Green Bay Packers: Ibraheim Campbell anyone?

The Green Bay Packers may want to add a safety if they lose Josh Jones. So why not Ibraheim Campbell?

Green Bay Packers safety Josh Jones shocked Packers nation yesterday when news broke he wants out of Green Bay. The 2017 second-rounder has seen more failures than successes during his first two years and it has landed him as a rotational defensive back.

Jones’ play has given him very little leverage to demand anything but GM Brian Gutekunst will likely honor the players’ request even if compensation turns out to be a day three pick. If the Green Bay Packers find a suitor for Jones, they have brought in a ton of safeties to fight for his job, however, it may not be a bad idea to call last year’s midseason signing Ibraheim Campbell, who is currently still a free agent.

Campbell only saw action in three games in 2018 before an undisclosed injury landed him on injured reserve after their week 13 loss at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals. For a player signed off the street, Campbell had a significant impact recording 18 tackles in limited snaps. Injuries to the team’s secondary allowed him to start against the Cardinals as he went on to record eight tackles and force a fumble in that game.

This offseason the Packers have completely reshaped their safeties since last year, bringing in Adrian Amos and drafting Darnell Savage in the first round. Last week, they used a flier on Mike Tyson, who like Campbell, has bounced around the league quite a bit in a short amount of time. This does not include last year’s safeties Raven Greene and Natrell Jamerson who are also trying to make the final 53 this summer.

Campbell quickly jumped Greene on the depth chart in 2018 and it may not be that hard to do it again. Greene is still very raw and doesn’t possess the same level of versatility as Campbell. As an undrafted free agent, Jamerson was lucky enough to see snaps on special teams a season ago and is a converted corner.

Tyson may be the first one to take Jones’ reps given his experience but it may pique Green Bay’s interest to reach out to Campbell before training camp. If his inability to pass a physical is what is keeping him unsigned, he could be on a roster at any point in the coming months.

Campbell looked solid during his reps taken in the box last season and he didn’t have the downfalls Jones suffered in coverage. He can also line up in the slot which is something the Packers could never be completely comfortable asking Jones of.

Jones was expected to see extensive time at linebacker this offseason to try to get him on the field as much as possible. His actions indicate he may not see eye to eye with the coaches and the team has already made it clear they can move on from him rather seamlessly.

Signing Campbell to add more competition may not be a bad move seeing that he is a familiar face and a solid player when healthy.  His familiarity with Mike Pettine and his ability to earn his trust in very little time further speaks to the type of player he is.

Pending a likely physical, Campbell could be an easy transition from Jones and could quite possibly be an upgrade.