Read that "Pops" will be a backup OLB behind Kampman this year and he'll earn 1.9 million. Should the PACK keep him at this price? I think not.

If you're asking do I think Poppinga can backup Aaron Kampman... the answer is HELL NO!

The other X4 whipping boy.

That was a questionable signing last season. He'd never shown anything to get real excited about, and now appears on the outside looking in.

quote:

Originally posted by Mcpacker64:
Read that "Pops" will be a backup OLB behind Kampman this year and he'll earn 1.9 million. Should the PACK keep him at this price? I think not.

Why don't you post a link?

It's a Press Gazette insider link, but it opens for me.

http://www.greenbaypressgazett...ppinga-worth-it.html

One thing I know is that Pops will give it his all. If he makes the cut, good for him. You can't have enough hustle players. Or as TT calls him, a "nailbiter".

Was it "nail biter" or "nail eater"?

Poppinga just isn't very good, he continues to disappoint every season while showing no improvement beyond going from godawful in '06 to below average in '07 and '08. I think our defense will really be in trouble if he is forced into the starting lineup due to injury, the guy still is terrible in coverage. Even though he says it suits his strengths (What else would he say?), he's probably going to be horrible if he has to start in this new communication-heavy 3-4 since he (Along with Marquand Manuel) was responsible for a huge amount of all those "communication problems" the defense suffered through in '06.

quote:

Originally posted by CJS:
... Or as TT calls him, a "nailbiter".

Better a "nail biter" than a "pillow biter"!

I don't think Popp has the coverage skills to play at OLB, but I think he'd do fine in a ILB role. I think PackManCA was too critical of him; I'd argue that he has improved each year since his rookie season.

He was a non-factor in 2005, awful in 2006, almost decent in 2007 and last year he regressed a bit. Who knows, maybe he could be a backup ILB, but he would almost certainly be a disaster as a 3-4 OLB based on how poor he was in coverage in the 4-3 and how crappy his pass rushing abilities have proven to be. The only things you can really say in his defense is that he is decent against the run and an OK tackler.

The funny thing is he's an undersized, converted, quick DE. In other words a guy who is most often converted to a 3-4 OLB from college. OLBs in the 3-4 are usually schemed away from coverage when possible. I remember well teh Carolina mud bowl where Holmgren's game plan was to find ways to get Kevin Greene in coverage and Carolina wasn't able to adjust early enough.

Count me as on who would keep Poppinga , he is strong against the run and it is important to have quality backups.1.9 million is not a problem this year while it could be a problem next year.I think they should keep a known player for this year and develop younger guys to take his place in the future.But if a younger player steps up and make him expendable this year then so be it

They kept KGB when they were overpaying him (for two years...one of which was a disaster), but then they didn't have as many contracts coming up.

I think Poppinga can play a role on this team, but it may simply come down to money (and what you could do with his $1.9 mil wiped off the books).

quote:

Originally posted by grbaypack:
Was it "nail biter" or "nail eater"?

I thought the quote was: "He's a bit of a nail-biter", but I couldn't find it using Google. Agreed that based on what we've seen, Poppinga won't be the best fit as a 3-4 LB, but he'll probably be better in coverage than the DE's we're trying to convert.

Poppinga is a "Glass Eater" per Kevin Greene, not a nail biter

Note the difference

And as somebody has actually eaten glass on several occasions, I can tell you its a lot harder that biting nails

If they're willing to keep Bush around, I doubt they'll have a problem keeping Poppinga around. IMO, the only way he doesn't stick is if some young players are so impressive in camp that the team doesn't want to expose them to waivers.

He's a physical player who was a DE in college so I wouldn't be surprised if he's a better fit in the 3-4. Still, the guy turns 30 early this year (BYU/mission) and while not 'old' it's not young either.

quote:

Originally posted by Herschel:
I remember well teh Carolina mud bowl

The mud bowl game where it was like 20 below wind chill? That mud bowl game?

quote:

Originally posted by Herschel:
The funny thing is he's an undersized, converted, quick DE. In other words a guy who is most often converted to a 3-4 OLB from college. OLBs in the 3-4 are usually schemed away from coverage when possible. I remember well teh Carolina mud bowl where Holmgren's game plan was to find ways to get Kevin Greene in coverage and Carolina wasn't able to adjust early enough.

I'm pretty sure the really muddy game was the week before against San Francisco. I don't remember the Championship game being very muddy.

Here's a picture from that game from Packers.com:

yes, it was the 49er game the week before...

I was at the Championship Game and it was NOT muddy...

...it was f***ing freezing....

Ice Bowl II ...even got my hat that says "Ice Bowl II"

I flew in Thursday night...made the trek up to Green Bay on Friday...only to miss Rome's show....sat with Howie and Sean Jones on Saturday afternoon at the bar...froze my a$$ Sunday...heck, even the tailgate party had frozen Bloody Mary's and Screwdrivers...but...

priceless...