Guys not at the top of the depth chart like Safety Brice, DT Price and higher tier prospects like Lowry, Rollins and J.Jones, these are guys that will see more and more playing time, if they keep on doing what they have been doing.

They have caught peoples eye already, and now the installs are done, coaches will be weighing up where they best fit in this years D. The next 20 days are key for them.

After about half a season of play, offenses will have figured out the hybrid and will have a counter for it.

But, credit to the Cardinals and Deone Bucannon for starting a thing.

The defensive variant of the Wildcat.

Zzzzzz. Next?

To say that the hybrid defense is perfect is probably a little premature since they have yet to play a down in a real NFL game. The flexibility and additional speed it brings to the defense are good things but NFL coaches are smart people and I'm confident that many are already working on ways to exploit it. In fact I wonder what MM is doing with the Packers offense to attack a hybrid defense which I am sure the Packers will face during the season. Even with all of our weapons on offense we may not see as many mismatches as we expect if other teams are preparing their own versions of a hybrid defense. For now it's good to know that Burnett and Jones are doing well. The key is to keep everyone healthy and translate the practices to on the field effectiveness. Thanks, Since '61

This may seem "new," but actually, it's just a variation of the old "put your best athletes on the field." And to be honest, we haven't always done that.

Anything that improves this D - arguably a low bar at times - is a good thing, and if other teams figure us out half way through the season, I'll still take those eight games.

IMO the Packers are set up better at the ILB position than they have been since Bishop was here. With Josh Jones and Burnett the Packers have the versatility to be able to play and match up with any offense they face. But they also have Blake Martinez who I've heard absolutely nothing about all summer and Ryan who I absolutely love. They still have to face teams like Dallas or the Seahags for example who are going to run the ball down your throat if they can. Throw in Joe Thomas and the Packers have a nice blend of Inside Linebackers.

Bottom line is it's great to see Capers is getting with the times. The Packers NEED him to.

Teams don't study game film of practices. Bellicheck says we won't really know until week 4 of regular season. It all comes down to players making plays, what ever package they're running. With all these smaller players the running back may make a big comeback in the NFL.

smaller mlb is countered by larger rb. you gain in the covering of the pass- you loose in covering of the run. i admit i am no expert, but this has always been the "problem" with going small on defense. so teams like the titans should be very tough to stop with a hybrid defense.

A few articles I'd REALLY like to see plastered all over the internet:

"Packers backup OLBs winning 1 on 1s with Packers starting OTs"

"Packers pass rush looking nasty"

"Perry thinks injury woes behind him."

"CM3 looking like CM3 of old"

......

Did I make my point? Without a pass rush, the D will struggle. Period.

That said, I'm really liking the play of the DL, ILBs and secondary. This has the makings of an improved unit from last year. (Which isn't saying much).

Capers... we still have Capers. He's been behind the curve his entire life. Offensive Coordinators lick their chops preparing for him. It took forever to get rid of Hawk. Taking even longer for Capers. But someday... soon I hope.

The digs on the ILBs was unnecessary: "The inside linebackers can act like a bunch of teenage girls that weren’t asked to prom, but it’s time to face the facts."

Give it about 5-6 games. The Safety to ILB converts will all be on the sidelines with small bang up injuries for playing a position that is too harsh for them and the more stout Ryan and Martinez will reclaim their roles. There's a purpose for every defensive player on the team.

Oh yeah Cory - it all looks PERFECT on paper and practice without pads. Then the regular season starts and it's torch city for 400+ yards on a weekly basis. Fine, you cover our backs and slot receivers with a 220 lb safety, we'll run right at you with beast mode types, and flatten you with the run, as the back slips between the non-existent resistance of 2 down lineman. Joke.

This is Dom Capers - an antique ready for the retirement sofa.

I read the comment above about James White (and his type of RB) and needing fast hybrid types to cover him, but the Falcons have the likes of Deion Jones who can run and cover playing ILB (and he's an ILB not a hybrid) and they still couldn't stop White.

James White is a good, but not great RB. They found ways to get him the ball in space 14 times. He wasn't chewing up big chunks of yardage, he was averaging 7.9 yd/catch. He was Mr. Dumpoff, and, if you take away his longest reception (28 yards), he averaged just a hair over 6 yd/catch. The game DICTATED that he catch those balls because the Falcons were up 28-3 until almost the end of the 3rd and playing soft to protect a lead.

We can talk about the hybrids and what they are and how they help a defense, but it's still about recognition, adjustments and execution. With the rules skewed the way they are in favor of passing offenses, having skilled cover guys is a must. But I'd take a 6'2", 235 lb. ILB who can play all three downs proficiently over a 6'1", 215 lb, SS convert, any day.

No one mentioned Joe Thomas in all of this. He's the closest to hybrid of the ILB's. I think Martinez is at risk here.

The Packers offense package and player pickups seem to have been designed to defeat the hybrid packages in the league this year. If the packers keep a second FB on the 53, along with three TE, the MM will be able to go run heavy while splitting out either his backs or TE on the smaller DBs. What is interesting is Capers has wanted bigger DB in his safety group since 2011, now he's got it. We fans take this coaching staff and front office for granted a bit too often. Then they pull this personal coup off. It's way too early, but the uncommon depth on both sides of the ball is not something that is seen in this league.

If the NFL today calls for more pass coverage either the linebacker position will go away or the linebackers will have to adapt and become more like DB's for speed and coverage if they want to play.

The Pack needs flexibility. Ryan and Martinez in running situations and Burnett and Jones in obvious passing. And if a player like Jones keeps making play

A number of comments stress the "either-or". It doesn't work that way. Like always, it's a match up problem. Simply, you try and have the right players on the field for any given situation. If Rodgers has the team up, you can't play catch-up with a brute RB. It's a dance. But having players with flexibility to handle more then one situation will always be preferred.

George Cumby.
Johnny Holland.
Nick Barnett.

ILB's who could run and play all three downs.