Heading into the draft, the Green Bay Packers desperately needed help on defense. With the 21st overall pick, they were in a situation where they could just grab the best defensive player available. Their biggest hole was at free safety, a position that has sorely been lacking since Nick Collins’ career was ended due to a neck injury. While they hoped Morgan Burnett would fix the problem, it became clear he was more suited to play strong safety.
The 2014 draft class was headlined by Alabama free safety Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix, viewed by many as a top-15 talent. Clinton-Dix wasn’t quite the turnover machine scouts saw in 2012, instead serving as the leader for the Crimson Tide’ secondary and focusing more on cleaning up coverage mistakes made by cornerbacks. Clinton-Dix added to his game, showing the ability to be a center fielder in the secondary with great instincts and range. Leading up to the draft, nobody could have imagined Clinton-Dix falling right into the Packers’ lap.
As the names kept being called off, Clinton-Dix name kept sliding down as the top-15 talent now fell out of the top-20. His slide didn’t last much longer though as Green Bay quickly scooped him up and the Packers’ war room celebrated. Finally the Packers have the true free safety defensive coordinator Dom Capers has been looking for. Now with Clinton-Dix on the roster, we examine how much of an upgrade he is for Green Bay and what type of impact he will have.
It’s easy to see just how significant of an upgrade Clinton-Dix will be for the Packers at free safety. Green Bay’s safeties failed to record an interception last season. The big zero from the safety production resulted in fewer opportunities for Green Bay’s offense and resulted in quarterbacks testing the secondary even more. The Packers also really struggled with wrapping up and making clean tackles. Burnett led the team with 17 missed tackles a great indicator of just how awful this secondary was. The safeties struggled in coverage and were slow to react, leaving the cornerbacks out to dry. The Packers couldn’t have been much worse at the position, so Clinton-Dix is an excellent upgrade.
Clinton-Dix role in Capers' defense will be similar to what he did at Alabama, playing back as the center fielder and being the leader of the secondary. While it will take some time for Clinton-Dix to learn and master the playbook, he will eventually develop and start making sure the cornerbacks are aligned and everyone knows their assignment. Clinton-Dix is an extremely intelligent football player who showed that same I.Q. and leadership at Alabama, something the Packers are excited to have going forward. His presence will also help Burnett develop and free him up to move around the field more.
Another significant impact Clinton-Dix may have is on cornerbacks like Sam Shields and Tramon Williams. Both outside corners love to take chances on jumping the route, something opposing quarterbacks and wide receivers took advantage of over the past few seasons. Now with Clinton-Dix sliding in behind them to provide insurance in coverage, Williams and Shields should feel more comfortable going for interceptions.
The biggest area Clinton-Dix will help the Packers is with the missed tackles and interceptions category. Clinton-Dix loves to make big hits, but is a sound tackler who knows how to wrap up and pull the ball carrier down. This will obviously help limit amount of the big plays and yards after catch that Green Bay allowed last season. You can also bet that as the deep man behind a stout front-seven, Clinton-Dix will have plenty of opportunities to grab some interceptions.
This was a monumental pick in pushing Green Bay's defense back in the right direction so they can once again compete for a Super Bowl. While Clinton-Dix may not be on the level of Earl Thomas, we saw last season how important a great safety can be. The Packers already upgraded their pass rush with the addition of Julius Peppers and a healthy Clay Matthews will certainly help. Now they have that free safety that really was the missing link for this defense and kept them from being a respectable unit.