We continue our 2014 report card grades with the Green Bay Packers defense.

Please be understanding that this is an inexact science at best with players who haven't received major chunks of playing time.

The grading scale is as follows: A=Pro Bowl caliber, B=Solid NFL starter, C=Average NFL player, D=Below average player, F=Fringe NFL player.

Defensive Line

Mike Daniels (A-): In his third year in the NFL, Daniels developed into a true three-down player for the Packers, playing in a career-high 794 snaps (including playoffs), according to ProFootballFocus.com. His six sacks (including playoffs) are about as many as can be expected of an interior pass rusher. In fact, his 12 regular-season sacks over the past two seasons are the third most from an NFC defensive tackle. As much as a vocal leader Daniels aspires to be, his leading by example is even better, never cheating his teammates by taking a play off. His hustle and honest effort are exactly what the Packers defense needs.

Letroy Guion (B): Despite missing all but the tail end of training camp due to a hamstring injury, Guion stepped into the Packers lineup and exceeded expectations as the team's nose tackle. Starting all 16 games for the first time in his career and making a career-high 32 tackles and 3.5 sacks, Guion made more of an impact than B.J. Raji did in any of the previous three seasons. Guion more than earned every penny of the one-year, $1 million contract the Packers signed him to before the season and likely earned himself a raise this coming spring.

Datone Jones (C-): A sprained ankle once again prevented Jones from fulfilling his potential, same as his rookie season. After missing three games at midseason and not playing at less than 100 percent for several weeks afterwards, Jones came up with only 2.0 sacks (including playoffs), down from 3.5 in 2013. As Jones started to get healthy, he finally made a noticeable impact in the playoffs, coming up with a sack, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick in the divisional round playoff win over the Cowboys. What remains to be seen is whether Jones can become a three-down player like Daniels and not merely a situational pass rusher.

Josh Boyd (C-): Boyd took a step forward in his second season in the NFL, playing in 15 games and starting four of them. Boyd's primary responsbilities come as a run stuffer, and he gave an admirable effort, but what he failed to do is show little playmaking ability. Of his 19 tackles, just two were for a loss; he came up with no sacks, zero forced fumbles or recoveries and just one batted pass. Boyd can be a valuable role player in the Packers' front seven but has to take his game up a notch.

Mike Pennel (D): For an undrafted rookie, Pennel exceeded expectations just to make the Packers roster. He carved out a small role, playing almost exclusively in short-yardage situations, making eight tackles in 13 games. For being the one player on the Packers defense in excess of 315 lbs., Pennel got pushed backwards too often. The potential is there to reverse that trend with another offseason of experience and time in an NFL strength and conditioning program. It's responsibility to do so falls squarely on Pennel's broad shoulders.

Bruce Gaston (Incomplete): Picked up after Luther Robinson went on injured reserve, Gaston wasn't active for a single game this season. The rookie defensive lineman from Purdue played in 50 consecutive games in college, displaying good durability. That will be key for him moving forward as he gets an offseason to prove his worth to the Packers.

Linebackers

Clay Matthews (B+): Matthews' season will be defined by his midseason move to inside linebacker, which there's no questioning helped the Packers defense improve over the second half of the year. His hustle and speed are unmatched in the Packers linebacker corps, and indeed, among the vast majority of his peers in the NFL. Although he's not the type to take offensive linemen head on, his quickness allowed him to skirt blocks and make tackles. For a player whose durability has been questioned, he started every game this season for the first time in his career. However, it was still curious to see him standing on the sidelines of the most important game of the career when on the opposing team, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman was playing with one arm. Matthews set or tied career highs with 61 tackles and nine passes defensed, and his 12 sacks were rather impressive considering how much time he spent on the inside.

Julius Peppers (B+): Despite questions about his age and declining production with the Bears organization, Peppers proved he was worth the average $8.6 million per season the Packers agreed to in the offseason. Although they would have probably preferred a few more than the seven sacks Peppers came up in the regular season, his worth can't be defined solely in one statistic. Peppers' 44 tackles, career-high 11 passes defensed, four forced fumbles, and perhaps most impressively, two interceptions returned for touchdowns, provided the big-play ability the Packers defense needed. He seemed to play better late in the season when the Packers cut back his snap count with his 2.5 sacks in the playoffs and game-chaning forced fumble of DeMarco Murray in the divisional round serving as proof.

Sam Barrington (B-): After making just two tackles in 2013, Barrington may as well have been classified as a rookie in 2014, and as far as rookies go, his impact was about as good as could be expected from a seventh round draft choice. After taking over for A.J. Hawk in the team's nickel package at midseason, the Packers defense showed marked improvement. As proof of how much the Packers trusted Barrington, he took over the team's dime defensive role in the most important game of the season—the NFC Championship—and performed admirably. He provides a physical, thumping presence missing from the inside linebacker position since Desmond Bishop left the organization. Barrington lacked Hawk's knowledge of the defense and was occasionally caught out of position, but at least it's something that can be corrected.

A.J. Hawk (D): There's no question that Hawk lacks NFL-caliber athleticism, and that alone should seal his fate. Strictly as an inside linebacker in the Packers' base 3-4 defense, however, Hawk wasn't as terrible as many make him out to be. His knowledge of the defense frequently allows him to be in the right place at the right time. It's just that his athleticism fails him. Starting 13 games, Hawk was still able to make 90 tackles, and he played in all 16 games for the eighth time in his nine-year career. All that being said, there are still better options than Hawk in the Packers' 3-4 system.

Brad Jones (F): Partially due to injury and mostly due to ineffectiveness, Jones started just one game in 2014 out of the 13 he played. After beginning the season as a starter at inside linebacker, Jones' role was reduced to include just the dime defensive package for the majority of the year. Even then, the Packers took away that responsibility from Jones in the NFC Championship game when all cards were on the table. For as little as Jones played, his six penalties in the regular season and playoffs combined were outrageous. Strictly as a special teams player, Jones wasn't bad, but the Seahawks showed how they could use his aggressiveness against him on the fake field goal in that NFC Championship loss.

Nick Perry (D+): For the first time in his career, Perry stayed largely healthy, missing just one game in 2014, and hardly any NFL player can be blamed for missing one game in such a physically-demanding sport. His impact, however, was still below-par.  Perry's 23 tackles, three sacks and one forced fumble in the regular season were all fewer than his totals in 2013 despite playing in just 11 games. On the flip side, his 1.5 sacks in the divisional round win over the Cowboys were a breath of fresh air. There's little doubt Perry hasn't lived up to first-round expectations, and the odds of him doing so are becoming increasingly smaller.

Mike Neal (C-): Neal split his time between outside linebacker and defensive lineman in 2014, but was merely average in both roles. He has the strength to hold the edge in the run game at outside linebacker but doesn't have the qualities to be a good edge rusher. By the same token, he has the quickness to flash as an interior rusher in a three-point stance, but doesn't have the size to hold his ground against 300-plus pound offensive linemen on run downs. So Neal finds himself as a 'tweener. Although his 4.5 sacks in 2014 were comparable to the five he came up with in 2014, his quarterback hurries decreased from 37 to 21 over the same span, according to ProFootballFocus.com. Always gives an honest effort.

Jayrone Elliott (C): Although he played in just 54 regular-season snaps, per ProFootballFocus.com, Elliott didn't flash the same pass rush he did in the preseason. On special teams, Elliott was a welcome addition, becoming the team's second-leading tackler with 15 stops. It was an encouraging rookie campaign for the undrafted linebacker from Toledo, now he just has to build off it.

Carl Bradford (Incomplete): Consider it a redshirt year for Bradford. He was the only player on the Packers roster that was around for the entire season that wasn't active for a single game. After realizing Bradford wasn't cut out for an outside linebacker role on the line of scrimmage, the Packers shifted him to the inside in time for the final game of the preseason. Understandably, the transition didn't happen overnight, but the pressure is on to show that he's got what it takes in the offseason.

Secondary

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (B-): Clinton-Dix saved the best effort of his rookie season for last, coming up with two interceptions, nearly grabbing another and making five tackles, including a goal-line stop of quarterback Russell Wilson in the NFC Championship. His effort on the two-point conversion, however, remains a head-scratcher. The Packers' first round draft choice was an obvious upgrade over M.D. Jennings from a year ago, although he still needs to become more consistent, especially with his tackling. Clinton-Dix's 96 tackles, one sack, one interception and six passes broken up in the regular season earned him All-Rookie honors from the Pro Football Writers of America.

Morgan Burnett (B-): Credit Burnett for turning in a better season than 2013. His effort from December onward was remarkable. First there was his key interception in the Monday Night Football victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Then he made eight of ten tackles in front of the line of scrimmage in the Week 16 win over Tampa Bay. And his season culminated with team-leading 10 tackles, two sacks and an interception in the NFC Championship. Unfortunately, he'll probably be more remembered for his unnecessary slide. The first half of the 2014 season was largely unremarkable for Burnett.

Sam Shields (B): Shields' 2014 season was on par with the first four seasons of his career, although one can argue that his performance isn't commensurate with the contract the Packers gave him in the offseason, making Shields one of the top eight highest-paid cornerbacks in the NFL based on average salary. His two interceptions and nine passes defensed during the regular season were the fewest since Shields' rookie year. The performance he turned in during the NFC Championship game, however, was terrific, grabbing an interception and allowing just one reception the entire contest.

Tramon Williams (B): The 2014 vintage of Tramon Williams was much the same as previous seasons: solid yet unspectacular. As the individual that played the most snaps on the Packers defense—1,158 (including playoffs), according to ProFootballFocus.com—no one could be blamed for wanting to see more big plays out of Williams. Three interceptions, 13 passes broken up and one fumble recovery were certainly welcome, but they're also just average statistical numbers compared to his peers. He played in every game he was active for an eighth consecutive season. What Williams' future holds remains to be seen.

Micah Hyde (B): Hyde's performance on defense alone might be worthy of a "C+" but his contributions on special teams bump it up to a "B." After starting the season as a starting safety, the Packers eventually tuned the role over to Clinton-Dix while Hyde settled into a more comfortable role as a slot cornerback. On the year, he made 59 tackles, two interceptions, seven passes defensed and a sack, which aren't bad numbers, but they also aren't what Charles Woodson did during his tenure or what Casey Hayward did during his rookie season from the slot. Hyde may have been the brightest spot on the Packers' special teams unit, returning punts for touchdowns and averaging 15.8 yards per attempt in the regular season.

Casey Hayward (B): Hyde might be the better tackler and physical presence, but Hayward displayed better coverage skills as a slot cornerback, which made the Packers' choice to demote Hayward in favor of Hyde in the nickel defensive package rather questionable. In 434 regular-season snaps (according to ProFootballFocus.com) Hayward was able to make 42 tackles, break up seven passes and grab three interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown. Now just imagine what he would have been able to do if he received the same playing time as Williams. His effort in the NFC Championship wasn't his best moment, however, beat for two late completions that abetted the Seahawks comeback.

Davon House (C+): In 13 games, House was adequate. He made 27 tackles, broke up 10 passes and came away with one interception. It didn't help that he missed the last three games of the regular season with a shoulder injury. When he was healthy, however, House arguably matched-up better than any other Packers cornerback with the likes of elite wide receivers such as Calvin Johnson and Julio Jones. It makes you wonder what House would be able to do as a full-time starter. Would his performance elevate as a result, or would he remain average?

Sean Richardson (C+): Richardson's grade is influenced by his special team's impact, making a team-leading 17 tackles and becoming arguably the best player on their coverage units. The Packers figured out ways to use him on the defensive side of the football in small roles, such as short-yardage situations and when teams were backed up against their own goal line. Richardson made 25 tackles but didn't come up with any impact plays in 18 games—zero interceptions, passes broken up, sacks, forced fumbles or recoveries.

Jarrett Bush (C): Bush's grade is almost exclusively based on his special teams play, seeing as he played just 42 snaps on defensive the entire regular season (again, according to ProFootballFocus.com). He was once again one of the team's best players special teams, although perhaps not as good as in season's past, making fewer tackles and seemingly coming up with fewer flashy plays, such as downing punts deep in opposing territory.

Chris Banjo (Incomplete): Banjo was active for the final five games of the season since being activated on Dec. 14, although he played exclusively on special teams. He makes a nice addition to that unit, but it's debatable whether that's worth a roster spot.

Demetri Goodson (Incomplete): Goodson played in six games, exclusively on special teams, and made six tackles, an average of one per game. He displayed good speed on kickoffs, frequently the first player down the field for the Packers. More important to his future with the team, however, will be his coverage skills, which were lacking in the preseason.

Special teams and coaches on Wednesday.

*Only players that finished the season on the active roster are graded.

Brian Carriveau is the author of the book "It's Just a Game: Big League Drama in Small Town America," and editor at Cheesehead TV and its "Pro Football Draft Preview." To contact Brian, email [email protected].