July 6th, 2009

Pat Lee Will Surpise

Aaron Nagler in Packer Defense, Patrick Lee

I’m on record as a big Pat Lee fan, so consider the source when I point you to this Pro Football Weekly blurb:

Regarding Green Bay’s secondary, daily team observers believe 2008 second-round pick Pat Lee has probably pulled ahead of Will Blackmon as the team’s No. 4 cornerback, while ex-Steeler Anthony Smith has outperformed third-year pro Aaron Rouse at safety so far this offseason.

The kid has all the tools, and as I said in one of our recent podcasts, it would seem that perhaps Lee needed to concentrate a bit harder at being a pro and relying less on his athletic ability to get on the field in 2009. So it was encouraging to read this, even if it is a puff piece from the teams’ website:

…cornerbacks coach Joe Whitt Jr. saw a different Lee in the meeting room during the recently concluded offseason program, and that bodes well for the former second-round draft pick’s chances of taking a big step forward in 2009.

“His attention has been better, and he’s more professional in the classroom,” Whitt said early on during OTAs. “He had a little bit of the college lackadaisical style last year.

“But this year you can see (the change) in his whole approach this offseason. The way he asks questions, and the questions that he asks in meetings. His understanding of what’s going on is at a higher-detailed level. He’s becoming a professional and he’s detailing his work.”

My hunch is that Lee continues to ascend and wins the job as the dime back and that the Packers have their future replacements for Harris and Woodson already on the roster in Williams and Lee.

8 Responses to “Pat Lee Will Surpise”

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It’s good to see P. Lee showing his increased maturity as a 2nd year player. The anti-TT crowd (in some places) were already chalking Lee up as a wasted 2nd round choice. It’s nearly impossible to convince those-people that playing behind Woodson & Harris has a tendency to keep you on the bench. The reality is that practicing with & watching Woodson & Harris for a couple years can only help Lee.
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I agree that both Williams & Lee will be the starting combo by 2011 if not sooner. The best part of this scenario is that they will also be one of the best CB combos in the NFL.

WoodyG said in July 6th, 2009 at 8:27 pm

I think we should wait until he starts showing on the field before we start saying he has what it takes to be one of the best CB’s in the league but I do agree there’s a lot of potential and by all reports from OTA’s and the like he’s coming along well. I think Tramon Williams is a lot further down the road at this point and I’m excited to see what he can do this year. Also, in regards to Lee beating out Blackmon, isn’t the idea now to basically allow Blackmon to concentrate on returns anyway?

Shootz said in July 7th, 2009 at 3:30 am

Tell that to the Packers. They’ve been dying to get Blackmon on the field but he just isn’t that good at playing the ball. And as for ‘waiting until he shows on the field’ – well, it’s July. This is what we do in July, project what will happen, yes? I mean, you did notice the words “My hunch is…”, right? ;)

Aaron Nagler said in July 7th, 2009 at 8:35 am

Yeah, I was responding to WoodyG when I referred to waiting on seeing if he’s one of the best. Blackmon’s a much better punt returner than he is a kickoff returner but both beat his ability to cover. He has decent vision and some speed and agility but hasn’t convinced me he’s worthy of the dime spot. I’d like to see Lee come up and take that job, if only to keep Blackmon off the field in passing situations.
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I look forward to doing some projecting on Brandon Underwood, interested to hear how he performs during camp despite the time he’s missed because of his late graduation. Lee’s pretty much expected to perform because he’s a second-rounder, I’ve liked the stuff (an admittedly small amount) I’ve seen from Underwood and would be happy to find he was another of Ted’s ‘diamond in the rough’-style picks.

Shootz said in July 7th, 2009 at 11:16 am

I disagree that Williams is a high-quality, eventual replacement as a starter for either Harris or Woodson.

As for Lee, obviously his progress this season will be telltale as to whether he’s a potential answer.

InFact said in July 8th, 2009 at 3:23 pm

What makes you disagree on Williams? He was beyond solid filling in for Harris last year, making some incredible plays on the ball. Yes, he got burned many times later in the year, but he kept making great reads and plays. He needs to be more consistent, that’s all. Curious why you think he won’t get better…

Aaron Nagler said in July 8th, 2009 at 3:34 pm

To this point, our three ‘08 second round picks have shown a #4 (eventually #3) WR and nothing else. However, like Rodgers, hopefully Brohm will turn into a talented QB soon enough.

Lee was the forgotten man of the draft last year. But he was picked in the second round for a reason, and I am very excited to see him play this year. With two 30+ starters at CB, and half the snaps using 3+ CBs at a time, Lee should get plenty of playing time this year. How great would it be to see Williams and Lee do well enough to be confident in our post Harris/Woodson starting CBs?

ACDC84 said in July 9th, 2009 at 12:25 am
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[...] Last, but not least, CheeseheadTV is talking about the progress made by second year corner Patrick Lee. Is he the future dime back? Sounds like he might [...]

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