Rashan Gary pushing for high impact in Packers' defense

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What exactly Pettine's plans are for his top three outside linebackers, and deploying all of them at the same time, will unfold in time. But it's obvious Gary will be playing a lot more than his roughly 240 defensive snaps from a year ago, and he went about the offseason, pandemic and all, determined to be physically ready.


Working out at McKinney High School in Texas, Gary ran bleachers and gassers. He watched his diet more, and he worked on technique and footwork drills with a former position coach.


With his current coach, Mike Smith, whom he praises, Gary dove into the virtual meetings to learn Pettine's system that much better, particularly the smaller details. His two sacks and 19 QB pressures provided impact in limited playing time as a rookie, but he knows any strides he makes mentally will be just as important as those he makes physically to succeed with a larger role.


"In terms of the scheme, the plays and how I fit into it, I feel great," he said. "I feel like I'm at the point where it's just perfecting every play. It's not like learning it and getting it down. I know it and now it's about making it effective and doing my assignment every play."


As for the Smiths, he calls them his "big brothers." They've both expressed confidence in what Gary can bring to the defense and seem to have enjoyed showing him the ropes, while Gary has been able to see first-hand what Pro Bowl-caliber play at his position looks like week after week.