Mel Kiper’s Mock Draft: Marshall Plan for Packers

The Green Bay Packers need to bolster their pass rush, which ranged from unstoppable to invisible. Mel Kiper addressed that shortcoming in his first mock draft.

Marshall Thundering Herd defensive lineman Mike Green (15) sacks Virginia Tech Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Marshall has had three players selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. None of them played on defense.

Could defensive end Mike Green be the first?

Green was the Green Bay Packers’ first-round pick in the first mock draft of the year by ESPN’s Mel Kiper. He has the potential to instantly change the Packers’ inconsistent front-four pass rush.

As a redshirt sophomore, Green assembled one of the greatest seasons in program history to join Randy Moss as the only FBS first-team All-Americans in program history. He led FBS in sacks (17.0), sack yardage (144), tackles for losses (22.5) and tackles by a defensive lineman (84). The 17 sacks set a Sun Belt Conference record.

“He wins with speed-to-power, and he displays good bend and strong hands,” Kiper said.

While the Packers finished eighth in sacks and 10th in sack percentage, they ranked 22nd in pressure rate (29.8 percent) and 26th in pass rush win rate (34.8 percent), according to ESPN.com.

“This feels like a good fit,” Kiper concluded.

One obvious question is his size. Green is listed at 6-foot-4 and 248 pounds. That’s a bit small by Green Bay’s standards. Among Green Bay’s regular defensive ends, Brenton Cox was the lightest at 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, followed by Kingsley Enagbare at 6-foot-4 and 258 pounds. Lukas Van Ness is 272 pounds and Rashan Gary is 277 pounds.

However, Green could answer that question by packing up on some muscular pounds for the Scouting Combine and pro day.

There are obvious strength-of-schedule concerns, too, which he will have a chance to answer at the Senior Bowl.

Green had a sack in 10 of 13 games, with three sacks against Southern Miss and two-plus sacks in five games, including Virginia Tech. He had a season-high eight pressures against Virginia Tech but just one against Ohio State, though that was for a sack.

“He didn't play a schedule full of NFL-level offensive tackles in the Sun Belt Conference, but he sure looked the part of a first-round pick against Ohio State early in the season, displaying power and explosiveness,” ESPN’s Field Yates said in his mock draft.

You can only beat the lineman in front of you, and Green generally beat them like a drum.

According to Pro Football Focus, there are 134 edge defenders in this draft class who played at least 200 pass-rushing snaps. Green ranked eighth in pass-rush win rate and fifth in pass—rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap. Obviously, he was the focal point of opponent game plans, but they couldn’t stop him from creating mayhem.

“I always have a plan coming into the game,” he told The Draft Network’s Justin Melo. “I have a pass-rushing plan and I know what pass sets I’m likely to see from offensive tackles. It can be common for somebody to give you a different look, something you’re not expecting. I think I do a good job of adjusting.

“I’m versatile and I understand how to react to offensive linemen. It’s helped me a lot along the way. I think I’ve gotten better as a pass rusher every single year. It’s going to keep getting better, as well.”

The 33rd Team’s Kyle Crabbs compared Green to Alex Highsmith, the productive sidekick to T.J. Watt with the Steelers. Green has a “robust” array of pass-rush moves, he said.

“Green has illustrated more physicality in defeating blocks in the run game, but his power is one of the more modest elements of his game, and he will likely always be better when playing around contact versus through it,” Crabbs wrote as part of a much more extensive scouting report.

His brother plays at Old Dominion.

“My mother, she’s a GOAT,” E.J. Green said before Old Dominion played Marshall.

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