The Green Bay Packers have spent a lot of time addressing their shaky defense this offseason, and one of those moves was drafting Michigan defensive lineman Rashan Gary with the 12th overall pick of the NFL Draft.
While Gary is incredibly talented, he didn't post huge numbers in college, and some have questioned his motor.
However, there are many who feel that Gary's impact on the game goes beyond the stat sheet, so he could very well be an impact player in the NFL without lighting up the box score.
Mike Clay of ESPN projects that Gary will finish with 27 tackles and four sacks during his rookie campaign, which seems rather underwhelming at first, but you also don't know just how much he is going to affect the game for his teammates.
Maybe he will take on multiple blockers to free up his other defensive linemen and linebackers for sacks? Maybe he'll clog up the middle to stop the run game?
There are plenty of ways Gary can impact the game beyond just racking up stats, and the general consensus seems to be that that may very well be the type of player he ends up becoming on the NFL level.
The 21-year-old is coming off of a junior campaign in which he totaled 38 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks. His most productive collegiate season actually came during his sophomore year, when he finished with 58 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.
It should certainly be interesting to see just what type of impact Gary makes in his first season.
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