Evolutionary Complement

ev•o•lu•tion
n.
1. A gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form.

I threw the word ‘evolution’ around a lot during the offseason in regards to Aaron Rodgers taking over as quarterback. We were going to be transitioning from a wild and aggressive aging man to a smart and a calculated young man. I still feel that way about Aaron.

Then news broke about Al Harris maybe being out for the year. Like most fans, the first word out of my mouth was “SHIT!” I’ve been harsh on Al Harris the last 10 months or so, but I understand he’s still a good corner, and you need all the good corners you can get in this passing NFL. We were all starting to get used to Woodson and Harris.

Now it might be Woodson and Williams. Or Woodson and Blackmon. Or Woodson and Lee. End of the world, or the dawning of a new era? Will we see another young man with a different skill set step up?

com•ple•ment
n.

1. Something that completes, makes up a whole, or brings to perfection.

Charles Woodson and Al Harris play the same style. If you asked 100 NFL experts to describe them in one word, odds are most of them would reply “physical.” They both have the same strengths and weaknesses. Not their fault, of course, nobody is perfect and we all have our flaws.

The problem is when we ran into a team that could exploit their weaknesses; the only people who could possibly step up were nickel and dime backs, guys who don’t get a lot of playing time. Now that just might change.

With this unfortunate injury, someone might step up – a yin to Charles Woodson’s yang. Someone to complement him. Another style of corner in the defensive arsenal. I’m all about balance. Every area in our defense(Dline,LB,Safeties) has balance. They have athleticism and speed combined with power and strength. They have complementary components to destroy their offensive counterparts. Not so much at the cornerback position.

Which was fine if we played teams without bigger receivers. Thankfully, Woodson stepped up bigtime against Dallas. But that’s not the norm. You don’t shut down Owens often, nobody does. And Woodson had tons of help(he needed it) which allowed Witten and Austin Miles(or Miles Austin. Whatever) to have very good games.

Hopefully the silver lining in this injury is the emergence of a complementary player. A player who when faced with a big receiver, won’t get pushed around, because he won’t try to beat the receiver down(and fail). Maybe we’ll have a corner who will use technique, intelligence, and athleticism instead of pure power.

Plaxico Burress and Terrell Owens can’t man handle you if they can’t touch you.

But what do we know about the possible replacements? I’ll be honest, I don’t know much, and you be honest too, you don’t know much about them either. At least now. I’m sure we’ll all get a crash course in their abilities in the next seven days. They might all be power guys too, in which we’re still in the same boat. Hopefully someone in the young mix can complement Charles and this defense can move up the evolutionary ladder.