Cheese Curds, 3/6: Excitement builds around Wilkerson & 2018 Draft class

As the Green Bay Packers return home from Indianapolis and the 2018 NFL Combine, they do so with a meeting on the schedule with a notable free agent. The New York Jets finally cut Muhammad Wilkerson on Monday, leaving him a street free agent and therefore able to begin negotiating a new contract with a new team immediately.

The buzz about Wilkerson is significant, even despite injuries and discipline issues that have kept him off the field for a few games over the last two seasons. However, his talent is tantalizing if he can be properly motivated, and the combination of a familiar coach, a contending team, and the leadership of Mike Daniels might be just the right situation to get the most out of him. Just imagine a starting line of Daniels, Kenny Clark, and Wilkerson harrassing opposing offensive lines. Yikes.

While we discuss Wilkerson over the next few days, the Packers’ front office is undoubtedly going through notes and takeaways from the Combine as they adjust their draft board to account for the last week. Pro Days are coming up shortly as well, so there’s no time to dawdle as the team’s college scouts get ready to head back on the road.

We’ve got all that and more in this morning’s Cheese Curds.

Packers have inside track in pursuit of former Jets DE Muhammad Wilkerson | Packersnews.com
Defensive coordinator Mike Pettine is the big draw here, as he coached Wilkerson with the Jets. One of the biggest questions is how much money Wilkerson will command; however, he "desperately wants to play for a winning organization," according to Tom Silverstein's sources, which could give the Packers another edge.

PFF: Muhammad Wilkerson had best season in 2012 under Mike Pettine | Packers Wire
Adding to the excitement around Wilkerson is the fact that his best overall season (at least according to PFF's grades) came with Pettine as his coordinator.

Packers need better backup plan in case disaster hits Aaron Rodgers again | ESPN
That backup plan may take the form of a draft pick on day three, who could compete with Brett Hundley for the backup job, or in the form of a veteran free agent.

Big Ten's top cornerbacks have different strengths | Packers.com
Iowa's Josh Jackson and Ohio State's Denzel Ward are both projected to go in round one of the draft. However, Jackson's college experience came almost entirely in zone defense and he relies on his physicality and ball skills. Ward, on the other hand, is more experienced in man coverage and has exceptional speed.

Final 2018 NFL Combine medals count: Penn State dominates - NFL.com
If the Combine were the Olympics and each position got medals for each drill, Penn State would have been the runaway winners with 13 top-three finishes -- mostly from Saquon Barkley and Mike Gesicki.

Browns would be making a huge mistake drafting Saquon Barkley first overall - SBNation.com
Geoff Schwartz makes the impassioned argument against taking Barkley with the top pick.