Green Bay Packers: Re-grading the 2014 draft class
Round 4: Carl Bradford, LB, Arizona State
The Green Bay Packers stayed in the Pac-12 when they selected Carl Bradford to start day three of the draft. Bradford was listed as an outside linebacker/edge rusher, but his lack of length resulted in a switch to inside linebacker.
The move just didn’t pan out for Bradford. He spent the majority of 2014 on the active roster. After that, he was demoted to the practice squad for 2015 and 2016. He was added back to the active roster for a few games at the end of the 2016 season. The 49ers, Bills, Bears, and Bengals have all given Bradford’s career hope, but he is currently a free agent.
He was never able to produce in the way the Packers hoped. Unlike Thornton though, Bradford was able to actually step onto the field for the Green and Gold.
Grade: D+
Round 5: Corey Linsley, C, Ohio State
The Packers were looking for some interior depth along their offensive line when they made this pick. Despite having one of the best guard duos at the time with Josh Sitton and T.J. Lang, having as much protection as possible is huge. Especially when your quarterback is Aaron Rodgers. The Packers had also lost starting center Evan Dietrich-Smith in free agency.
Coming off his first collarbone injury in 2013, the Packers needed to bolster the big boys up front. Rodgers wasn’t getting bad protection, it just could have been a lot better.
The Packers took a risk on Linsley though. NFL.com projected him as a seventh-rounder/UDFA entering the 2014 draft.
The risk has paid off so far. Linsley has quickly become a consistent starter despite the rest of the offensive line changing week in and week out. He started all 16 games in 2014 and 2017.
Stability is key along the offensive line, especially with your center. It’s not a position causal fans look at but the quarterback/center communication is huge. So when you have a new center every week, it can be tough on your quarterback.
Good news for Aaron Rodgers is that Linsley signed an extension to stay with the Packers for at least the next three seasons.
Grade: A
Round 5: Jared Abbrederis, WR, Wisconsin
It’s exciting for a fan when the Green Bay Packers select someone from the University of Wisconsin. Those feelings were no different when the team selected Jared Abbrederis in round five of the 2014 NFL Draft.
Unfortunately for Abbrederis, he was not able to make much of an impact for his hometown team. A torn ACL ended his rookie season before it even began. Excited Packers fans had to wait a whole season to watch a hometown kid make his debut with the Green and Gold.
His 2015 season was the best of his career. Numerous injuries to fellow wide receivers allowed Abbrederis to get some playing time on the field. He recorded 111 receiving yards on nine receptions in the regular season. He added another 69 yards receiving in the Packers’ two playoff games that season.
Other than that, it was a quiet tenure in Green Bay. He was released after another stint on the IR in 2016. He did spend another season in Detroit, but Abbrederis has since retired from the NFL.
Grade: C-