1) Introduction: After Aaron Kampman left the Packers following the 2009 season, it was thought that seventh round draft pick Brad Jones could be a suitable replacement. Jones had four sacks his rookie season in relief of an injured Kampman and that showed the Packers enough that maybe he could be a decent linebacker. However, thanks to the emergence of Clay Matthews and Desmond Bishop, Jones was relegated to the bench in 2010 and 2011. However, in 2012 Jones started 10 games and was rewarded with a three-year $11.75 million contract. Bishop was released this offseason following a hamstring injury, so the Packers were all in with Jones as one of their inside linebackers.
2) Profile: Nate Palmer
- Age: 27
- Born: 04/01/1986 in Lansing, MI
- Height: 6’3″
- Weight: 242
- College: Colorado
- Rookie Year: 2009
- NFL Experience: 5 years
- Career Stats and more
3) Expectations coming into the season: With Bishop gone and signing a big new contract, Jones had to perform this season. The release of Bishop was met with a lot of skepticism at the time as was the contract Jones signed. GM Ted Thompson had to have been convinced Jones could a difference maker at the inside linebacker spot. Jones moved to the inside spot in 2012 and had a little bit of a learning curve to go with it. Thompson obviously was convinced Jones had the ability or he would not have offered Jones such a juicy contract.
4) Player’s highlights/low-lights: Jones had a forced fumble and recovery in the Week 3 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals and had a 12-tackle and one sack effort in a loss to the New York Giants in Week 11. Jones’ low-light was that he missed four games due to a hamstring injury that nagged him throughout the season. In a year where the Packers were decimated by injuries, none were hit harder than inside linebacker where AJ Hawk was the only player healthy for all 16 games.
5) Player’s contribution to the overall team success: Jones had some good moments, but he was a major liablity in coverage and was a definite downgrade from a healthy Desmond Bishop. Jones’ tackling also left a lot to be desired and he often was a liability in the run game as well. Thanks to his hamstring, the Packers were forced to shuffle people all around in the linebacker unit and that affected how well the defense played. Did Jones live up to the contract that was given to him before the season? No, but that was in some ways due to the hamstring injury that hindered his speed.
6) Player’s contributions in the playoffs: Jones had six tackles and a sack against the 49ers in a game where the defense played well overall but struggled to stop the 49ers at the game’s most crucial moments.
Season Report Card:
(C) Level of expectations met during the season
(C) Contributions to team’s overall success.
(B-) Contributions to team during the playoffs
Overall Grade: C
——————Kris Burke is a sports writer covering the Green Bay Packers for AllGreenBayPackers.com and WTMJ in Milwaukee. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA) and his work has been linked to by sites such as National Football Post and CBSSports.com. Follow @KrisLBurke
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My suspicion has been that the contract to Jones was intended as a stopgap: we need a guy to fill this role so we can address other needs. We know Jones and he knows us, he’s a younger guy and has the opportunity to grow into his position.
Was he good? No. Was he truly bad? No. Is he replaceable? Absolutely. You love to have quality guys and good locker-room presences on the team, but the Packers are at a stage where serious upgrades need to happen on the defensive side of the ball, and ILB should be a key target in the off-season. The cap hit here would not be painful.
A stopgap to what? They used a throw-away pick on Sam Barrington after cutting DJ Smith and Terrell Manning loose.
If Jones was supposed to be a stopgap, they sure didn’t put much effort into getting the next piece of the puzzle in place. It looks to me like they are just cycling their ILB backups in the hopes they will eventually unearth a gem. That’s not a bad philosophy behind solid starters but stopgaps need to be addressed more aggressively.
True, but they didn’t sign him to a 1-year contract, either.
After watching Kaepernick run wild in SF during the playoffs after the 2012 season, I thought the Packers needed a near complete overhaul of their LB group. As such, I was thrilled when Indy signed Erik Walden and hoped a sucker would do the same with Jones.
Absent another team with interest, I hoped the Packers would think hard about even offering the vet min to Jones. He was ok when healthy but hurt way too much. Availability is allegedly one of the principle tenets of being a reliable football player and Jones is simply not available for the gameday roster way too much
Obviously the Packers saw something in Jones that I did not last year. After another year, I still don’t see it. While I don’t normally like to act like I know talent better than the Packers’ braintrust (because I don’t), judging by the overall defense, it is unclear (at best) whether it is the Packers or me that is having problems with their vision.
Jones is payed like an a just above replacement ILB, and that’s how he performed.
The line is crucial in keeping blockers off the linebackers, but even when the do, the linebackers need to fill the holes. either is not getting it done they both look bad.
So… was Raji’s poor looking season a result of underperforming linebackers, or was the disappointing linebacker play a result of a porous line?
I like Jones and Hawk, but I think that we need premier linebackers, Free agent or draft. I think our line is pretty good, and may have gotten a bad wrap because the gaps were not being filled by the LB, inside or out.
I have yet to see a LB tackle around the shoulders as much as Brad Jones. His technique is awful. If his mediocre play doesn’t catch up with him, his lack of availability will. I am fine if he gets replaced! GoPack!
When did he change his name to Nate Palmer?
Was surprised that Thompson thought Jones was the answer at ILB.I thought Smith would have done a better job. At least he knew how to hit. We need some hard nosed run stuffers on the inside. Hawk is ok. Jones is not the answer.
smith was released because he failed a physical. if it weren’t for health problems, he’d still probably be on the team