There is no deterring Kevin King’s confidence as it pertains to lining up across one of the NFL’s best receivers. Fellow corner Davon House told reporters on Wednesday that upon King entering the Sunday night’s game he requested numerous times to be put on Julio Jones. It is possible the Packers wanted to give Jones deserved a different look considering he had gotten the best of just about every Packer who had covered him to that point. It is also possible King liked his chances. He lined up against Julio four times and did not allow a catch. This included one pass deflection and tremendous press coverage on a goal line fade. The praise King has gotten this week was certainly warranted, but now it is time for him to become the Packers go to man to man cover guy. Sunday against AJ Green would be the perfect start.
Easing the load for Quinten Rollins and Damarious Randall is potentially a major catalyst for the Green Bay defense. Rollins and Randall play better in zone coverage and in the slot. If King can play himself into being a starter the secondary will improve.
House, the Packers current number one corner has been out of practice for a quad injury suffered vs the Falcons. If House is less than 100% healthy he is not an option for covering a receiver with the abilities of Green.
This works out well for the Packers, because the Bengals offense is in shambles. They just fired their offensive coordinator Ken Zampese and promoted Bill Lazor their quarterbacks coach. The Bengals passing game is ranked 27th in the NFL. They are first in giveaways.
When an offense struggles like this they rely even more on star players to right the ship. AJ Green has 10 catches on 18 targets. His QB Andy Dalton is leading the league with four interceptions. Neither of these stats will discourage Dalton from getting Green the ball. That guy is his bread and butter and is a big reason for his development. Putting King on Green will allow him to get plenty of looks and experience covering one of the leagues best. If Dalton keeps forcing the ball into coverage, King could really shine.
Sunday is a rare chance for the Packers to get away with throwing a rookie into the fire. If it pays off, King could take over the snaps Randall and Rollins spend on the outside.
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Brandon Carwile was a Cheesehead at birth. His dad grew up attending games at Lambeau and passed on the legacy. He has covered the Packers for over five years and currently works with packerstalk.com. Find him on twitter at @PackerScribe.
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