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- Mar 19, 2019
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LaFleur referenced Smith being a little banged up and playing through some bumps and bruises in the early going, so the bye week will probably help him.
The same goes for defensive lineman Kenny Clark (groin), who has missed the last three games, and inside linebacker Christian Kirksey (pectoral), currently on injured reserve. Outside linebacker Rashan Gary (ankle) missed Monday's game, and the Packers also had multiple defenders leave the contest, including cornerbacks Chandon Sullivan (concussion) and Kevin King (quad), plus linebacker Krys Barnes (shoulder).
The injuries have forced larger snap loads on otherwise part-time players, such as Tyler Lancaster and Kingsley Keke on the defensive line; Barnes and Ty Summers at inside linebacker; Oren Burks, Randy Ramsey and Jonathan Garvin at outside linebacker; and Raven Greene and Will Redmond in the secondary.
The added experience of so much youth could pay dividends down the road, but in the more immediate realm, the Packers have two areas targeted for improvement – takeaways and tackling.
Green Bay has forced only three turnovers through four games, far off last year's full-season total of 25. Those are known to come in bunches, and there have been some opportunities that just haven't bounced the Packers' way.
Tackling is the greater concern, with the coaches charting double-digit misses in each of the last two games after a solid start in that phase. The sloppiness led to an explosive touchdown play last week in New Orleans and helped Atlanta keep a long, clock-draining drive alive Monday night.
"We've missed too many tackles and that's two games in a row where we've had quite a few," LaFleur said.
Added Smith: "I want to continue to harp on that – tackling and finishing in that run game is something we've got to clean up as a defense."