Blue 58 - A Packers Podcast

It is peak mock draft season. Let’s talk about mock drafts. Mine. Yours. Whoevers. These are Packers mock drafts, and each one is its own little gem.My mock drafts (00:24)I did a bunch of different mock drafts from a few different angles. Here they are.Listener mock drafts (12:54)Listeners were kind enough to submit some mock drafts. Here they are, along with my thoughts on them.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A look at inside linebackers will complete our draft preview series. What will it take for the Packers to get one of the top prospects? Or, perhaps more importantly, do they even want one?Linebackers, let’s talk about linebackers the Packers need a linebacker and we’re here to talk about them, the position the Packers need (00:28)Isaiah Simmons, Kenneth Murray, Patrick Queen, and more. Do they Packers draft one early or try to find a sleeper?Take Your Eye Off the Ball - Chapter 2 (18:54)The Blue 58 Book Club marches into chapter 2 of Take Your Eye Off the Ball, discussing how coaches build their gameplans. Do you think you could do it? SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Another draft preview, another position that isn’t technically a need, but definitely still is a need: defensive back. The prospect pool this year is a carnival of talent, skill sets, and crazy athletes. So what should the Packers do?Why running backs are like cars (2:40)Adding one more running back to our discussion, here’s an extended analogy about why picking a running back is like buying a car.What would it take for the Packers to trade down? (8:16)Everyone likes the idea of piling up draft picks, but counting the cost is important. Here’s what it could take for the Packers to trade back.Defensive backs the Packers should be watching (14:03)The Packers don’t technically need a defensive back, but they can always use help there. Fortunately, there are a bunch of talented DBs who might solve a variety of issues for the Packers.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review

The Packers have added a receiver and brought back a running back, but today we’re talking about how they still could use more of both. We’ve already talked about receivers in the draft, but what about running backs?Hooray for Devin Funchess (00:42)The Packers have finally signed a wide receiver, but Devin Funchess probably wouldn't have been anybody's first choice. What does he bring?Return of Swervin' Ervin (5:21)The Packers' punt return savior has been re-signed for another year. Get excited about his offensive potential!Packers running back prospects in the 2020 Draft (7:09)The Packers could use some depth at running back, and there are a few prospects who might be worth considering.Blue 58 Book Club - Take Your Eye Off the Ball 2.0 Chapter 1 (22:04)Pat Kirwan discusses how charting plays can make your football watching experience more informative.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.L

The Packers need an offensive lineman for sure, but could they also be in the market for a QB in the draft? They might be, but if they are they'd better be prepared to pick him early.Fullback takes (1:35)Here are the fullback thoughts you have been waiting to hear.The past, present, and future of the Packers wide receivers (4:45)Why are the Packers in need of wide receiver help? We’ve got to look to the past to understand the future.Interesting quarterbacks in the 2020 draft (16:26)Research from Acme Packing Company’s Paul Noonan reveals three quarterbacks who we should be watching in the 2020 NFL Draft.Further reading: Scouting Through Stats: Using QBOPS to assess the 2020 NFL Draft’s QB classIs it worth talking about offensive linemen? Who’s to say (22:47)Scouting offensive linemen as a fan is a fool’s errand, but there may be some breadcrumbs to at least get us pointed in the right direction.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt -

The Packers don’t necessarily need another edge rusher, but they can’t ignore the position either. That’s why it could be time for Brian Gutekunst to duplicate his free agency strategy and go bargain hunting.Catching up on free agency (1:52)The Packers have continued their free agency spending by re-signing a couple of their own, so we react to those moves. Then, we weigh in on the possibility of a Clay Matthews reunion tour.Edge prospects you should know (8:03)The Packers don’t need to draft an edge rusher early, but they do need to backfill the position a little bit. Doing so will be a little like buying a lottery ticket. We think.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For the second year in a row, the Packers open free agency with a spending spree. This one is a little bit different, though: Brian Gutekunst is going bargain shopping.Buy Take Your Eye Off the Ball and join the Blue 58 Book Club!Labor peace reigns in the NFL (1:01)The NFL and NFLPA have agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement. Here are a few quick thoughts.Further reading: Seven significant CBA changes for Packers as NFL players approve new dealPackers make moves in free agency (4:30)Brian Gutekunst is trying out a new free agent philosophy this offseason. Let’s take a broad look before breaking down individual moves.Christian Kirksey shores up the inside linebacker group (6:11)The 6-2, 235 Kirksey joins the Packers from Cleveland. Will he bring stability to a linebacker group that’s shown itself to be too athletically limited in the past?Further reading: Five Thoughts on Christian KirkseyRick Wagner could be a Bulaga replacement (12:51)Rick Wagner has been a good but not great lineman for the Lions

Our draft preview series lands on a position that has troubled the Packers for a long time now: tight end. Unfortunately, if you’re hoping for help in the draft, there’s not much to hope for.Christian Kirksey visits (1:24)The Packers brought former Browns linebacker Christian Kirksey in for a visit. Is he worth a look? Why?Jimmy Graham leaves (6:56)This was a foregone conclusion that finally manifested. What to make of the Graham era?2020 tight end class is not that exciting (10:54)It's disappointing to see a relatively weak class of tight ends this year, but there's still some interesting prospects. Still, the Packers should probably look elsewhere early on.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This time next week, there’s a good chance we’ll be talking about some packers free agent signings. What’s going to happen between then and now? Then, when is the right time to draft a quarterback?Free agency is bearing down (1:41)Whoa! Free agency is right around the corner. Get excited! But also be prepared for your excitement to blow up in your face. Yay sports!Further reading: Blue 58 Episode 21 - Martellus Bennett?!The three kinds of NFL Draft picks (8:31)Every NFL draft pick falls into one of three categories. Here’s why.When is the right time to draft a quarterback? (16:33)Sooner or later, the Packers are going to have to draft Aaron Rodgers’ replacement. When should they?SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Packers don’t need a defensive lineman, per se, but another big guy is never a bad thing to have. In a year where there’s not necessarily a bumper crop of prospects, who should the Packers take?Don't forget to vote in our poll for the Blue 58 book club! Which book do you think we should read?Wide receiver discussion follow up (2:01)Let's catch up on a couple of things we missed in our wide receiver discussion, including a question on how to project one specific attribute.Defensive linemen still valuable in a shallow class (12:19)There aren't just tons of great defensive linemen available this year, but there's still value to be had. How do you know what's valuable, though?So what defensive lineman should the Packers take? (28:02)That's the real question, isn't it? Here's who I'm looking at as prospects worth considering.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on i

Now that most of the NFL Combine testing is over, we can start diving into previewing positions in the NFL Draft. Why not head straight for the deep end? Let’s take on one of the deepest positions in the draft: wide receiver.Vote in our book club poll! (00:27)Are you interested in joining the Blue 58 book club? Vote on the book we should read! Check out the poll here. Take free agent rumors with a grain of salt (1:19)The NFL Combine always produces a bunch of rumors. Be cautious!Evaluating this year’s wide receiver class (4:45)The 2020 wide receiver class is very deep, but not all of the prospects are winners. How do we find the best ones?SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Aaron Rodgers isn’t holding back his feelings on the new CBA, which makes me think of Brett Favre. I’ll explain why. Then, if you want to go beyond the Combine numbers, what do you look for? We’ll get you started.Aaron Rodgers speaks his mind on the CBA (00:25)Aaron Rodgers is a player rep in the ongoing collective bargaining negotiations, and he’s not holding back on what he thinks of the proposed deal. That’s an interesting contrast to Brett Favre.Further reading: Favre rips Walker for holdoutWhat college numbers matter when it comes to evaluating NFL draft prospects? (13:16)There are some analytics and advanced stats that can help us understand which NFL prospects are worth watching. Further reading:The Race to Make the NFL Draft an Exact ScienceThe NFL Is Drafting Quarterbacks All WrongThe secret to drafting a wide receiver is looking at the numbers that matterShould We Be Concerned About Rashan Gary's Lack of Production at Michigan?SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podc

The NFL Combine is off and running. What should we do with this spectacle of non-football athletics? Then, speaking of athletic: how about a surprise visit with one of the fastest Packers ever? Don Beebe joins the show.Five Thoughts on the NFL Combine (00:25)Everyone sort of understands that the NFL Combine is a weird, non-football circus with dubious value as far as predicting who’s going to be good. And yet, it still has some value. Careers rise and fall based on what happens this week in Indianapolis. So what should we make of it? Here are some thoughts.Former Packers WR Don Beebe (10:53)Don Beebe joined the Packers for their run to the Super Bowl in 1996 and was kind enough to join us for a few minutes to reflect on his career. He’s now the coach at Aurora University and has implemented some of the lessons he learned in the NFL with his young players.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Swee

A new collective bargaining agreement seems to be all but done. Let’s take a look at how it could affect the playoffs. Then, we take your questions about the state of the Packers’ roster before free agency begins.New CBA could mean expanded playoffs (00:54)We’re not fans of expanding the playoffs in general, but this could be the best solution for a bad idea.Listener questions about free agency (8:11)You've asked a few questions about the Packers' free agency plans. We try to answer them before free agency begins.How should the Packers allocate their resources? (20:35)The Packers have limited cap space and eight draft picks to use this year. How should they spend their resources?SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We take a look at two resource-heavy position groups: offensive line and defensive back. The Packers have worked to stabilize these groups for a long time. Did that work finally pay off in 2019?Packers offensive line holds steady in 2019 (00:35)The Packers’ offensive line could be their most consistent position group top to bottom. But there were questions in 2019, and they’ll only get bigger moving forward.Packers defensive have a solid 2019, but uncertain future (20:57)The Packers’ defensive backfield finally felt like it reached the point Ted Thompson was trying to build to for most of the latter half of his tenure. But that status may be short-lived, as age and free agency may soon take their toll.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Packers had one really good wide receiver in 2019 and one potential superstar on the defensive line. Let’s dive into these position groups as our recap continues.Should the Packers trade for OJ Howard? (00:31)A listener floats another idea for fixing the Packers' tight ends.Davante Adams and nobody else at WR (3:13)The Packers wide receivers weren't very good as a group in 2019, with the notable exception of Davante Adams.Get Kenny Clark some help on the defensive line! (21:12)The Packers seem like they are one piece away on the defensive line. Again.SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’ve arrived at the Packers’ EDGE rushers and tight ends in our positional reviews. Both positions featured pretty big spending...but only one delivered big results.Packers hire an interesting QC coach (00:23)Matt LaFleur made a bit of a nontraditional hire for his offensive quality control coach. Learn more about Further reading: Long days, big dreams: The grind of a quality-control coachEDGE spending pays off in 2019 (3:36)EDGE rushers Za’Darius and Preston Smith led a reformed group in 2019.Point Three (16:06)The Packers tight ends were basically a nonfactor in 2019. How do they change that for 2020?SUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Aaron Jones had a phenomenal 2019, but what about the rest of the Packers’ running backs. Then, Blake Martinez was pretty much Blake Martinez in 2019. Is there hope of replacing him in free agency?Packers top end RBs deliver in 2019 (3:40)Aaron Jones finally got a chance to really show what he could do in 2019, and he delivered big time. But how did the rest of the Packers’ running backs fare?Blake Martinez & Co. leave much to be desired (16:02)My feelings on Blake Martinez are pretty well known, but is he the exception or the rule in the Packers’ linebacker corps? And who, if anyone, could you turn to in free agency as a replacement?Further reading: Tackles Don’t Matter: Evaluating Run Defense Through StatisticsSUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We start our position-by-position look back at the 2019 season, and where better to start than with the quarterbacks? So here we go: 45 minutes on Tim Boyle. Also Shawn Mennenga should be fired.Evaluating the Packers quarterbacks (1:59)Manny Wilkins was never active. Tim Boyle got mop-up duty. But Aaron Rodgers provided some big moments — and raised some even bigger questions.Evaluating the Packers’ special teamers (21:29)Three parts of the Packers’ special teams performance in 2019 really merit further consideration: the field goal kicking, the punting, and the punt returning. In two of those situations, Shawn Mennenga was a big factor — and not for the better.Further reading: Packers' JK Scott works to get his mojo back after tinkering leads to inconsistencySUPPORT BLUE 58Donate to our Patreon - $1 per month offsets our podcast hosting costs.Buy a T-Shirt or Sweatshirt - Look good while supporting The Power Sweep.Leave us a 5-Star Review on iTunes - It helps more people find the show! See acast.com/privacy

Brian Gutekunst has been on the job in Green Bay for two years and in 2019, we saw the culmination of a lot of his work so far. How’s he been doing? Let’s talk about that.No moves happen in a vacuum (00:57)As we evaluate Brian Gutekunst's moves, it's always good to remember that no move is an island; these things don't just happen. You need look no further than the complicated legacy of Ted Thompson for proof.Further reading: Ted Thompson's Legacy Still Looms Large in Green BayBrian Gutekunst's offseason moves (3:33)Gutekunst made a bunch of moves in the offseason, and in this section of the podcast, that's what we talk about. Not every description has to be profound.How did Brian Gutekunst allocate his draft resources? (10:29)The draft is the NFL's ultimate example of opportunity cost: if you take one player with a pick, you can't use that same pick on another player. As a result, we can evaluate every pick as a question of resource allocation. So how did Brian Gutekunst do?Further reading: Should We Be Conc