Riggo's Rag
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Top five linebackers for Redskins to target in 2020 free agency

By Jacob Camenker

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 01: Joe Schobert #53 of the Cleveland Browns in action against the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 1, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 01: Joe Schobert #53 of the Cleveland Browns in action against the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 1, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
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KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 27: Inside linebacker Blake Martinez #50 of the Green Bay Packers looks across the line of scrimmage against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half at Arrowhead Stadium on October 27, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 27: Inside linebacker Blake Martinez #50 of the Green Bay Packers looks across the line of scrimmage against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half at Arrowhead Stadium on October 27, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /

Linebacker. Green Bay Packers. Blake Martinez. 3. player. 49.

What if I told you that there was a player who had recorded at least 144 tackles in each of the past three seasons hitting free agency. You’d probably be excited, right?

Well, Blake Martinez has done just that and racked up an insane 155 tackles last season, averaging nearly 10 tackles per game. That said, there are some concerns with Martinez as a run defender that are an important reminder as to why tackling stats don’t tell the whole story for teams.

Too often on tape, Martinez struggled to make stops. While he is an instinctive downhill player, he sometimes would get overaggressive and miss angles to the ball carrier. This resulted in him missing 15 tackles last season and his struggles in this area were apparent in both of the Packers’ losses to the San Francisco 49ers.

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Still, there are some serious merits to Martinez’s play. Since 2017, Martinez has started 48 consecutive regular season games for the Packers and has helped out as a solid coverage linebacker for the squad. Sure, he had the help of a top-notch safety tandem in Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage, but he still held up well and allowed a passer rating of only 90.8 last season.

And beyond that, Martinez has been an effective pass rusher for the Packers. He knows how to blitz from the middle and that’s how he has racked up eight sacks over the course of the past two seasons. In the right scheme and with more opportunities to blitz, he could generate even more pressure in 2020.

For Washington, Martinez is a solid option but he isn’t the best among the three-down linebacker options because of his tackling issues. Martinez can still make an impact in that area and if he improves his angling, he could be a true, three-down linebacker. Perhaps Jack Del Rio could work with him to improve and get the most out of him.

Martinez is still one of the best pass rushing middle linebackers available and that top-notch trait plus his coverage ability helps him to edge out Kwiatkoski in these rankings. He surely would be an upgrade for the Redskins but the other two options on this list seem like better fits as true, three-down linebackers.

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