The Packers had a rough year defensively in 2013 as injuries took several key players away from a unit that struggled to stop just about every opponent that came their way.
As a result, head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday that the “defense is going to change some” for the 2014 season. McCarthy didn’t delve into too many specifics, but linebackers coach Winston Moss said that the team will retain the 3-4 base defense favored by defensive coordinator Dom Capers. McCarthy did say that he wanted to see more versatility on defense next season.
“We were not as multiple maybe this year as we’ve been in prior years really because of the stress of injuries on that unit so we want to get back to some of the things that we did very well in the past and make sure we’re carrying enough packages to utilize all of our players,” McCarthy said, via ESPN.com. “We obviously need to get better on defense, and I think these moves that we’ve made on defense will definitely put us on that path.”
Whether 3-4, 4-3 or something completely different, the success or failure of the Packers defense is going to rest heavily on the players that are on the field executing it. If they find themselves playing without Clay Matthews, Casey Hayward and other key members of the group again next year without upgrading the depth behind them, the results are likely to look a lot like they did this year no matter what the coaches draw up during the week.