Getty Treyvon Hester #90 of the Philadelphia Eagles sacks Davis Webb #5 of the New York Jets during the preseason game at MetLife Stadium on August 29, 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Philadelphia Eagles defender who tipped Cody Parkey’s infamous ‘double-doink’ kick and put an end to Chicago’s most recent postseason run will have another chance to torment the Bears next season as a member of the Green Bay Packers.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst announced Friday the signing of defensive lineman Treyvon Hester, who played 15 games last year for the Washington Redskins after spending the 2018 season with the Eagles. He was a seventh-round draft pick for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2017 and enters his fourth NFL season having tallied 40 tackles, two sacks, eight quarterback hits, a forced fumble and fumble recovery over 41 career games.
After spending their money on other positions in the first wave of free agency and selecting just one edge rusher in the 2020 NFL draft, the Packers secured some experienced help for star nose tackle Kenny Clark on the first day of May to bolster their defensive line for 2020.
The Packers were among the bottom third of NFL run defenses during the 2019 season, giving up 120.1 rushing yards per game (23rd) and 4.7 yards per carry (T-24th). Now, Hester will join the quest to help the team improve those numbers in 2020 with last year’s entire cast of defensive linemen also set to return next season.
During that fateful game at Soldier Field in 2018, Hester managed to get his left fingertips on a potential game-winning 43-yard field goal from Parkey that ended up hitting both the upright and crossbar before falling short. The NFL had initially ruled Parkey missed the field goal, but a review of the footage saw the statistic corrected to give Hester the block.
Watch this video in slow-mo…Treyvon Hester comes up with a huge block off the tip of the fingers forcing the change of trajectory in the kick…wow. #CodyParkey #FLyEaglesFly
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Packers Continue to Add New Defensive Pieces
While Hester was the first established NFL defensive lineman to sign with the Packers this offseason, he isn’t the only newcomer set to bolster the position next season.
The Packers signed former Rutgers standout Willington Previlon as an undrafted free agent earlier this week and had previously claimed defensive tackle Gerald Willis III off the waivers from the Miami Dolphins — though, he has not yet been officially signed. The trio will add fresh bodies to a group that also includes Montravius Adams, Kingsley Keke, Tyler Lancaster and Dean Lowry with Clark as the centerpiece.
More wholesale changes have been made behind the defensive line, as the Packers allowed both of their top inside linebackers — Blake Martinez and B.J. Goodson — to walk in free agency and brought in Christian Kirksey as their presumptive new starter. The Packers also selected Minnesota linebacker Kamal Martin in the fifth round of last week’s draft, who Gutekunst suggested could be more than just a backup in his rookie season.
“I think that is to be determined,” Gutekunst said about whether Martin would be backing up Kirksey or supporting him on the field. “What you like about Kamal is he’s big, long and fast. He’s almost 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, really long, 34-inch arms. I think he’s going to compete at both positions and, really, it’s how fast does he pick it up. But I think this guy has a lot of upside.”
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