Super Bowl Dispatch on Packers DL Mike Daniels: "I Think He's a Future All-Pro"

Opponents share their thoughts on the Green Bay defensive lineman, whose enters the final year of his contract in 2015.

Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Mike Daniels—Kim Klement, USA TODAY Sports.

Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Mike Daniels—Kim Klement, USA TODAY Sports.

Unfortunately for Mike Daniels and his Green Bay Packers, the season ended on a sour note.

The lasting image of the defensive lineman from the NFC Championship game loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a 15-yard penalty for taunting that pushed the Packers from their opponent's four-yard line all the way back to the 19.

It occurred following the first-quarter interception by safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who raced up the left sideline for 26 yards before being tackled out of bounds by Seahawks offensive lineman J.R. Sweezy.

In the aftermath of the play, Daniels got in Sweezy's face. He never touched him, however. Only words were exchanged. Perhaps curiously, the official pulled out his flag.

"We had been mouthing off at each other a little bit, a play before, two plays before," said Sweezy last week in Arizona, in the lead up to the Super Bowl. "We were getting after each other pretty good, and I guess the refs had just had enough. I didn't expect a flag to be thrown. I was just glad whoever picked it didn't score. I was glad I knocked him out of bounds. But the ref made the call, and it is what it is."

Maybe the penalty came about because Daniels wasn't even in the game on that particular play, coming from out of bounds just to heckle Sweezy, whom he had been battling in the trenches earlier. Only the official can say for sure.

On the ensuing drive, the Packers settled for a field goal. Had they gotten a touchdown instead, the outcome of the game may have been drastically different.

It was a bonehead act by Daniels, one of many made by the Packers that afternoon. His impact on the game other than the penalty was minimal, but it also doesn't diminish an entire season of excellent play and supreme effort.

Daniels became a true three-down player in 2014, starting all 16 games compared to only one in his first two seasons in the NFL. He made a career-high 41 tackles and made six sacks (including playoffs), about as many as can be expected from an interior rusher.

Despite bigger names and higher-paid players on the Packers defense, Daniels received the highest grade of any player on Cheesehead TV's postseason report card and also got the highest rating from ProFootballFocus.com (premium content).

Seahawks offensive line coach Pat Ruel, a former Packers assistant in 2002 and 2003 during the Mike Sherman era, had nothing but praise for Green Bay's up-and-coming defensive lineman.

"He's probably got a whole future ahead of him," said Ruel. "He was effective against us. He's very strong. We had a hard time moving him around. I think he's a future All-Pro type player. He came on strong at the end of the year. I thought (Green Bay's) defense started playing well because he was playing well."

Thanks to becoming an integral part of the Packers defense, Daniels reportedly received a raise next season due to the "proven performance escalator" in his contract, more than doubling what should have been $660,000 salary up to $1.574 million.

Daniels will enter the 2015 season in the final year of a four-year contract, leaving observers to wonder what his future will hold.

Will the Packers and Daniels agree to an extension? Or will they wait for the 2015 season to play itself out first? Green Bay does have free agents whose contracts expire this season to worry about first, such as wide receiver Randall Cobb and offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga, just to name a few.

The way things are going, however, Daniels' stock is only rising.

New England Patriots guard Dan Connolly, a newly-minted Super Bowl champion, remembered his time going up against Daniels from his team's Week 13 meeting with the Packers at Lambeau Field, a game the Patriots lost.

"From what I recall," said Connonlly. he was a very good player. … I think he was a good player and he definitely played a great game."

 

Brian Carriveau is the author of the book "It's Just a Game: Big League Drama in Small Town America," and editor at Cheesehead TV and its "Pro Football Draft Preview." To contact Brian, email [email protected].

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Comments (16)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
HankScorpio's picture

February 03, 2015 at 04:57 pm

Daniels is asked to do too much dirty work to pile up the kind of numbers to make All Pro. It's not a bug of Capers 3-4, it's a feature. He'll face an uphill battle to even make the Pro Bowl.

Which is a very good thing, IMO. No need to drive his price up any with a stack of post-season honors his agent can use as leverage. I'd like to see him play in GB for a very long time. He can be the Packers little secret.

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TKWorldWide's picture

February 03, 2015 at 08:54 pm

Good player.
Just never been a big fan of the yap.
Let your play do the talking.

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Allan Murphy's picture

February 04, 2015 at 12:56 am

Trust me he will shut your mouth this year watch and see .......

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TKWorldWide's picture

February 04, 2015 at 07:05 am

MY mouth isn't the one that needs shutting.

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murphy's picture

February 04, 2015 at 10:23 am

Agreed. A little jawing is OK. Avoidable 15-yard penalties are not, no matter how good of a player he is.

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Packer_Pete's picture

February 03, 2015 at 09:25 pm

I didn't even realize he wasn't in the game for the play when he got the 15 yrds penalty. How stupid is that? Let your play do the talking, not the mouth. And as mentioned, he wasn't seen in the game other than that scene. And it took the Packers back from 1st and 4 to go to 1st and 19 to go. Big difference. I know he is a fan favorite here at CCTV, but I liked Guion better. Does his job without the constant yapping.

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Evan's picture

February 03, 2015 at 09:25 pm

"I didn't even realize he wasn't in the game for the play when he got the 15 yrds penalty."

Huh?

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Packer_Pete's picture

February 03, 2015 at 09:36 pm

According to the article, he wasn't on the field for the play. he was on the sideline and after the INT came in to jaw at the Seattle OG. That's why he got the unsportsmanlike conduct 15 yards. How idiotic is that?

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Evan's picture

February 04, 2015 at 10:41 am

That can't be right...

I can't find video of the play, though, but my foggy memory says otherwise.

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RCPackerFan's picture

February 04, 2015 at 10:57 am

Yeah, my memory says otherwise also. I thought for sure he was playing.

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Packer_Pete's picture

February 04, 2015 at 05:46 pm

well i would've said he was in for that play, but the article states
"Maybe the penalty came about because Daniels wasn't even in the game on that particular play, coming from out of bounds just to heckle Sweezy, whom he had been battling in the trenches earlier. "
that is idiotic, i'm sorry.

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Allan Murphy's picture

February 04, 2015 at 01:02 am

Pete love ya bro but i like his nasty he's not here to be nice guy if you don't like it some of us do . I my self wish we had 4 like him can't win games being nice guys just saying bro .

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Packer_Pete's picture

February 04, 2015 at 06:05 am

Don't disagree Allan, but there is stupid nasty and nasty that helps. that action was stupid nasty.

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Allan Murphy's picture

February 04, 2015 at 12:53 am

You guys just wait till this year 2015 is his some one said this before and you can write this down he will be better i'm sorry i wish Packers had 4 players like him nasty strait up you better bring your best or he will blow it up ..............

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TKWorldWide's picture

February 04, 2015 at 07:08 am

Nasty is great, but it does not mean a player has to run his mouth. Or get costly unsportsmanlike penalties.
Blast through the line. Sack the QB. Stuff the RB. That's MY kind of nasty.

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4thand1's picture

February 04, 2015 at 10:09 am

Seachickens almost won back to back titles. Nobody runs their mouths like those assclowns. TY Pats!

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