For the first time in years, the Green Bay Packers have two talented inside linebackers capable of staying on the field and anchoring the defense in all situations.
General manager Brian Gutekunst used one of his first-round picks on Thursday night on Georgia’s Quay Walker, who will team with All-Pro De’Vondre Campbell to give the Packers one of the best linebacker duos in football.
Gutekunst thinks adding Walker could fundamentally change how the Packers approach playing defense personnel-wise.
“It’s been a while since we’ve been able to stay in certain packages with two inside ‘backers and handle everything in run defense and the passing game. This really gives our defense a ton of flexibility,” Gutekunst said Thursday night.
Walker was a 15-game starter for Georgia’s historic defense last year. His size and athleticism give him a chance to be an immediate, full-time starter next to Campbell, a potential dream scenario for Joe Barry.
“Every defensive coordinator would love to have two guys that can really run and do the things that the guys that we have can do now, with Quay and Dre,” Gutekunst said. “There’s an ability now for us to stay in base and nickel in certain situations that maybe we haven’t had.”
Gutekunst highlighted the growing value in having two inside linebackers who can handle all three downs and never come off the field. For years, the Packers have been forced to play with extra defensive backs on the field to make up for talent deficiencies at linebacker. With Campbell signed to a $50 million deal and Walker now a first-round pick, the talent is in place.
“Having two interchangeable pieces there just gives our defense so much flexibility to stay in a certain personnel grouping. That was certainly attractive,” Gutekunst said. “You see in the league sometimes, there are certain defenses that don’t have to get out of certain personnel packages and it makes it really tough on offenses. His range and speed and explosiveness as a tackler just wasn’t something we thought we could pass up.”
The athleticism was a big plus for Walker, who is almost 6-4 and weighs 241 pounds. His Relative Athletic Score was in the 96th percentile for linebackers entering the NFL.
The Packers love his combination of size, athleticism and mental makeup.
“He’s big, long and great speed. He’s a playmaker for a national champion team, and a great defense. He just has all the traits, not only as a player, but then mentally and instinctually that we’re looking for,” Gutekunst said.
Walker’s movement ability should make him a disruptive player against the run, and he has the length and speed to clog passing lanes in the middle of the field.
Gutekunst thinks Walker is actually a similar player to Campbell, who signed in Green Bay as an unheralded free agent last May and then produced an All-Pro season. The two have similar movement ability, size and length.
“Quay is going to benefit from learning from Dre,” Gutekunst said. “There’s a lot of similar skill sets. He’s going to learn a lot from him.”
