Green Bay Packers: Ted Thompson’s top 30 draft picks of all-time
21. Sam Barrington (Ray’s pick)
Not many expected Sam Barrington, the linebacker out of South Florida to amount to much with the Green Bay Packers.
Languishing behind the likes of other linebackers like A.J. Hawk and Brad Jones, the starters at inside linebacker the past two seasons, Barrington was being viewed as a special teams player who couldn’t crack the lineup.
That was before the Packers coaches finally decided that Hawk had run out of gas and Jones just wasn’t the player they expected when they re-signed him a couple of seasons ago.
In stepped Barrington over the last half of the 2014 season. He joined with Clay Matthews who had been moved to the inside and all of a sudden the Packers defense was stopping the run and thumping other teams’ ball carriers like Packers fans hadn’t seen in some time.
In those seven games, Barrington recorded 45 tackles and had 21 assists.
He also brought a nastiness and toughness to the field that can’t be manufactured.
Barrington brings it when he’s on the field and because of the way he played during the final half of 2014 and in the playoffs, he was slated as one of the starting inside linebackers penciled in for 2015.
It didn’t matter who the Packers bring in through the draft — Barrington was ready for 2015.
But it didn’t last long for him.
Ranked by Pro Football Focus as the 34th best linebacker out of the 60 on their list, Barrington was shaky against the run, but that was because he got a late start in the Packers system in 2014. As the year wore on, he may have not had the eye-popping statistics that made him an all-pro, but he, like safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, made the defense and those around him better.
This will be a huge year for the linebacker. It’s a year he needs to prove he can be the week-in, week-out inside linebacker and leader the team has lacked the past couple of seasons.
Coming off a season-ending injury is never easy and it will be interesting to watch where Barrington fits into the Packers 2016 plans.
Last season was Barrington’s turn to shine. He never got a chance.
Will he get his chance in 2016?
Next: No. 21 (Freddie's pick)