Meet Mr. Clinton-Dix
In the end, there was no trade up, there was no C.J. Mosely, there was no defensive lineman popping up out of the blue.
It was just Ted Thompson letting the draft come to him, and the draft brought him arguably the best safety out there.
Despite predictions that put Clinton-Dix's chances of reaching the Packers at just 6%, there he was, ready and available at number 21.
Described virtually across the board as a rangy, instinctive safety with experience in a pro-style scheme at Alabama, Clinton-Dix should be a plug and play starter for the Packers. He has no real competition to start across from Morgan Burnett, promising athleticism of Sean Richardson aside.
I'm a little bit concerned about his overall lack of athleticism. He only ran a 4.58 in the 40, isn't overly big, and doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who's going to scare anybody going over the middle. But he has a far, far better pedigree than anybody the Packers have put at safety since Nick Collins, the Charles Woodson experiment aside.
We've all heard how the Packers didn't get any turnover creating plays from the safeties in 2013, and while Clint0n-Dix isn't necessarily a ballhawk, he did have seven interceptions over two seasons as a starter at Alabama.
I'll let the better football minds than mine sort out the details of what kind of impact Mr. Clinton-Dix could make, but I will point out a few things.
First, he will wear number 21 for the Packers. That feels right for him. I know it was Charles Woodson's number, but I'm over that already. Woodson wasn't getting his number retired anyway.
Second, this is stuck in my head:
Third, Josh Sitton wins the analysis game. Just think about it.