Green Bay Packers: Pros and cons of taking Darnell Savage

The Green Bay Packers moved up to pick 21 to grab safety Darnell Savage, here are the pros and cons of that selection.

During the free agency period this offseason, we saw Green Bay Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst make some aggressive moves and sign four big free agents. Which frankly as Packers fans, was something that we were not accustomed to.

With Aaron Rodgers on the back nine of his playing career, I anticipated that same kind of aggressiveness to take place in the draft and boy did they prove me right. The Green Bay Packers made a trade with Seattle to move up to pick 21 and in return gave up pick 30 and both of their fourth rounders on Saturday.

Heading into the 2019 offseason, the safety position was one that needed to be addressed and they did by signing free agent Adrian Amos. However, as fantastic as that signing was, there was still work to be done. Josh Jones has shown that he can’t be relied upon in coverage and Raven Greene is still an unknown.

So with the 21st pick, Green Bay selected Darnell Savage who has been flying up draft boards these last few weeks leading up to the draft. With any selection, there are going to be positives and negatives, here is a bit of both on Darnell Savage.

Pro: Versatility

Defensive coordinator Mike Pettine is going to absolutely love the addition of Darnell Savage to the back-end of his secondary because of his versatility. Pettine will be able to line him up just about anywhere and he will be a great compliment to Adrian Amos.

Savage has the ability to play down in the box while also being an effective defender in coverage where he can use his range to help the cornerbacks and his closing speed to help linebackers on the short to intermediate routes.

Con: Losing two fourth-round picks

In order to move up to pick 21, the Green Bay Packers had to part with both of their fourth-round picks. While fourth rounders are usually developmental prospects, for a team that is overhauling their roster from the Ted Thompson era, those can be valuable picks.

It also wasn’t until recently that word began to spread that Savage could be a first-round pick, prior he had been labeled a second rounder, so only time will tell but there is the possibility that Green Bay overpaid to make this trade happen. Personally, I found this trade to be a bit rich.

Pro: Savage is a playmaker

I mentioned above the range that Savage has and that translates into a number of plays on the ball. During his time at Maryland, Savage would record eight interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns, as well as 13 pass deflections. Each year as a starter, Savage saw his overall stats improve.

Savage takes very good angles to get to the ball and when in the air, he knows how to make a play on it and he puts himself in good position to do so. The Green Bay Packers have lacked consistent playmaking ability in the secondary over recent years and Savage can provide them with just that.

Con: He is a gambler

When you make a number of big plays as Savage does, it comes with a risk. And while he more times than not comes away with a positive play, giving up a big play is definitely a possibility with Savage.

He is very athletic, has solid coverage skills, and fantastic route recognition which he trusts immensely but that can lead to some undisciplined moments such as blown coverages and missed tackles.

Ultimately, I think this was a solid pick for the Green Bay Packers and Savage is a player that can step in right away and make an impact on the back-end of this Green Bay Packers secondary from day one.