Green Bay Packers 2011 NFL Draft Guide to be Released this Week

I’ve often thought to myself, if only there were a guide to the NFL draft specifically for Packers fans. No offense to the other 32 teams, but I really don’t care what their needs are and who they want  to draft.  All I care about is the Green Bay Packers (hence, our slogan here, All Packers All the Time).  Well, that day is about to arrive.  Introducing the Cheesehead TV 2011 NFL Draft Guide.

It’s a 60-plus page, Packers-centric, digital publication in .pdf format available for ordering for the low, low price of only $5. It will be available on April 7, exactly three weeks before the NFL Draft.

Do get a better idea of what you will and wont find inside, here is the Editor’s letter to subscribers:

Dear Packers fan,

Thank you for purchasing the inaugural edition of the Cheesehead TV 2011 Draft Guide, a digital publication designed specifically for Green Bay Packers fans. I’m confident you’re going to love our new take on what a draft preview publication should be like.

As a Packers fan, your attention to the rest of the NFL is probably limited. More than likely you probably only have a passing interest in, say, what the San Diego Chargers or Jacksonville Jaguars are going to do in the draft. That’s where we come into play. We figure, why pay for the magazines on the newsstands when what you really want is cover-to-cover Packers content?

The bulk of any draft publication is the position-by-position previews for quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, etc. But we take a different approach with certain positions.

With the Packers running a 3-4 defense, we don’t just categorize players in linebackers, defensive ends and defensive tackles. We’ve broken up linebackers into outside linebackers and inside linebackers. And because players like B.J. Raji, Cullen Jenkins and Ryan Pickett have all played the 3-4 defensive end position at one time or another and then become a pass-rushing tackle on passing downs, we’ve lumped all those types of players into the category of 3-4 defensive linemen. They have to be versatile enough to play both tackle and end in Dom Capers’ defensive system.

On the offensive line, we’ve broken up players into tackles and interior offensive linemen, because you’ve seen Packers such as Jason Spitz have to be able to play both guard and center.

Futhermore, I’ve asked the writers to put themselves in the shoes of general manager Ted Thompson. If we think there’s a player that doesn’t fit what the Packers do, you might see him ranked lower than usual or not ranked at all.

For example, you’ll notice that players like Auburn’s Nick Fairley, Illinois’ Corey Liuget and North Carolina’s Marvin Austin don’t appear in our defensive line rankings because we don’t think they fit what the Packers do on defense. And you won’t find a 5-9 cornerback at the top of our lists either, because the Packers simply avoid those types of defensive backs.

I’m personally a firm believer in what a player does on the football field. Nothing bores me more than reading about a player’s “lateral agility” or “tight hips” ad nauseam. It’s important to address an athlete’s strengths and weaknesses, but we try to focus on their performance during games more than most other publications.

You’ll read about how players performed on a big stage, such as how they did in a bowl game or against a ranked team. Sometimes we’ll look at how they performed against a conference rival or in an all-star game such as the Senior Bowl. Those performances mean more to me than a player’s “deceptive quickness.”

When looking at team needs, we dedicate the most space to analyzing the perceived needs of the Packers. We then give the next-most space to the teams the Packers play the most, the other members of the NFC North. Accordingly, we give decreasing coverage to the rest of the NFC and the entire AFC.

We also provide the obligatory mock draft, but we try to go the extra mile and provide one that’s three rounds long. Plus, we provide a Packers-specific mock draft attempting to predict whom Green Bay will choose with each of their respective picks in each round.

If you know of a draft publication that gets any more Packers-centric than this, I’d like to see it. With that, enjoy and Go Pack Go!

Sincerely,

Brian Carriveau

The publication features  an all-star cast of contributors from the NFL blogosphere including Andrew Garda of ThunderingBlurb, “Jersey” Al Bracco of AllGreenBayPackers.com, Aaron Nagler of Cheesehead TV, Paul Guillemette of Pigskin Paul’s Place, Max Ginsberg of Purple Pants, Green Jersey, Holly Phelps of BrentFavre.com and Tony Wilson of Maple Street Press.

Wait, you’re still here reading this? Um, shouldn’t you be placing your order right now?

60+ pages of Packer draft information for only $5.00?  Can you find a better deal? Fuggedaboutit!!!

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Jersey Al Bracco is the founder and editor of AllGreenBayPackers.com, and the co-founder of Packers Talk Radio Network. He can be heard as one of the Co-Hosts on Cheesehead Radio and is the Green Bay Packers Draft Analyst for Drafttek.com.

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