Jan 29, 2010
Ted's got his work cut out for him
While the Packers have just finished a successful season ( in most terms) they now must focus on next year and that entails the re-signing of key free agents who made this team become as dangerous as it was. There are 13 overall free agents while they are broken down into two different categories of unrestricted, where they are free to sign anywhere, and restricted which are free agents where Packers can match an offer the player receives. For all the rules of free agency check out the NFL rules here.
UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (UFA)-
Ryan Pickett
Chad Clifton
Mark Tauscher
Aaron Kampman
Ahman Green
Aaron's O-Line could look a lot different next year
RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (RFA)-
Daryn Colledge
Jason Spitz
Johnny Jolly
Nick Collins
Atari Bigby
Derrick Martin
Will Blackmon
John Kuhn
For me Nick Collins is the most important free agent we should retain. But he may not be the first to be re-signed. The Packers will try to get there UFAs settled quick and early while negotiations with Collins are supposed to be somewhat of a long ordeal. For the UFAs, Ryan Pickett and one of either Clifton or Tauscher will be back for sure. Although we picked BJ Raji with our first pick last year, there is always the need for quality depth along the defensive line in the 3-4 system so I feel Pickett is a priority. Then we must bring back one of the tackles. I would prefer Tauscher to re-sign, but i think Clifton would be the first guy they would go after to sign. I also wouldnt be surprised at all if they both come back, hell, both are old and Clifton aint gunna make it a full season (couldn’t last year). With TJ Lang backing them up for another year he should be a very solid replacement if one gets hurt or does not re-sign.
Re-signing Aaron Kampman would the wrong move. Re-signing him is absolutely pointless from both a financial and personnel stand point because it was clearly a failed experiment when the Packers tried to convert him into a 3-4 OLB. Combine that with the fact that he’s coming off of an ACL tear at age 30 and that he was terrible in coverage before the injury and re-signing him becomes moronic. Also, you expect players to have career years in their contract year. Most players do because they know this is their opportunity to get paid. So I feel we should let him explore free agency, and if he can’t find any suiters, we could then sign him for cheap. A low risk, potentially high reward type of move. One team expected to make a run at Kampman is the Chicago Bears. Which would be just fine with me and almost any other Packer fan I know.
Ahman made him better
Then Ahman Green also shouldn’t be retained. One thing with Green though is that Ryan Grant picked up his pace once the Packers signed Green. In the five previous games to Green signing, Grant ran for an average of 69 yds per game, while after he ran for a little over 82 yds a game. Although Green pushed Grant to be a better player and ran hard in short yardage situations; re-signing him may take meaningful time away from the playmaking RB the Packers should look to select in the draft. I expect this “RB to be named at a later date” to help out in the return game (both kicks and punts) and help out in passing situations as well. Two things Ahman is unable to help with at this point in his career. .
Now onto the RFAs-
Our main overall free agent priority, as I said earlier, has to be Collins. He is a 2 time pro bowler and will command a lot of money on the open market. The Packers have the ability to use thier franchise tag on him ( Which is when you sign the player for the next season and you pay him the average of the top five players at his position in the league). Collins, on the other hand, wants the security of having a long term deal in place. Some players do not like the franchise tag because if they get hurt they would lose millions in the following year. Collins is all over the place, hes a ball hawk, and when he gets the ball he knows what to do with it. We need him on this defense for years to come especially with our cornerbacks getting a year older.
Next on the list is Daryn Colledge. He played multiple positions but mostly was our Left Gaurd. I thought he played well and was at his best at Left Gaurd. He has good lower body strength and gains alot of leverage thats goes along with his technique. One problem with this here is that Jason Spitz can also play Left Gaurd and he is also a RFA. Spitz also can play center, so its not unlikely that both could be re-signed. But it all depends on who the Packers value. from what I can tell, the Packers value guys who can play multiple positions and both of these guys fit that bill. Of course Colledge could feel he is being under appreciated and become a UFA next year. I still think its the Packers best option to sign both of these guys for multi-year deals. I hear McCarthy always talking about having continuity and familiarity along the OL, this would ensure that for years to come. Johnny Jolly is also a RFA, this here is a guy who was in a contract year and made the most of his opportunities and had a career year. He has always shown flashes but this year he was consistent. Again you cannot have enough depth along the DL. Jolly plays the end in the 3-4 and his job essentially is to take up bodies and have the linebackers make the play. Jolly made a living batting down passes this year and made many plays in the opponents backfield. Jolly was key this season and I want to re-sign him but he does come with baggage. His legal issues, which consists of possession of 200 grams of Codeine and is still pending decision, raises huge questions about his character. Also, in every post play scuffle amongst players this season, Johnny Jolly could be found right in the middle. He’s a good player but his off and on the field issues raise questions and this being his contract year scares me a little.
Sorry Ahman
Next on the list is a big question mark, and his name is Atari Bigby. He plays strong safety and fills the billing of strong. Yes, he makes good plays against run and lays the wood when receivers come through the middle, great. The thing i cant stand about him is that he is just awful in pass coverage and does not have ideal speed to cover alot of ground. I don’t know how much they will value Bigby, it will also depend on what Nick Collins does on the market. The Packers cannot lose both safeties because the likelihood of them replacing them with players on the same talent level would be slim to none. Another safety is Derrick Martin, he played very well on special teams and i wouldn’t mind having him come back for a small fee.
John Kuhn was very valuable in the red zone this year and was a solid blocker. This is the same predicament that we were in in training camp. The problem is that we would be carrying 3 fullback on our roster. I feel that they should bring Kuhn back and let one of either Corey Hall or Quinn Johnson go sometime in training camp.
Finally to me Will Blackmon has no value because he can’t stay healthy for even half a season, let alone a whole one.
Heres how I would prioritize our offseason moves:
1. Collins
2.Pickett
3. Jolly
4.Colledge
5. Spitz
6.Tauscher
7. Clifton
8.Bigby
9. Kampman
10. Martin
11. Kuhn
12. Green
13. Blackmon
