Green Bay Packers Sunday morning draft: Louis Nix III

Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Louis Nix III (9)

Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports photograph

The Green Bay Packers head into 2014 once again with defense being the team’s biggest need – and who better to fix that need than Notre Dame defensive tackle Louis Nix III.

At 6-3, 342 pounds, Nix is everything the Packers will need at the point of attack in their 3-4 defense … especially the Packers ailing run defense. And that’s why I selected Nix III in this morning’s mock draft that comes courtesy of fanspeak.com’s unique computer-generated draft. With Nix at the top of the board awaiting my selection, it was a no-brainer.

Not only would Nix III bring his run-stuffing skills to the Packers, but his quickness and athleticism would also give the Packers someone who can get into the opponents’ backfields and disrupt offenses. How long has it been since we’ve seen that? Well, probably since 2010 when B.J. Raji was at his best.

However, with the Packers defensive line set to be decimated by free agency, the team’s biggest need will be replenishing it.

Safety, you say?

Actually, the Packers will need to improve all the way up the middle, but they’ve got to start somewhere. Not only is safety a big need, but so is inside linebacker. At those positions are studs like Ha Ha Clinton Dix or C.J. Mosley, but starting with one of the best defensive tackles and building around that position seems to be the better way to go – at least today. There’s a long time until the May NFL Draft and who knows how Packers General Manager Ted Thompson will be seeing things by then. We’ve seen him surprise us all with that first round pick and this year may be no different.

Anyway, for today we’re taking Nix III.

And if you haven’t already, check out these two sites for mock drafts … they are a couple of the best around

http://walterfootball.com/draft2014.php

http://www.dcprosportsreport.com/MockDraft.htm

Here’s the complete draft as generated over at fanspeak.com. Head on over to the draft generator yourself and give it a shot … it’s a blast.

ALL PICKS

1

QB JOHNNY MANZIEL

HOUSTON TEXANS

2

OT JAKE MATTHEWS

ST. LOUIS RAMS

3

QB BLAKE BORTLES

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

4

QB TEDDY BRIDGEWATER

CLEVELAND BROWNS

5

QB DEREK CARR

OAKLAND RAIDERS

6

DE JADEVEON CLOWNEY

ATLANTA FALCONS

7

DE KONY EALY

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

8

WR ALLEN ROBINSON

MINNESOTA VIKINGS

9

G CYRIL RICHARDSON

BUFFALO BILLS

10

WR SAMMY WATKINS

DETROIT LIONS

11

OLB ANTHONY BARR

TENNESSEE TITANS

12

OLB KHALIL MACK

NEW YORK GIANTS

13

OLB RYAN SHAZIER

ST. LOUIS RAMS

14

DT TIMMY JERNIGAN

CHICAGO BEARS

15

OT GREG ROBINSON

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

16

DT RA’SHEDE HAGEMAN

DALLAS COWBOYS

17

WR MIKE EVANS

BALTIMORE RAVENS

18

WR MARQISE LEE

NEW YORK JETS

19

OT CYRUS KOUANDJIO

MIAMI DOLPHINS

20

OT ANTONIO RICHARDSON

ARIZONA CARDINALS

21

DT LOUIS NIX III

GREEN BAY PACKERS

22

ILB C.J. MOSLEY

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

23

TE ERIC EBRON

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

24

OLB KYLE VAN NOY

CINCINNATI BENGALS

25

DE MICHAEL SAM

SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

26

WR KELVIN BENJAMIN

CLEVELAND BROWNS

27

CB DARQUEZE DENNARD

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

28

WR JORDAN MATTHEWS

CAROLINA PANTHERS

29

DT WILL SUTTON

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS30

30

CB JASON VERRETT

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

31

CB JUSTIN GILBERT

DENVER BRONCOS

32

OT TAYLOR LEWAN

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS