The Green Bay Packers need the best version of Eric Stokes to maximize this defense

for the Packers defense to be the best version of itself they need Eric Stokes you are locked on Packers your daily Green Bay Packers podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team everyday you are locked on Packers part of the locked on podcast work your team every day I'm Peter Bowski and I cover the Packers for the leap a newsletter I would love for you to subscribe to follow me on Twitter Peter Bowski follow the podcast on Twitter locked on Packers like us on Facebook subscribe to the podcast iTunes Spotify wherever you find podcasts you will find locked on Packers the number one Packers podcast on the internet and the show for fans who know what happened they want to know why and how thanks to everyone who makes locked on Packers their first listen every day we hope you like starting your day with us as much as we like starting our day with you today's episode brought to you by our friends at game time download the game time app today create an account use code locked on NFL for $20 off your first ticket purchase last minute tickets the lowest price guaranteed terms apply Eric Stokes had a couple interceptions yesterday at training camp as we move through camp and it struck me that for this team to really reach its full potential I wrote yesterday in the leap about Javon Bullard a newsletter I would love for you to subscrib to and his ability to unlock Xavier mckin and to get the best out of this defense but I think Anthony Johnson Jr and Evan Williams like Javon Bard is the best version of that but I am steadfast in believing safeties by and large unless they're Elite of the elite they don't move the needle that much though I think Javon Bullard and David mckin have a chance a chance to be a Duo that that breaks that Trend but it's too much for me to go there this year with Javon Bullard because why most rookies are bad and that's why Eric Stokes is an interesting case because Eric Stokes was not bad as a rookie in fact Eric Stokes was quite good as a rookie not just good for a rookie good as a rookie a distinction I make often about Stokes and the ball production was something that we didn't see he had opportunities and interceptions didn't get his head around or couldn't finish the play with a catch that's why seeing him and we didn't really see him make those plays in training camp either a lot of reps against Devonte Adams a lot of getting worked by Devonte Adams but so now here we are this is if you will pardon the phrase nut crunch time for him in his career the best version of Eric Stokes is a really really really good football player like Carrington Valentine he's a really good story and and by all accounts has he's had you know a good camp a good spring he's put on more weight and he has an excellent insurance policy if you don't get the best version of Eric Stokes but having a backup plan for something is not the same as understanding and chasing the upside of a thing if everything goes right so if if Eric Stokes get hurt or he doesn't play to the level that that it looked like he could get to as a rookie you have kingon Valentine it's a really nice back stop to have but Eric stoke's best Eric sto's best is terrific and if you look around the NFC North the Vikings cornerback room is not very good the Lions cornerback room is not very good the Bears have Jaylen Johnson and Tyreek Stevenson who's a promising player and unproven player the only guy in the division even close to as good as JR Alexander as Jaylen Johnson I'm not sure the Lions have a corner as good as Eric Stokes at his best I'm not sure the Vikings have a corner as good as Eric Stokes at his best and I think Eric Stokes at his best is a better player than tck Stevenson the other boundary corner for the Chicago Bears now you look around at the best teams in the NFC the Cowboys you know with Diggs and Bland that's a really good Duo but the Packers cooked those boys last year we'll see what the Eagles can put together they went out and they drafted some Corners most rookies are bad San Francisco charvarius Ward really nice player but do they have a second guy that you really feel good about this has kind of been a question they've been asking for for years they sign Isaac Isaac yadam they draft Renardo green they have Damu Lenor is going to play the nickel for them I don't know if they have someone as good as Eric Stokes can be and the last piece of this is it seems like Jeff Halley is going to run a defense that caters to Eric stokes's strengths man coverage we talked about this yesterday all the single high means you in order to play single High coverage you have have to trust your Corners one-on-one on the outside because whether it's cover three or cover one it is going to be a lot of you one-on-one with a guy across from you and yeah you know there there's of course when you're in a Zone it's it's not always that but the whole point is if you have a corner who can guard against the Deep throws as a boundary Corner in cover three it makes it a lot easier as a safety to do your job because you're not worried about that guy getting beat Over the Top Eric Stokes one of the defining characteristics of his profile as a player is his speed his his makeup speed in particular his ability to get beat and recover to a throw that even if it's perfect he can get back to because he's just that fast that version of Eric Stokes is better than anything the Packers can put together as a backup and it it is potentially better than basically anyone else in the NFC can muster from a quarterback two standpoint among these contenders well Eagles accepting we've seen James Bradberry we've seen Darius SLE play at really high levels at various points in their career but there's a reason that the Eagles went out and they paid premium draft cost because that's what it is for quinan Mitchell for Cooper Dee James Bradbury is not even a guarantee to make this eagles's roster so while I I do think that getting a safety like Javon Bullard ultimately decides how good this defense can be there is no best version of this defense without Eric Stokes because Eric Stokes potential is truly that high he can be a GameChanger and if he takes a step forward if he brings all the physical tools that he has to bear on the situation and he's been made older and wiser by the experiences of the last few years playing diminished last year if that's made him wiser smarter and hungrier all the better now speaking of the best version and the best version of this team Jordan love still not signed I want to I want to provide even more even more reasons why the Packers have to just suck it up and pay the money that's next today's episode brought to you by our friends at game time it's baseball season baby baseball season and the NFL preseason by the way right around the corner so the games have to be on your mind in game time they're going to get you in they're going to get you in it's not just the games it's concerts comedy theater 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streaming 24/7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day so over the course of the last few months I have been looking at trying to find Historical examples the love season that was had is this something that could just be a well a guy got hot the at good games Theory and and all and I mean all of the data that I have been able to find things places that I would go to look on any quarterback like this is not I'm looking to confirm my priors like I didn't know what I would find when I went to seek out the data but I went to find what I think is the best data and so I went to the cleanest idea to me and that is EPA per play we know Jordan love top five EPA per play so even even with the theory that he was only good for half a season he finished fifth in EPA per play so even with a trash first half of the Season according to his critics that's not what happened but according to his critics he had he was bad for half a season and was good for half a season that's being overly productive but let's just say that's true it's not but let's say it is it was so good in the second half he finished top five in EPA Pro play over the last five years here are the quarterbacks who finished top five in EPA per play Jordan love Brock pie Dak Prescott Josh Allen Tu a Tong OFA Lamar Jackson Patrick Mahomes Drew Brees Matthew Stafford Ryan tanah Hill Aaron Rogers Joe Brady Joe Brady Joe burrow Tom Brady Jimmy G Jaylen Herz so to recap the only guys in the last five years to finish in the top five in EPA per play are either the consensus best quarterbacks in the league momes Breeze burrow Allen Brady Rogers they work for Kyle Shanahan or Mike McDaniel AKA Tua and the 49er boys or they Ryan tanah Hill who was a later career veteran who found the perfect marriage of [Music] scheme and situation with derck Henry AJ Brown and Arthur Smith and the only quote unquote outlier that that I didn't just cover is two years ago Jaylen Herz when he was second in MVP boting so as we talked about the other day a top quarterback in the league for a season Jaylen Herz Jordan love they're they're kind of considered narratively in the same tier but there's no one in a position like Jordan love was on this list where if you were trying to be cynical if you were trying to be critical you would go see look like there's no Mitch trabis on this list there there's not even like a Kirk Cousins on this list because in the last 5 years at least he hasn't done it I haven't gone back to see further than that if he ever has has but at least in The Last 5 Years it hasn't happened now if you if you really wanted to be cynical you could say well battle the floor K Shanahan tree like listen the the Stafford is on there that's sha McVey Tua is on there P's on there Jimmy's on there this is all the same tree and I would say to you well Okay Kevin stefansky and Cleveland runs a version of this offense they're not on there there are other versions of this offense being run around the league like Ryan tanhill and Arthur Smith okay Des been R is not on there because that's if you're going to listen to the fans and look you should not listen to the Bears fans the Lions the Vikings fans the 49ers fans whatever that act like Jordan Love Stinks there there is not a quarterback who who stinks on the list not one and certainly none of those stunk the years that they were on those lists top five vpa per play but in the case of Ryan tanhill like Ryan tanhill was on there twice and Jaylen Herz by the way whether you think he's good or not the most relevant thing to this discussion that we're having right now is Jaylen Herz off that 2022 season got 51 million annually so Jordan love this is not a fluke and that is before we get to don't get mad all of the caveats with the youth with him being in his first year as a starter with all of the turmoil around him the young players the injuries Christian Watson Aaron Jones David bakari for first year play caller with that with that quarterback in terms of like first year calling plays for him none of those other players that I mentioned can say that and so once again you've just run out of excuses you've run out of reasons to say we're dubious about this repeating itself this doesn't happen he's not Ryan tanhill who mid to late career Resurgence with Derk Henry and AJ Brown okay cool the Packers did not have either of those players on their roster last year or any even close fact simile of those guys so that's out he they did not have AJ Brown Devonte Smith Shane stien by the way one of the best offensive quarterback or quarterbacks coaches offensive Minds offensive coordinators scheme Lords in The game everyone thinks the Colts are going to be good this year with Anthony Richardson basically only because Anthony Richardson's physical ability and Shane styken everyone is super high a guy who's thrown like 14 more passes in the NFL than I have everyone is convinced the Colts are going to be a playoff team because of Shane styken and because of Anthony Richardson's physical abilities well Jordan love has those kinds of physical abilities we know he does and he has this season of high level play you can't just say eight games because this is an EPA per play EPA per play figure for the season the whole year this is what he was for the year even with that bad first half if you want to call it that and I don't but even if you do what was he for the season that's what matters like Aaron shots talks about this and by the way we're gonna have Aaron shots on the show next week from ftn fantasy former leag football Outsiders the second half performance we get tricked by it and it it rarely translates as well as the full season numbers so yes in the second half Jordan love was the best the second best quarterback in the league does that mean for the year that's what he's going to be next year no because it's just half a season but for the full season he was a top five quarterback by productivity by productivity now the fact that like Kyle Shanahan has done it you know with Jimmy and Brock this is one of the reasons why you need to be dubious of the Brock py thing if you're the 49ers because it's like we've seen Shanahan do this like Brock PR is better than Jimmy G but that's a that's not that high a bar and we know what Shanahan is capable of doing We Know M Flor is capable of doing too that's the only that's the only dis left at this point is to say well okay look at the peers it's McVey it's Shanahan it's McDaniel so this is actually leflour but if we do that then you have to go back and you have to undercut Aaron Rogers in 2020 and 2021 which I don't think certainly the Packers Rogers stands want to do and then you also have to give Mal FL credit which usually opposing fans also don't want to do so those people just don't want to live in reality and that's their choice all that said this deal is not done so we're gonna have to talk about it until it is today's episode brought to you by our friends at eBay Motors passion drive and patience the formula for winning championships is also what keeps your ride or die alive eBay motor has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to Peak Performance superchargers roof racks exhaust kits LED headlights and more whether you're into speed power or style eBay Motors has you covered with 122 million parts for your number one ride or die you'll always find exactly what you're looking for and with the eBay guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back because with eBay Motors you're burning rubber not cash with all the parts you need at the prices you want it's easy to make your car the MVP and bring home huge wins keep your ride or die live at ebaymotors.com eligible items only exclusions apply eBay guaranteed fit only available to us customers lockon has launched the first ever National Sports 247 streaming Channel on YouTube and now it's also available on Amazon Fire TV and the free Fire TV channels app locked on sports today is here for you 24/7 cover the top sports stories of the day with the local Experts of locked on plus our national shows covering every League find locked on sports today now available on the free Fire TV channels app okay we got to do it we got to do it and we have to do it because we're still waiting on Jordan love and I can offer you the context that that I have been provided over the last couple days as I've talked to people as I've reached out to try and get a handle on what is going on here from people who I think would know and we heard from Adam shefer positive talks maybe this week maybe next week Diana Rini friend of the show uh was saying weeks not not September but but weeks August and so I think that that that raises some alarm bells for Packer fans going but what the heck why is this taking so long and the answer that I keep getting back when I ask that question to people you know who both are are have some level of understanding in what's happening there but also a level of understanding around the league let's say and the answer that I have gotten over and over again is these things take time they are hard to do they are hard to structure they are hard to negotiate but no one and I mean no one I've talked to some new people that I had not previously talked to about this no one is worried about this getting done everyone thinks this is getting done and not just everyone thinks this is getting done is confident it will get done so again you I I almost made a joke out of it earlier in the week when I was like this is the least dramatic hold in ever and that's still true I understand there are some Packer fans getting antsy about it I've been getting tweets about it and and messages about it like hey can they just like figure this out and get to work and I agree I don't what I don't want here's what I don't want I don't want people and I know that you know you guys the listeners of locked on Packers are aidite enough to not do this but I I don't want people out there to jump to conclusions about who to blame because there is going to be a certain group of people who assume this is Jordan Love's fault and not Jordan Love's fault necessarily but the agent's fault he's just trying to get a name trying to make a name for himself he's just trying to get his cut whatever it is David Metta David Metta at athletes first does not need the Jordan love deal to be a maid man in the NFL this is one of the Superstar power broker agents in the NFL he doesn't need this for that to be true and he's made his money if anything Jordan love is the one who deserves the money and needs the money because he has not gotten the major payday yet and he's about to get generational wealth so don't jump to the conclusion that that's what's happening because I don't think that's what's happening but it was interesting the way that Diana phrased it in her report that there was an expectation from the love camp that they would be the highest come in at the highest paid number ever highest paid quarterback in the league which is the same thing thing as saying the highest paid quarterback ever Adam shefer on Pat McAfee the other day said he thought Jordan love would be either the highest paid or one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the league and field Yates said recently on me and K's podcast that he and by the way he is sources in the league and he talks to people he's a hooked in reporter in addition to being a fantasy Guru and a friend of the show that he thinks Jordan love will be the highest paid quarterback in the league so that's just interesting color my guess would be the Packers did not go into this thinking that that's would that would be the the burden that that would be the line Sorry the burden thing is on my mind because of Presumed Innocent the finale yesterday that that would be the threshold right that they would have to get to 55 56 57 58 although if they listen to Locked on Packers they would know that I've been saying that for weeks that that is what it's going to take that is what it is going to take you are going to have to make Jordan love the highest paid quarterback in the league and if you don't you're going to have to break signing bonus records and even if you do you might have to break signing bonus records to avoid the structures that you've not wanted to deal with in the past and this to me my understanding of where this all is is it's it's that minutia it's the details it's not we're not sure we can pay you or we're not it's not the brand in iuk where it's like we think you're worth 22 and I'm making up numbers here and you think you're worth 30 that's not the issue as far as I understand it that's not to say that the money is all decided but my understanding is that is not the issue we're talking about structure here we're talking about okay you know I I've I've speculated before on what some of those things can be I don't even want to speculate anymore on what that stuff is but this is a productive set of dialogues that have happened they continue to be productive Jordan love is going to continue to sit out as is necessary in a moment like this and I don't want people to blame the team oh what are they doing they low balled Jordan what just pay him the money although I have not seen that very much which is interesting because when it was Aaron Rogers they seem to feel very much that way but it's Aaron Rogers so I guess I understand the difference there and I don't want them to blame Jed love who's just just doing exactly what any of us would do in that situation and try and maximize The Leverage that we have the ability that we have Jordan love one of the most talented quarterbacks in the league and I just laid out for you that the season that he had is pretty good evidence this is no fluke at the very least he projects as a Jaylen Herz Brock py Jimmy G Tu a Tong of ioa level quarterback moving forward and know that's not any great shakes in terms of being Josh Allen Joe burrow those Elite level quarterbacks but Jaylen Herz just got $51 million Jared Goff just got 53 million Brock pie in a year is going to get 55 to 60 million these guys get paid Jordan love is going to get paid you just have to be patient all right back tomorrow as we close out this first week of training camp here un locked on Packers let's do this follow me on Twitter Peter Bowski follow the podcast on Twitter Lo on Packers uh all the social medias Instagram Tik Tok YouTube you guys have been absolutely crushing it on the social medias go check us out there thank you so much for for riding along with us on this journey another season we are here I've been here since 2017 on locked on Packers so we are uh we are veterans at this point and go over and subscribe to the leap a newslet I would love for you to subscribe to so you can stay locked on Packers e