Packers Morning Buzz: LeRoy Butler leaps at chance to push Hall of Fame candidacy

Welcome to your Morning Buzz, rounding up news and views regarding the Green Bay Packers from around the web and here at PackersNews.com.

We'll start with former Packers safety (and creator of the Lambeau Leap) LeRoy Butler expressing his excitement about being a Pro Football Hall of Fame finalist to Clark Judge of the Talk of Fame Network.

Judge writes:

Until 2018 LeRoy Butler had never been a semifinalist for the Hall. That means that voters didn’t view him as a serious candidate for election until two years ago. But those voters comprise the same group that made him a starter on the 1990s’ all-decade team.

“When I was a semifinalist,” he told me this week, “I was over the moon. Now, I’m over the universe.”

So what happened? Good question.

“I’m surprised it took 14 years,” Butler said, “because I thought people would recognize that I was one of the best safeties of the '90s, especially when I made the all-decade team. I thought when you made the all-decade team you at least should be in the finals.

“So to finally make it is just amazing in itself because I thought this would happen maybe 10 years ago. At the same time, I’m a patient person. And knowing that it will happen one day gives me a lot of calm.”

For some reason, voters finally woke up to LeRoy Butler.

“After I was named (as a Hall finalist),” Butler said, “my daughter came over to me and said, ‘It’s a leap year.’ And that’s what I thought was so amazing. “

You can read the entire story here:

Green Bay's defense has a lot of catching up to do, writes Tom Silverstein:

Coach Matt LaFleur is interviewing some experienced candidates to direct the Packers' secondary:

After a week spent evaluating prospects and talking to team executives at the Senior Bowl, NFL.com's Bucky Brooks posted his first 2020 mock draft. Like many others, Brooks has the Packers taking a wide receiver at No. 30.

Brooks writes:

Green Bay Packers

Jalen Reagor - WR

School: TCU | Year: Junior

Aaron Rodgers needs more playmakers at his disposal.

You can check out Brooks' entire first-round mock draft here:

Pro Football Focus acknowledges Aaron Rodgers' flaws but still lists him as having the seventh-best 2019 performance of any NFL quarterback.

PFF's Steve Palazzolo writes:

7. AARON RODGERS, GREEN BAY PACKERS

One of the biggest offseason questions centered around Rodgers playing in a new system, and even with a 13-3 record and first-round bye, Rodgers didn’t exactly answer those questions with flying colors. He finished with a solid grade but also had multiple poor games, and he even produced the lowest-graded outing of his career in Week 12. There’s no denying Rodgers’ talent — and he’s still one of the league’s best at hitting big-time throws and avoiding turnover-worthy plays — but the thing that has made Rodgers one of the best quarterbacks of all time is his ability to hit the “easy” throws and avoid negative plays. Those elements of his game have taken a step back in recent years, and that trend has now stretched across multiple systems. Perhaps Rodgers can get back to his top-three self, but he’ll have to improve his short and intermediate accuracy while cutting down on the pressure that he’s invited in recent years.

Key Stat from QB Annual: Rodgers had the 18th-best PFF grade from a clean pocket, but he ranked sixth when under pressure.

You can read the entire story here:

Hackers made the Packers their latest NFL victim:

Here's a must-see Packers photo gallery with the best shots from the 2019 season:

Former Packers executive Eliot Wolf (now Browns assistant general manager) has a new boss after the departure of John Dorsey:

The 49ers figure to remain a Packers nemesis for years to come (and Green Bay will again play at San Francisco next season):

Former Packers and Wisconsin quarterback Scott Tolzein joining Mike McCarthy's Cowboys staff:

Yes, it was the Pro Bowl, but Davante Adams stood out among his peers Sunday:

Za'Darius Smith clearly enjoyed his Pro Bowl experience, but vows that Packers players will be busy with other things next January:

This is your weekly Taysom Hill update out of New Orleans:

And finally:

**Note: The Packers Morning Buzz will be taking some Super Bowl downtime and will return to its regular schedule next Tuesday.**

Contact Stu Courtney at (920) 431-8377 or scourtney@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stucourt