Packers’ Ahmad Thomas could be the LB to step forward

with Jake Ryan’s injury For once http://www.packerscheapshoponline.com/cheap-authentic-jimmy-graham-jersey , the “next man up” for the Green Bay Packers after losing starting linebacker Jake Ryan won’t be an undrafted free agent or late-round rookie who has to come in and overcome long odds to be a contributor. He’s still a rookie (what did you expect, really?) but third-round pick Oren Burks will get the first shot to replace Ryan inside. The luxury of throwing a pedigreed player out there amid a major injury isn’t one the Packers have recently had, but it actually could be the undrafted free agent hoping to overcome long odds who interjects himself into the conversation. Ahmad Thomas wasn’t quite fast or athletic enough to be a consistent NFL safety. But his athletic measurables would all put him on the plus side of linebackers according to the aggregate data in mockdraftable.com’s database. These types of conversions have become commonplace in the NFL, with guys like Mark Barron, Deone Bucannon and others making the switch to handle spread offenses in the league. On Wednesday, Mike Pettine called out Thomas by name (he referred to Burks as “the rookie”) for his coverage ability and he’s already made some splash plays. His pass break up of Brett Hundley ended a drive last week in practice and he has stood out with his ability to play in space.In his press conference Thursday, Mike McCarthy also mentioned the versatility of Thomas. “He’s done a lot of good things. He definitely has the coverage ability, especially at the Will spot, that we’re looking for,” McCarthy said, adding he’d like to see what Thomas can do as a special teams player. Green Bay has valued precisely this type of player in the past. Joe Thomas stuck on this roster as an undersized linebacker because of his speed, dime package ability, and special teams talent. He had to start eight games over the last two seasons, including seven in 2016 due to injuries in the linebacking corps.A different Thomas could become that player for the Packers in 2018. Right now, just Blake Martinez and Burks appear to be locks to make the 53-man roster. Even if Quinten Rollins wins the dime linebacker job, it seems impossible the Packers would only keep their starters plus Rollins. Even before Ryan’s injury, one of these young backup linebackers had a good chance to make the team. Now, that’s all but a guarantee. Pettine mentioned his openness to adding a veteran and one report linked the Packers to former 49ers star NaVorro Bowman, but Brian Gutekunst said earlier in the week they’lllet the young guys have a chance to win the job. For now, that means Burks, but Thomas has a chance, with his coverage ability and experience—he was on the practice squad for the Packers near the end of last season—to be a contributor on this defense, not just to make the 53-man roster. Any kind of impact on special teams would seal his spot, earning him even more chances to make plays in Green Bay.Coincidentally, the Packers signed Thomas to their practice squad last November after he’d initially been signed as a UDFA in Oakland, the same place Bowman played last season. That little experience may not seem like much Bryan Bulaga Jersey , but one of the reasons so many players make ajump in year 2 is the institutional knowledge gained about how to be a pro, how to prepare, and then spending a full offseason in a professional program. Plus, the coaches have a better understanding of what he can do after seeing him in practice and getting to know him as a person. Those are unquantifiable benefits, but they do matter.Thomas has added some weight, up to 220 from around 214 and with his 6-foot frame, he looks thick enough to be a linebacker in the NFL. Green Bay drafted Burks for his versatility and ability to cover. That’s a skill we’ve already seen from Thomas with each players moving from safety to linebacker; Burks simply did it in college. We’re a long way from saying Thomas has a chance to compete for a starting job, but he’s playing himself into the conversation to earn reps. The “next man up” premise doesn’t account for quality. Whoever the next guy is, he has to play. The Packers have their preferred option in Burks, and the luxury of having another guy who just might play his way onto the field.Why are the Packers refusing to put Josh Jones on the field? For one game, the Green Bay Packers appeared to have a superstar. Once again, Ted Thompson had hit on a second-round steal. Josh Jones was everywhere in Week 3 for the Packers last season, blowing up plays, coming downhill to make tackles, and destroying the Cincinnati Bengals off the edge on safety blitzes. But injuries to Morgan Burnett forced Jones out of position. And even once Burnett returned, it was the veteran playing Dom Capers’ Nitro position, not the better-suited Jones. Rookie issues with reads and man coverage were to be expected, especially for a player with a skill set that should put him more near the action, not patrolling the deep middle. Mike Pettine was supposed to come in and change that, putting Jones back where he belonged. This was, after all, a player Green Bay drafted and immediately said would play dime linebacker for the Packers. It was a tacit acknowledgement that the North Carolina State star safety should be in the box, coming downhill. Offseason work, mini-camps, and training camp came and went but Jones was running behind not only Kentrell Brice but undrafted free agent Jermaine Whitehead, who has actually turned into a nice player for Pettine’s defense as a versatile overhang defender. Where did things go so wrong for a player who was second on this team in snaps among defensive backs last season? Was it assignment problems? Was he not reading and reacting well enough? It’s difficult to speculate too much having not watched him in practice or been privy to his assignments play to play. When Pettine was asked about his safety group before the season Cheap Kevin King Jersey , Jones’ name didn’t even come up. It’s clear the Packers viewed him as a limited player, someone belonging in the box.Okay, great. But when the season once again came around, the safeties struggled. No sign of Jones. The inside linebackers looked slow and out of position without Oren Burks. Jones remained stuck to the bench. Frustrations came out in a recent interview Jones gave where he said he wanted to work for his paycheck. Why would the team draft him in the second round if he wasn’t going to play? It seems obvious that a player with his athletic traits should have a place on this team. Special teams mistakes could be holding him back. Jones did play nearly 37% of special teams snaps last season. That’s seen as an essential piece of how he contributes on this team. But if that’s what’s holding him back from playing more, it’s the type of old school coaching mentality that has plagued Mike McCarthy over the years. Jones should be on the field over players like Antonio Morrison and Korey Toomer (!), the latter of whom has inexplicably getting snaps at times ahead of both Burks and Jones. The simple answer may just be Jones isn’t very good. Practice could be bearing that out. But given what we’ve seen from some of the players in the Packers defense, it’s hard to believe Jones couldn’t be a useful player in the three-safety looks Pettine loves. Every time Kentrell Brice misses another tackle, the cameras should zoom in on Josh Jones as he looks longingly into the distance, his thousand-yard stare saying all it needs to say. Frankly, this should be a question at every Mike McCarthy and Mike Pettine press conference. The next time Brian Gutekunst takes the podium, he should be getting at least one Josh Jones question as well. This is a physically gifted player with legitimate draft pedigree who played major snaps for the Packers just a season ago. And he flashed playmaking ability. Why has he fallen so far? This is a question worth asking, and it’s something for which this coaching staff and front office must answer for. Because if he isn’t eventually going to be given an opportunity, it makes Green Bay’s faith in its own players look faulty. Eric Reid, Kenny Vaccaro, Tre Boston, and other safety options were available in free agency. It’s possible the Packers traded their best safety to the Browns for a backup quarterback. (I understand talent wasn’t the reason for that trade, but still.) If they aren’t willing to give Jones a shot, there’s no way Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, in the final year of his deal, and two undrafted free agents — neither of whom have ever shown anything to suggest they’re quality starters — could have been enough. This is a simple calculation: if Josh Jones really isn’t good, then that shines an even brighter line on the team’s inaction at improving the safety position in the offseason and up to when Reid signed just a few weeks ago with the Panthers. And if Jones is good, or at least can be, why is he not getting opportunities? Either way, the Packers got this all wrong.