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Passion fuels steady Pickett still going strong after 12 years
Jun. 10, 2013
Written by
Weston Hodkiewicz
Press-Gazette Media
Standing near the locker he?s called home for the past seven years, Ryan Pickett can appreciate the irony in a man listed at 6-foot-2, 338 pounds claiming to be in the best shape of his career.
?I?m a lot leaner. Well?? smiled Pickett, catching himself before glancing over to teammate Jordan Miller a few lockers down and finishing his thought.
?I guess I?m a little more ripped up this year,? Pickett finally quipped to Miller?s amusement before uncorking his own deep, bellowing laugh at the self-deprecating jab.
At 33 years, eight months and three days old, Pickett is the sixth oldest defensive lineman signed to an NFL roster. The law of averages should have claimed him years ago much like it has many of his contemporaries from the 2001 NFL draft class.
Instead, Pickett has bordered on being irreplaceable for the Green Bay Packers.
In today?s NFL, a game that continually favors posterity, 13th-year defensive linemen aren?t exactly hot commodities, but Pickett has found sanctuary as a focal point of Dom Capers? 3-4 defense.
Always dependable and rarely injured, Pickett has made a career of eating up double-teams and stuffing the run. The unique skill-set enabled him this past year to become the oldest defensive lineman to start for the Packers since Reggie White retired after the 1998 season.
Many have tried to duplicate the longevity ? dominant in their time linemen like Gilbert Brown, Grady Jackson, Santana Dotson and Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila ? but none saw the other side of 32 years old in a Packers? uniform.
Except for Pickett.
cont...
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/article/20130610/PKR01/306100329/
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