Put Up or Shut Up? Keke Puts Up Strong Performance

GREEN BAY, Wis. – It was just two reps at practice – and against a late-round rookie, at that – but Saturday’s one-on-one pass-rushing drill showed what Kingsley Keke could mean to a Green Bay Packers defensive line in need of some juice.

On the first rep, Keke bulldozed Jon Runyan back toward the “quarterback,” who happened to be coach Matt LaFleur. On the second, with Runyan no doubt wary of Keke’s power, he used his speed to blow inside for another victory.

“It was fun,” Keke said. “We’re working hard going through pass-rush stuff. Going into one-on-ones, I had a plan ready to go in and what I had to do, but, yeah, I was ready to go. Something I’m pretty good at is pass rushing and it’s something that I can add to my game, making good moves and stuff like that. But, yeah, I had a good day, a solid day.”

The Packers are counting on more of those kinds of days from Keke, who defensive coordinator Mike Pettine during the offseason referenced as a player to watch. The Packers simply need more from a defensive line that features mostly the same cast of characters as a year ago.

Kenny Clark had a Pro Bowl season with six sacks and 28 quarterback hits, by the coaches’ count. That was about it as far as impact, though. Tyler Lancaster had 1.5 sacks and nobody else on the defensive line had another. On quarterback hits, Dean Lowry had nine, Montravius Adams had two and Lancaster had one.

The tale of the tape: Clark had 4.5 more sacks and 16 more quarterback hits than every other defensive lineman on the roster combined.

That’s not going to cut it, not if the Packers’ defense is going to go from playoff-caliber good to championship-caliber great.

While Keke said he didn’t feel pressure to be part of the solution, the pressure is being applied by the coaching staff.

“Year 2 being in the system, it’s time to put up or shut up,” defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery said on Friday. “He’s got to come, dive in and buy in to what we’re doing. Just continue to grow as a player fundamentally. That’s a big part of what we do in playing the line. I see him taking those steps. It’s still early, we’ve got a lot of practices left before we get on the field, but I look forward to him helping us this year.”

A fifth-round pick in 2019, Keke didn’t play much as a rookie, and especially didn’t play much down the stretch. Keke had 11 tackles and one quarterback pressure (according to Pro Football Focus) in 94 snaps, with just 14 snaps over the final four games.

General manager Brian Gutekunst did little to address the defensive line during the offseason. He signed veteran role player Treyvon Hester as a street free agent and signed SMU’s Delonte Scott and Rutgers’ Willington Previlon as undrafted free agents. Meanwhile, former third-round pick Adams has been a major disappointment and is out of action due to a toe injury that had him in a walking boot on Saturday.

“I feel a lot more confident in Year 2,” Keke said. “Playing the run, I feel like I’m a lot stronger and I put in a lot of work in the offseason. Being able to play the run and get to the quarterback are my things. I want to be able to do it all for my defense. It’s something I’ve been working on a lot in the offseason. Playing the run, I’ve got good hands and be strong and play my gap strong and be able to help others. I’ve been putting a lot of work in so I’m ready for that. …

“It’s just going out there and doing my job and doing what I do every day. I’ve been playing football since I was a kid. So, it’s no pressure. It’s just at a higher level.”