-- He may be wearing No. 42 and offer similar traits to that of the previous suitor, but Oren Burks isn't Morgan Burnett.

The Green Bay Packers' No. 88 overall pick, Vanderbilt linebacker Oren Burks, who they traded a fourth and a fifth-rounder to move up 13 spots into the third round to get, brings his own set of distinctive qualities to the Packers' revamped defense.

Burnett, now under contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, left the Packers with a sizeable void on defense -- not just at safety, but in various positions in which he played. 

A former safety before transitioning to linebacker for his final two collegiate years as Commodore, Burks is just the kind of fast-paced linebacker the Packers need to fill in over the middle of the field opposite Blake Martinez, who is the presumed starter and a likely foundational piece in defensive coordinator Mike Pettine's scheme.

Just for the sake of his versatility and having the potential to play multiple positions, that coincides nicely with Burks bringing added value to the roster -- specifically to a weakened position.

"The versatility adds a lot of value to the team," Burks said on Thursday after the Packers wrapped up their final minicamp practice before summer break.

"I can cover tight ends, running backs and still be a factor over the middle. Just adding all of those parts of the game is extremely important."

Between Burks and second-year safety Josh Jones, the Packers have young but flexible talent to keep up with whatever comes their way over the middle of the field. And they can certainly use the help there. 

Since 2013, the Packers' defense under former coordinator Dom Capers only allowed a yearly completion percentage under 62.2 percent when targeted over the middle of the field twice: 2014 and 2015.

The 66.8 completion percentage across the middle allowed in 2017 was their worst, with 56.5 percent in 2014 being their best.

Adding speed and someone like Burks with the range and instinctive ability to roam across the middle of the field wasn't only a luxury pick at No. 88 overall when the Packers already have a duo of safeties -- Jones and Kentrell Brice -- who can play inside, but it was a necessity.

Not only can Burks handle coverage duties, but during his final two years at Vanderbilt, he showed he was also very much capable of rushing the opposing quarterback en route to 4.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for a loss in his junior and senior seasons.

Translating human Swiss Army knife-like nature to a defense who values players of such type just means Burks landed in the right situation at the right time.

For the 6-3, 233-pound Burks, it's just about limiting any rookie mistakes and cleaning up other facets of his game. He may not be much in the realm of starting material just yet, but with a firm grasping of Pettine's teachings, a rotational role isn't out of the question.

"I definitely feel as OTAs and minicamp went on, I got a lot more comfortable with things," Burks said. "Just communication and eliminating the mental errors and things like that. I just have to take that momentum and keep rolling with it going into training camp."

The Packers won't be back on the practice field until Thursday, July 26. They report to this year's training camp regimen on Wednesday, July 25.