Defensive coordinator Mike Pettine and the defensive position coaches met with the media on Friday, the team’s day off from practice. There’s a lot of optimism from the coaching staff going into year three of Pettine’s defensive scheme. 

For Pettine, he felt the defense benefitted from returning a lot of its same players this offseason, and that it’s been especially encouraging on the back end.

“Having both starting corners back. Having the two safeties that were year-one in the system that are now much more comfortable. I think our guys did a great job in the spring kind of buying into what we were doing,” said Pettine. “We got a lot accomplished in the virtual meetings.”

Defensive backs coach Jerry Gray is new to Green Bay this year, but he’s already instilling plenty of confidence in his young secondary, adding that he’s gone up against Aaron Rodgers for six years now and that he knows what it takes to compete at a high level. 

“Being cautious is not a good sign of a good secondary,” said Gray. 

The front seven isn’t looking too shabby, either. Pettine has mentioned repeatedly that this edge rush unit is one of the best he’s ever been around. 

“All those guys are solid players,” Pettine said of the group. “That’s a spot where there’s some real good competition.”

Outside linebackers coach Mike Smith agreed. Whether it's rookie Jonathan Garvin, practice squad holdover Randy "Rambo" Ramsey, or former Baltimore draft pick Tim Williams, the competition for the fourth edge spot is heating up. 

“We play with a lot of rushers,” Smith said. “One of our main groupings last year was three outside linebackers out there. I just want guys that are tough and smart.”

Smith also got fired up talking about the production from Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith in 2019, adding that sack numbers don’t tell the full story in relation to a player’s productivity. 

“That’s one of the, I hate to use the word stupid, stupidest things I’ve ever seen,” Smith said of sacks constituting what defines a good pass rusher. “You find a great pass rusher by consistency.

“When they’re in the game, are they affecting the quarterback?” added Smith. “When you look at the total number of pressures, and if you look at his snaps, and you see the pressure percentage, Z led the NFL! That tells you you’re affecting the quarterback. That you’re doing your job.”

Versatility is another theme for this defense, with the hope that the Packers have plenty of position-versatile players on the roster to make an immediate impact in an unusual season. 

Gray pointed out Raven Greene in particular as someone who can play multiple positions, whether he’s floating on the back end or playing in the box to provide run support. 

“That versatility is only going to make you better,” Gray said of Greene, adding that your roster doesn’t lose much when you have position-versatile players who can fill in anywhere. 

Versatility also exists in the front seven, with Smith discussing the various ways he plans to create pressure in 2020 with Rashan Gary and Za’Darius.

“When you start rushing inside you’ve got slower guards. They’re still good players but they’re slower, stronger. Now they’ve gotta put up with guys that are quicker and faster and that’s just a mismatch,” said Smith. “You can’t block all of us.”

Defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery has plenty of confidence in his young defensive linemen, too, calling this a “put up or shut up” year for second-year lineman Kingsley Keke.

Montgomery also heaped praise onto Kenny Clark in regards to his massive contract extension.

“There’s not a more deserving kid,” he said. “To me, he’s the best two-way nose tackle in the game.” 

He added that not many nose tackles are capable of also rushing the passer the way Clark can. But as far as the rest of his unit is concerned, Montgomery isn’t bothered by Dean Lowry’s lack of sacks in 2019. 

“Dean’s a guy that, he’s a grunt. He does all the dirty work,” explained Montgomery. “He takes a lot of double teams on. A lot of things that go unnoticed and allow other people to make plays. And that’s kind of his role.”

Player development is going to be key to the defense’s success in 2020, and one player in particular that’s stood out is second-year linebacker Gary. 

“He loves football,” Smith said. “He texted me last night at 12:30 asking the three things he can work on on his off day today.” 

Smith added that players like that “don’t fail” because they consistently put in the work and do everything they need to do to get better every day. 

Another second-year player from Gary’s draft class getting some attention is inside linebacker Ty Summers, who inside linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti says will have plenty of opportunities to show what he can do in camp. Summers, third-year pro Oren Burks, and rookie Kamal Martin will all be vying for playing time opposite veteran Christian Kirksey, but the key to Olivadotti is stacking successes. 

“If you make a play, you’re going to have the opportunity to make another play,” Olivadotti said. “Playmaking keeps you on the field and gets you on the field, one way or another.”

That sentiment carries into the defensive backfield, where Gray in his first year with the Packers has been working with his young secondary to put them in consistent positions to be successful. While Jaire Alexander and Kevin King have established themselves as the team’s starting corners, and Chandon Sullivan is the fast-tracked player for the slot role to start the season, Gray said his secondary will be position-versatile. 

“The biggest thing that we’re trying to do is get guys into position where they can be their best at. So if Ja needs to go inside, if Kevin needs to go inside, if Sully’s inside, we’re not trying to be predictable.”

Veteran linebacker Kirksey will also bring athleticism and versatility to the middle of the defense, given the coverage abilities he brings to Green Bay. 

“Christian’s played a lot of football and seen a lot of football. His feel in coverage is good. He has a good feel for routes and things that are around him, and that’s a thing that comes with experience,” said Olivadotti. “Even at Iowa he was a guy that played a lot in space and had to feel things around him.”

Pettine said it was actually difficult to evaluate Kirksey coming out of Iowa as an inside linebacker given how much he’d played outside of the box covering wide receivers. 

Through position versatility, disguised pressures and coverages, and instilled confidence in young players, there’s a lot of optimism circulating around the defense and what it can bring to the table in 2020. 

“There’s going to be high expectations,” said Pettine. “We were able to get a game within the Super Bowl. In this crazy year, you’ve gotta feel like you know what, if we play good defense, why not us?”