The Packers finished their season with four defensive players who were older than 27 on their active roster and one member of that group said that the Packers might want to consider having more veterans on hand in the future.
Cornerback Tramon Williams reflected Monday on the things he learned from veteran Packers defenders as he started his career in Green Bay and that he would share his feeling that the team needed a more pronounced veteran presence with General Manager Ted Thompson. Williams said that the Packers have “talented” young players, but explained why he thought a different mix might offer more of a benefit in the future.
“You’re challenged with young guys,” Williams said, via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Talented, young guys get played, but the game is still fast for them because they don’t understand what teams are trying to do, they don’t understand the scheme fully, they don’t understand what the scheme can do for them, if they understand it. ... That’s what you’re faced with, with young guys. Even though we say it’s a young league, yeah, it’s a young league. It’s an old league, too, because old guys make the league go.”
The Packers haven’t been big players in free agency under Thompson, preferring to draft and develop players on their own rather than looking outside the organization. That’s not the only way to get a veteran presence, though. The Pack could keep some of their own impending defensive free agents, like cornerback Sam Shields and defensive tackle B.J. Raji, in order to create the kind of defensive understanding that Williams talked about on Monday.