Packers' latest draft pick is exactly what defenses need in today's NFL
The Green Bay Packers don't have a ton of depth along the defensive line, so it makes all the sense in the world that the team drafted former Auburn Tiger DL Colby Wooden with the 116th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The Packers defensive line currently has just three […]
The Green Bay Packers don't have a ton of depth along the defensive line, so it makes all the sense in the world that the team drafted former Auburn Tiger DL Colby Wooden with the 116th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
The Packers defensive line currently has just three players that played in Joe Barry's defense last year. Kenny Clark, T.J. Slaton, and Devonte Wyatt all need help and the thought is Wooden will come right in and compete for some playing time in the rotation.
Wooden is a big, versatile player that will be able to play up and down the Packers defensive line and is deemed as "an inside pass-rush threat" by Assistant Director of College Scouting Patrick Moore. When on the outside, he can help set the edge against the run and take up blocks so pass-rushers like Rashan Gary, Preston Smith, and Lukas Van Ness can get more 1-on-1 opportunities.
"He has the ability to play multiple spots because of his frame, his size, and his athletic ability," Moore told reporters Saturday. "[He can play] multiple gaps, but he's an inside pass rush threat, for sure."
But what's most important is that Wooden is the right kind of defender need for today's NFL game. Offenses are all about stretching the field both horizontally and vertically more than ever and they're also more innovative than ever, so defenses have to keep up.
Wooden can help the Packers do that.
"[It's about] the speed of the game and just the lateral speed needed to go make plays on the edge and you know, the quick screens and the jet sweeps and that kind of stuff," said Moore. "… Athletic guys that can be physical, set the edge, and can hold double teams.
"… More and more teams.are playing guys at multiple spots where you know, they might be an outside edge on a run down [like] first and second down, per se, but then they move inside on pass rush."
"I feel like my versatility is my biggest weapon – the ability play inside and out," Wooden told reporters. "Using my quickness on guards in pass-rush situations and on pass-rushing downs – I feel like that naturally favors me and I use that to my advantage."
Per Football Outsiders the Packers were mid-pack in adjusted sack rate (6.9%) and dead-last in adjusted line yards allowed. So, not only did the defense need bodies, it needs capable bodies that can find ways to be effective.
Wooden can help answer those questions and solve those problems and he should also help keep the Packers defense keep up with the NFL's offensive evolution in the coming years.
