Packers defense has a new fumble-forcing emphasis for 2025 season
Through four days of training camp practices, the Packers have punched a few footballs out of the hands of ball-carriers, suggesting the emphasis is translating to the field.
Last season, the Packers forced 16 fumbles. The NFL record is 34, set by the New York Giants in 2010. To reach the goal would require Hafley's defense to more than double last season's output, but as the old saying goes, you get what you emphasize at the professional level of football.
The Packers were plenty good forcing fumbles last season. Twelve different players forced a fumble for the Packers in 2024, including Keisean Nixon (3), Carrington Valentine (2) and Kingsley Enagbare (2). The 14 turnovers caused off forced fumbles ranked the Packers third in the NFL. But Hafley wants more.
Part of forcing fumbles is arriving violently and intentionally at a ball-carrier, using a punch technique to pry the ball loose or having multiple players rally to the ball-carrier to provide an opportunity to strip it away. But a bigger part of the forced fumble equation is the strip sack, which the 2010 Giants all but mastered. That season, Osi Umenyiora forced an NFL-best 10 fumbles, and Umenyiora and Justin Tuck combined for an incredible 15 forced fumbles on their own. The Packers will need edge rushers such as Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness to actively hunt the ball when pressuring the quarterback, and pass-rushers in general must do a better job targeting the ball when closing in on the quarterback in 2025.
Training camp is providing the testing ground.
"You see guys come out in practice, anytime they're close to the ball, anytime anyone's close to the ball, punching at it violently," second-year safety Evan Williams told Hodkiewicz. "We're talking about angry, violent intentions. The picks are great, obviously, but I feel like it's another thing to go get a forced fumble because no ball carrier is going to give you the ball."
The Packers ranked in the top five for takeaways in Hafley's first season as defensive coordinator, thanks to a strong mix of interceptions (17) and recovered fumbles (14). Interceptions are game-changing plays, but forcing a fumble often requires a more intentional act from the defense. Can the Packers punch out more footballs, create more strip-sacks and generate even more takeaways in 2025?
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers defense has a new fumble-forcing emphasis for 2025 season
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