to matching his talent. He has been in position to make many plays throughout the last two years, but he's let them slip right through his hands, literally (cue the rimshot).
He needs to hit the JUGS machine, because I can remember about four or five situations where he dropped a sure interception.
If Atari Bigby can continue to develop and give him a reliable counterpart at strong safety, then he has no excuse not to make more plays. I expect him to really feel the pressure that Rouse is putting on him and really play up to the level we've expected him to play at since his standout rookie season.
If he can hold onto those easy interceptions he's dropped over the last couple of years, he could be line for a trip to Hawaii. For the sake of my sanity, please finally break out, Nick!
6. G Allen Barbre
As good as our offensive line was last year (and has been for quite some time now), we really haven't had a stable situation at guard since Mike Wahle and Marco Rivera left via free agency. Jason Spitz solidified right guard last year and played solid enough to keep his starting job. While some people think his future is at center, but for now he's penciled in at guard.
The other spot will be up for grabs, and Barbre, along with Daryn Colledge and maybe Junius Coston, appear to be the main candidates to win the job. While Colledge has shown flashes of being a solid guard, he simply isn't strong enough to hang with the big, athletic, defensive tackles in the NFL, and his future is at left tackle.
Coston has loads of potential, but he's way too inconsistent, and unless he takes a huge leap forward, he will be a versatile backup along the offensive line. That leaves Barbre to be the starter at left guard, and I hope I didn't make it sound like he'll win the job by default. The coaches love him and his crazy athleticism.
He has supposedly made big strides in the weight room during the offseason. We haven't seen much of him, but he seemed to hold his own during his limited action. The fact that we didn't add any guards to the equation outside of selecting one in the fifth-round of the draft should tell you that the coaches are confident that he can step up and solidify the interior of the offensive line.
I expect him to be named our starter at left guard from day one, and I think he will really give our rushing attack a shot in the arm. Whether Spitz stays at right guard or moves to center, I think Barbre will be the starter at guard for a long, long time.
7. WR James Jones
Sure he's not Randy Moss, but James Jones sure made people forget about the disappointment they experienced after they watched Moss head to New England for a measly fourth-round pick. He just kept getting better and better through OTAs, minicamps, training camp, preseason, and into the regular season.
He reminded many Packer fans, including myself, of the former Packer great Sterling Sharpe, with his muscular build, great hands, and will to run over, instead of around, every defensive back that tried to tackle him. It wasn't until Koren Robinson came on board that his impact started to digress a little.
I blame that more on Brett Favre trying to get Robinson involved in the offense than anything. With Aaron Rodgers now the starting quarterback in Green Bay, I expect he and Jones to build up the type of chemistry that we saw Favre and Driver have the past five or so years.
If he can improve his route running, he could become one of the better wide receivers in the NFL, and Rodger's most reliable target.
With the loss of Favre, I expect Driver's numbers to regress and for Jones to benefit the most from the drop in Driver's numbers. He has spent a lot of time with Rodgers, on and off the field, and is going to head out to California to visit him and better the chemistry they have together.
That's great news for us and bad news for the rest of the NFL, because a better Jones means more looks for Driver and Jennings, which is what makes our wide receivers so good.
The fact that he has made huge strides in the weight room this offseason, now weighing a chiseled 217 pounds, is also bad news for the rest of the NFL because he was already one of the stronger wide receivers in the NFL.
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