Rudy Ford won the starting safety position battle with his play over the summer, and through five games, he has helped provide the Green Bay Packers with some stability at that position.
“He’s just doing his job,” said Packers safeties coach Ryan Downard on Monday. “He’s doing it at a high level. He’s playing hard. When you turn that tape on, you see how hard he plays. He’s very intentional with his preparation, and he’s finally gotten the opportunity to show what he can do, and he’s capitalizing on it.”
Ford has been a very sound tackler for the Packers, making 37 of his 39 tackle attempts, according to PFF. In coverage, he has allowed just eight receptions on 18 targets and held opponents to only 10.6 yards per catch. He’s also come away with two pass breakups and two interceptions–giving him six takeaways since Week 10 of last season.
Ford was a late addition to the Packers roster in 2022, signed just before the season began following roster cutdowns. While a year ago, he was learning on the fly, this past offseason has given him the opportunity to fully immerse himself in Joe Barry’s defensive system, and we are seeing the results of that.
“I think that’s a huge piece of it,” said Downard about Ford having a full offseason in Green Bay. “He came in so late last year, and he did a good job for us of plugging him in late in the year last year. But now he’s really had the chance to detail out all of the jobs.
“I talk about that all the time up here, how detailed all these jobs are, and it’s not just ‘hey, go cover that guy,’ it’s eye progressions. There’s thought progressions. There’s coverage mechanisms. There’s checks. So he’s got the opportunity to finally embrace all of that, and so I think he’s piecing it together.”
Over the summer, Downard discussed the importance of having two safeties who could be tasked with either playing down in the box to help against the run or in the post as a coverage defender so the offense couldn’t get a beat on what the defense was doing based on alignment.
Ford’s ability to communicate pre-snap on the back end – a key element that won him that second starting safety spot – physical play style, along with his overall preparedness, resulting in him being positioned correctly, has allowed Ford to be able to fill both safety roles.
In addition to Ford’s two interceptions and two pass breakups, he has 18 tackles against the run, which is the most in the NFL among safeties, according to PFF, and by grade, he ranks 16th overall out of the 50 safeties with at least 216 snaps this season.
“I like his physicality,” added Downard. “He’s stout against crack blocks. He’s willing to throw it up in there. He uses his hands on crack blocks, and he’s pulling the trigger as well. I like those guys to be interchangeable, so they can never get a beat on whose in the box, and whose in the post, or whose in the split safety.”
The safety group was, without a doubt, the biggest unknown on this Packers roster entering the season. However, Ford, along with the play of Darnell Savage, has provided needed stability to this position. As Downard said initially, Ford just does his job.
He’s positioned correctly, allowing him to make plays on the ball and the ball carrier, and he’s more than willing to stick his nose in the run game, a vital aspect of playing the position in Barry’s defense, which relies heavily on light boxes. Not only is Ford’s presence being felt on the field, but his play is helping to elevate the safety position as a whole in Green Bay.
“He’s very intentional,” said Downard. “He’s very detailed. He wants to know the ins and outs of everything. You’re not just going to give Rudy a brush-off answer and let him take it. He wants to know, how do you want this play? Do you want us to be in this check or this one? And he’s going to raise his hand and say, I want everyone to hear it, so we are all on the same page. I think that cultivates an environment of accountability. So he’s brought that.”
