B.J. Raji Looking to Get Back to Pro Bowl Form

In 2009 and 2010, Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers had defenses that were ranked in the top five in the NFL. A big reason why was the presence of nose tackle B.J. Raji.

In 2009, Raji's rookie year, the Packers were ranked second in total defense in the NFL and No. 1 in stopping the run. No. 90 only started one game that year, but he saw plenty of playing time in the defensive line rotation.

In 2010, when Raji had 39 tackles and 6.5 sacks, the Packers were ranked fifth in total defense, but they slid back to 18th in stopping the run.

Raji also picked off a Caleb Hanie pass in the NFC Championship Game that year when the Packers were running a zone blitz, and the former Boston College star lumbered 18 yards to the end zone for a touchdown en route to a 21-14 Packers win over the Chicago Bears.

Two weeks later, Raji and the Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 to win Super Bowl XLV. 

Starting in 2011 and continuing through 2013, the Packers started utilizing Raji more as a defensive end, while Ryan Pickett manned the nose tackle position for the most part.

Although that wasn't the only reason, the defense as a whole also started taking a nose dive in terms of production over the next three years.

In 2011, the Packers were ranked dead last in total defense and 14th in stopping the run. Even still, Raji was named to the Pro Bowl after recording 22 tackles and three sacks.

In 2012, the Packers improved to 11th in total defense, but the run defense got worse; the Packers were ranked 17th in that department.

In 2013, the defense became a sieve at times, and the Packers were ranked 25th in both total defense and run defense. 

Also during the 2013 season, the Packers offered Raji a long-term deal that would have paid him an average of $8 million a year, as reported by Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 

But Raji turned that offer down and was hoping to reap more on the open market in free agency. Unfortunately for Raji, the 2013 season was the worst one of his career, as he had just 17 tackles and zero sacks.

Raji didn't garner much interest in the free-agent market, and he re-signed with the Packers for $4 million in a one-year deal.

The good news for Raji was that he was going to strictly play nose tackle again in 2014, as the Packers did not re-sign Pickett, who was also a free agent.

Raji looked like the player he was early in his career in training camp last year. At times, he was immovable. He displayed nice quickness and strength when he was being double-teamed on run plays.

Raji's fine camp ended suddenly when he suffered a torn biceps in a preseason game versus the Oakland Raiders. That injury ended his 2014 season.

The Packers missed Raji in 2014, as they were ranked 32nd in run defense at the end of Week 9. It was at that point that the Packers started playing outside linebacker Clay Matthews inside at times. They also started playing Sam Barrington more often at inside linebacker in place of A.J. Hawk.

Nose tackle Letroy Guion played better from then on as well, and the Packers ended up improving to 23rd in run defense at season's end.

Although that was a nice improvement, the run defense has to get much better in 2015. The Packers re-signed both Raji and Guion to bolster the line.

Raji had offers to go to some other pretty good teams this offseason, as he told Jason Wilde of ESPN Wisconsin.

“I actually, ironically, had more interest this time around than last year,” Raji said. “I’m talking about as far as the contending teams. I had two, three playoff teams.”

Raji wouldn't say who, but the New England Patriots saw veteran Vince Wilfork leave the team via free agency this offseason, so a big void was left at nose tackle. Seeing that Raji went to school at nearby Boston College, I would think New England was one of the suitors for Raji.

But Raji still wanted to remain in Green Bay, and he signed a a one-year, $1.75 million, incentive-laden deal.

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

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I just wasn’t comfortable leaving this place in the shape that it was in, the perception about the defense, the perception of myself. If I was going to leave this place, I wanted to be able to say, "Yeah, those guys really get it." I didn’t want to leave with questions. As a person, having a lot invested in this program, if it is ever time to leave, I want to leave on a good note.

"

As good as Raji looked last summer at training camp before his injury, No. 90 has worked extremely hard to be better prepared for the 2015 season. 

How? By putting himself through rigorous weight training and also by taking yoga classes to help his flexibility.

“One of [the] things I noticed when I did my self-scout was my range of motion and my flexion," Raji said. "I don’t know if you remember, but back in 2010, 2011, I was [a] 1,000-snap guy. I was an 80 percent [playing time] guy. And I guess all that wear and tear kind of stiffened my muscles.”

So far in OTAs, Raji has looked very good. Capers has noticed:

"

I like his attitude. I felt last year he was having a good camp. And the thing about B.J. is, he was here in all the meetings and everything last year when he was on injured reserve. I think when a guy goes through that, they’ve got that added incentive because they appreciate being able to be out there and compete.

So, I like where B.J. is at right now, and I hope he can get back and get started with the same kind of training camp he had last year. I’m excited about seeing him get back into things.

"

If Raji does show the form he showed when he was most effective at the start of his career stuffing the run, Capers and the inside linebackers behind him will be very happy.