Colson is MY number one LB, and I don't think he makes it to the third round. I think we take him at 58 or we don't get him. Not every team drafts based on RAS.

In my mocks, recently, I've ended up taking a CB at 25 and an OL at 41. That means either I take a LB at 58, or the top ones are all gone at our next pick, #88.

The CH Draft Guide has Payton Wilson at 20, Edgerrin Cooper at 32, Colson at 48, Trotter at 70, Gray at 81. I think Payton, Cooper, and Colson are the only three LBs I'd expect to be good enough to start as rookies. The problem is, Wilson is old and had had multiple serious injuries (both ACLs plus a shoulder), and Cooper is athletic but misses a lot of tackles. I don't think any of those three make it to #88, and then we're in trouble.

Unless we pick up a decent free agent LB before the draft, this is a rare year where I would "reach" and not take the BPA at 58--I think our need and the lack of good options to fill that need make a LB at 58 VITAL.

However, I DO like Isaiah McDuffie, and Wilson is decent, so maybe my "vital" isn't as bad as it seems.

You got this guy confused with Devin Bush.
H'es not a downhill LB. No Pop here.
I prefer Gray. Even Trotter.
Junior Colson plays like Ryan.
Just a better tackler.

If Colson isn't taken by 58 he will be gone. Good chance he doesn't make it that far. My #1 backer by far.

The NFL has plenty of good players that aren’t elite RAS guys. If this guy will be one of them, that’s good enough for me.

I like him a lot and agree that he would be the pick either at 41 or trading up a bit from 58. Out of all the top prospects at LB this IS the Packers guy. I think DeJean is the other guy to watch closely at 25, the Pack may trade up a bit to ensure getting him and finally Cole Bishop with one of their 2nd rounders before they address OL with either 88 or 91. Expect a swing at Edge somewhere too. Very exciting! GPG!

If they are set on Walker playing Will Colson makes the most sense in the middle. Cooper has questionable instincts and they already have one of those. Wilson is great but those injuries. Colson was never fully healthy but played in all 15 games for his team. He played two games with casts on Both hands and still had a very good tackle rate.

If they miss on the early LBs Nathaniel Watson would be a MLB stopgap. You don't want him on the field on passing downs but would provide some 2 down thump.

We gave up 350 points last year....20.5 ppg, That was with Joe Barry as DC, Savage at safety, Campbell at ILB, and without our two starting CBs most of the time, Alexander and Stokes.

Now, with a new DC, McKinney, Stokes and Alexander, a replacement for Campbell.....how much do you think the defense will improve? 20 ppg? 19.5? 18.5?

Meanwhile on the offense, we averaged a little over 22 ppg. If we add some premium blocking, what could we average next year? Dallas averaged 29.9 last year. But let's say we don't make that, but we get our average up to 26 or 27.....that's an increase of 4 or 5 points a game, versus a defensive improvement of maybe two points.

What I'm trying to say is that there is more opportunity to improve the offense than the defense. IF we don't draft a defensive guy early, we can still put a defense on the field with a lot of good players who should be able to keep it under 25. By putting those earlier picks on guys who'll help the offense I think we get more bang for the buck, personally.

Full disclosure: I think our defense last year was better than a lot of you give credit for, and if these moves like getting rid of Barry and Savage and Campbell don't all backfire then we should still be plenty good enough on defense, regardless of who we draft. The opportunity is on the offense. The year of growth for Love and the others. Jacobs. All we need to do is ensure that we've got guys who can get people blocked.

If GB hadn't struck out without swinging, in their pursuit of a FA LB, this would not be the huge, red flag need it now is. I really don't see how we can wait past pick #41 to grab a starting LB. At #41 there is a good chance all of the Top 3 LBs are still available, and @ #58 all 3 could be gone. That will lead to reaching and/or being forced to trade up and thus wasting picks. Then we are scrambling for our 3rd, 4th, & 5th choices at best. We can't afford to take that chance because we missed on a FA.

Any of Cooper, Colson, or Wilson will upgrade us. Colson is probably the safest pick. I would hate to miss on one of those 3, but Cedric Gray has some real LB skills and would work as well. 370 tackles in 3 years is nothing to sneeze at. Think if he was a better tackler how many more he might have.

I dug this up on Gray in high school, he was also a WR as well as LB and he caught 143 receptions for 2500 yards with 27 TDs. So he obviously has great hands and is good in coverage too.

I also like Nathaniel Watson as a late round guy. Impressive stats and tackling is his specialty with 137 last year and 10 sacks. Take one @ #41 and one late. I was hoping for a surprise Isaiah Simmons signing but the Giants resigned him. I predict a smart DC will make him the next Mikah Parsons.

With Barry Ball finally gone, the new Hafley Defense will now attack, pressure the QB, and be expected to tackle with effectiveness and efficiency. It was encouraging to read about Hafley's emphasis on tackling. The LBs will be doing more tackling, less pass defense on WRs streaking through their zone.

I believe Colson, Wilson and Cooper would all be likely to earn a spot next to Walker. Wilson's two ACLs and two shoulder surgeries and his age probably drop him down or even off Gutey's board. Great skills...just a really disquieting injury history. Is it behind him? Boom or bust prospect.

Between Cooper and Colson, Cooper has more exciting playmaking upside but not the size of Colson. Colson been solid and productive but he has had more assisted vs solo tackles each year at MI.

I would like either. Choose sizzle or steak.

I don't see where "boring" fits in here. He's an excellent prospect and a sure tackler who would fit in nicely with this defense. The ship will have sailed by after the second round, though, so if we're interested, better grab him before the third.

For me - it's who best pairs with Quay Walker to duplicate (as close as possible) the Warner-Greenlaw standard. This means that the LB must be athletic, physical, instinctive and good in coverage. So my list is:

1. Payton Wilson - checks all the boxes as the best LB to pair with Walker. However there is the little matter of his injury history and age. Still he could be one of Gutie's surprises.
2. Junior Colson - although not quite as athletic as Walker - he is perhaps more instinctive. Also good in coverage. Checks off almost all of the boxes.
3. Edgerin Cooper - Gutie's "smokescreen." I'm much higher on Wilson and Colson than Cooper. Yes, Cooper is uber-athletic but his tendency to go around and not confront blockers could be problematic in the NFL. His videos shows that he does not de-construct blocks very well. Also he's not very instinctive in coverage. Both Wilson and Colson are better than him (in coverage). Moreover it's been reported that Cooper has been a poor interview - perhaps revealing an attitude issue. If so, then this will DQ Cooper with GB.

In conclusion - I would prefer to take Colson at 58 than Cooper at 41 (with no LB a consideration at 25). Also Wilson is neither a 1st or 2nd round pick for me because of his medical history.

Well, you have sold me on Colson—let’s get’em. But I want DeJean first.
I was always the guy who would buy the vacuum from the snake oil salesman.
Go Packers!!!

Gray might end up better than Cooper too. I am really excited by Hafley's comments about coaching the players to tackle better and the success he has had. Gray had 370 tackles the last 3 years while having a high miss percentage. With better coaching/teaching he could be a 150 tackle a year guy. Plus he is decent in coverage.

"Heart, blah, blah, blah, blah, but he has heart, you see, blah, blah..."

"But he has heart" usually translates to "but I have a man-crush on this guy..."

If "the toughest thing to measure is heart" then let's be thankful that talent scouts don't actually need to measure "heart", and few, if any, really even try. They just watch the play on the field. If a player has "heart" - whatever the heck that is - it will show on the field, unless it doesn't, and "heart" means nothing unless you see it on the field. There are almost innumerable players that have crap tons of "heart" and yet they will never make it in the NFL because .... wait for it.... they aren't good football players. Whether a dude's dad died young, or if he saw an earthquake in his home country (?) or if he was adopted or was born in Cuba or Burundi or whatever else doesn't actually mean jack squat.

Heart, schmart. Can he get it done on the field?