At his introductory press conference, Green Bay Packers defense coordinator Joe Barry said the adversity he encountered in two failed stints that played the same role in Detroit and Washington made him a better coach.
It didn’t take long for him to get a little more lumpy with his new job.
Barry made a disastrous packer debut as the defense allowed five touchdowns and one field goal in the first seven series of the opening round of the 38-3 season to New Orleans Saints. The defense must play outside linebacker The Derias Smith without injuring the Pro Bowl in the next three games, starting with a home opener (0-1) against the Detroit Lions on Monday night.
“It’s a long season,” Barry said. Obviously that’s not the way you want to get things started, but I love the people in this group. I love the way they came back this week. “
To be fair, we had a lot of responsibility for Packers’ poor performance against Saints. The Green Bay attack failed to reach the end zone and active MVP Aaron Rodgers threw two passcuts.
However, there are many reasons to believe that Packers’ attacks will bounce off. They scored the league’s highest 31.8 points per game last season. Rogers followed up each of last year’s Green Bay defeats in three regular seasons, throwing four touchdown passes in the next match and without interception.
“I’ve been in pretty good shape for a while, so you have such a (bad) game, you usually bounce back to the average,” Rogers said.
Barry has no such track record.
He previously worked as a defense coordinator in Detroit from 2007 to 2008 and in Washington from 2015 to 2016. Detroit finished with a total defense and scoring defense each season at the end of the NFL. His defense of Washington also struggled, albeit to a lesser extent.
Barry worked openly in his past after Packers coach Matt LaFleur hired him to take over Mike Pettine. “I’m really proud of my scars,” Barry said at the time. “In life, I think you’re solidifying your life with harsh experiences.”
Green Bay’s defensive player praised Barry for his lively approach on the driving range. They stood behind him after losing to New Orleans.
“That’s a good thing about Barry,” said linebacker Chris Burns. “He’s the same guy every day. He’s always bringing energy, and that’s the energy we need. He’s always going to take us. He owns this as well as us. We have the right. It’s a big thing for us as a unit to take responsibility for all the mistakes we make, keep moving forward, and never make those mistakes again. “
The loss of Za’Darius Smith makes it more difficult. Smith had more than 13 sack for the Packers in 2019 and more than 12 sack last season. His absence does not leave Packers (0-1) too deep for outside linebackers.
“It’s a big deal when you lose such a player,” Barry said. But that’s what it is. We want him to come back as much as possible. Without him, you’ll have to step up and create some, but it’s a great opportunity for many to go see what they have. .. “
Barry has spent the last four seasons coaching a linebacker at the Los Angeles Rams, helping him win three playoff berths and one Super Bowl. Barry and La Fleur worked together as Rams assistants in 2017.
With that experience, Barry is very familiar with Lions quarterback Jared Goff, who was acquired from Los Angeles in a deal that sent quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Rams.
“I respect Jared Goff all over the world, both as a soccer player and as a man, so it’s definitely strange to see him in another uniform, the Lion’s uniform. “Barry said. “But yeah, whenever you have such familiarity, some I could give to our guys, especially to the players you spent a lot of time on the previous team. I think there is a small insight. “
Green Bay defense can take advantage of all the benefits you can get when trying to recover from a humble loss without a top pass rusher.
Barry is ready for the challenge.
“It’s a marathon,” Barry said. “It’s not a sprint. I don’t want to reduce the fact that it wasn’t the way we wanted to get started, but everyone came back and had a great week. We’re in the Detroit Lions.”
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Packers Defensive Pain Focuses on Barry Before Lions Match | WGN Radio 720
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