A Scout's Take on the 2015 NFL Draft of the Green Bay Packers

Just about every week over the past few years, I have had the opportunity to speak with NFL scout Chris Landry on 620 WDAE's Steve Duemig Show.

But this last Friday, Landry was not on the show. I found out on Saturday why he wasn't. Landry has been experiencing some health issues with his heart over the past several months and is scheduled to undergo an aortic valve replacement and bypass procedure on May 12.

Please keep Chris in your thoughts and prayers as he undergoes this procedure.

Landry's cardiologist allowed him to complete all of his work regarding the 2015 NFL draft before he would have to undergo this operation.

That would include his breakdown of the eight selections which were made by the Green Bay Packers in the 2015 NFL draft, which can be seen on his website, LandryFootball.com.

Landry has known general manager Ted Thompson of the Packers for several years and talks to him every year at the NFL Scouting Combine. In fact, Landry was one of the scouts who set up the combine when it first originated.

With the 30th pick of the first round, the Packers selected Damarious Randall of Arizona State. That pick by Thompson surprised many in the draft, as the 5'11", 196-pound Randall played safety for the Sun Devils.

In two years at Arizona State, Randall had 135 solo tackles, 15 tackles for a loss, one sack, six interceptions (including two for touchdowns), 12 passes defended and four forced fumbles.

Randall also impressed scouts at the combine, as he had a very nice workout. He ran a 4.46-second 40-yard dash and excelled in both the three-cone drill and the 20-yard shuttle.

Landry gave his take on what Randall can bring the Packers.

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General manager Ted Thompson surprised many by not taking one of the top true cover corners in this year’s draft class, but, nevertheless, he addressed a big need with the selection of the highly regarded Randall. Despite playing at ASU only two seasons after going the junior-college route as an underclassman, Randall excelled as a playmaker in a versatile role in the secondary with considerable man-coverage responsibilities. At worst, Randall is cut out to play nickel corner in the slot right away but is talented enough to win the vacant starting job on the boundary.

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In the second round, with the 62nd pick of the draft, the Packers decided to add even more depth and talent to the defensive backfield, as they selected cornerback Quinten Rollins of Miami of Ohio.

The 5'11", 195-pound Rollins only played football for one year after he was the starting point guard on the Miami basketball team for four years.

But what a year of football Rollins had! In 2014, Rollins had 72 total tackles, four tackles for a loss, seven interceptions (one for a touchdown), nine passes defended and one forced fumble.

For his efforts, Rollins was also named the 2014 MAC Defensive Player of the Year.

Like with his opinion on Randall, Landry sees a promising future for Rollins in the NFL.

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Thompson went back-to-back early in the draft to try to plug the significant holes at cornerback after longtime starter Tramon Williams and heir apparent Davon House bolted in free agency. The high pick of Rollins was as curious as Green Bay’s play for Randall, if only because last season was the former’s one and only on a college football field. Yet, Miami’s converted basketball point guard proved to be a quick study with superb upside as he earned Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors with seven interceptions.

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In the third round with the 94th pick of the draft, the Packers selected wide receiver/kick returner Ty Montgomery of Stanford.

MIKE ROEMER/Associated Press

In his career as a member of the Cardinal, the 6'0", 221-pound Montgomery had 172 catches for 2,125 yards and 15 touchdowns as a wide receiver.

Montgomery really impressed scouts with his ability to return kicks when he played in Palo Alto.

Montgomery, who has a similar build to former Packer Sterling Sharpe, averaged 27.4 yards per return on kickoffs in his career at Stanford and had three touchdowns.

Last season, Montgomery also returned punts, and he brought two of them back for touchdowns. He also had a 19.8-yard average on returns.

Landry likes what Montgomery can do for the Packers in the return game.

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While it’s never a bad thing for reigning NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to have more pass-catching options at his disposal, the team brass envisions Montgomery making his biggest impact as a rookie in another role. Possessing a vaunted combination of strength and speed, Montgomery is a natural to step in and bolster Green Bay’s lackluster kick returns. He ran back a combination of five kickoffs and punts for touchdowns in his four seasons with the Cardinal.

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In the fourth round, with the 129th pick of the draft, the Packers finally addressed the inside linebacker position when they selected Jake Ryan of Michigan.

The 6'2", 240-pound Ryan played both outside and inside linebacker for the Wolverines.

In his four-year career at Michigan, Ryan had 267 tackles, 45.5 tackles for a loss, 9.5 sacks, one interception, seven passes defended and seven forced fumbles.

Ryan was also a two-time captain and was named to the All-Big Ten first team in 2014, a year after suffering an ACL injury.

Landry believes Ryan could become a starter for the Packers right out of the gate at inside linebacker.

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After riding top-five draft pick A.J. Hawk for as long as they could before releasing the former Ohio State standout after nine seasons, the Packers turned to the Buckeyes’ archrival to land Hawk’s potential successor. A successful switch from outside linebacker to the inside last season will allow Ryan to compete for a starting job from the outset. Ryan logged 41 starts with the Wolverines and was highly disruptive with 44.5 tackles for loss and seven forced fumbles in his career.

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The Packers surprised many in the draft in the fifth round when they traded up 19 spots to select quarterback Brett Hundley of UCLA.

MIKE ROEMER/Associated Press

The 6'3", 226-pound Hundley had a great career at UCLA, where he threw 75 touchdown passes versus 25 interceptions for 9,966 yards in his career as a Bruin. He also ran for 1,747 yards and scored 30 rushing touchdowns.

Hundley also impressed at the combine, as he ran a 4.63 in the 40 and excelled in all the other drills, including arm strength.

Landry believes Hundley has plenty of upside, and that situation will only get better learning under Aaron Rodgers.

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Just the sixth quarterback taken by Thompson in his 11 years overseeing the draft for Green Bay could yield a bona fide understudy to Rodgers for the years to come. The Packers traded up 19 spots in the fifth round to snag Hundley, touted as one of the top quarterbacks in the draft who the team felt was worthy of a Day 2 selection before the fourth round commenced Saturday. A product of the spread offense with Rodgers-like daring mobility outside the pocket, Hundley will have time to hone his strong, but occasionally erratic passing skills.

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In the sixth round, the Packers had three selections. They had their own pick, plus two compensatory picks.

The team definitely looked to shore up the special teams with the three picks, as well as looking to the future at the positions the three prospects play.

The first selection in the sixth round was fullback Aaron Ripkowski of Oklahoma. The 6'1", 245-pound Ripkowski didn't run the ball much in his career as a Sooner, but he was an explosive lead blocker at Oklahoma and was very good on all the special teams units.

Landry sees Ripkowski definitely adding some help to the units who will be coached by Ron Zook in 2015.

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Fan favorite John Kuhn is back in the fold for a ninth season with the club, but the two-time Pro Bowl honoree will be 33 going into next season. Ripkowski is a pile driver as a lead blocker and can be more integral starting out as a core special-teamer.

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With the second pick of the sixth round, the Packers selected defensive lineman Christian Ringo of Louisiana-Lafayette.

The 6'1", 277-pound Ringo is a bit undersized but has a big motor. He had a nice career for the Rajin' Cajuns, with 35.5 tackles for a loss, 21 sacks and two forced fumbles.

Landry sees Ringo as someone who can help bring pass pressure for the Packers.

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Head coach Mike McCarthy says Ringo, albeit about 30 pounds lighter, reminds him of emerging Mike Daniels, who led Green Bay’s defensive linemen with 5 1/2 sacks last season. Playing considerably in the interior, the explosive Ringo set a program record with 11 1/2 sacks in 2014.

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With their final pick of the sixth round, the Packers selected tight end Kennard Backman of Alabama-Birmingham.

The 6'3", 258-pound Backman had a nice career for the now-defunct UAB football program, as he had 96 receptions for 979 yards and nine touchdowns.

Backman wasn't invited to the combine, but he ran a 4.66 40 at his pro day.

Landry believes that Backman has the attributes to win a job on the Green Bay roster.

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A four-year starter for the since-disbanded UAB program. Athleticism, sure hands down the field and versatility to be split out and play in-line gives Backman a shot to stick at a position that lacks depth.

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