Profootballtalk.com is reporting that Packers TE/Swiss-Army knife Spencer Havner was arrested for a DUI early last Saturday in California following a motorcycle accident. Havner sustained a fractured scapula and lacerations to the back of his head and arm. He was not wearing a helmet.

According to TheUnion.com, Havner was driving a Kawasaki motorcycle around a cul-de-sac at 2:45 am. It was there that he lost control and suffered the injuries.

Definitely not the ideal way for Havner to start his offseason training. He scored four memorable touchdown’s for the Packers last year, and I figure that he could at least play an enhanced role on offense this season. These injuries and DUI charges definitely put that scenario in jeopardy.

A lot of Green Bay Packer Fans can rest easy now that two pivotal parts of the Packers Defense have been extended long term contracts. The news that DL Ryan Pickett and FS Nick Collins both will be extended today came from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s columnist, Greg A. Bedard.

It is reported that DL Ryan Pickett has received a four year extension worth a total of $28 million.  FS Nick Collins accepted a three year extension worth a total of 23 million dollars.

Quotes:

“I signed the papers today, We’ve been working on this off and on for a year.” I’m just happy to stay in Green Bay.” It meant the world to him to be here, his family likes it here; he loves to fish, he’s a small town guy, he loves being part of the Green Bay community.” – Ryan Pickett

“love this defense, I think I was built for it…I think the defense is going to grow leaps and bounds from last year.” – Ryan Pickett

“Our No. 1 goal is to get to the Super Bowl.”- Ryan Pickett’s response when asked if he and Collins made the decision together.

This Move will go a long way in helping the Packers return to the post season and compete for a Super Bowl championship.  Once again, the Ted Thompson haters have to eat a little bit of humble pie after this deal.  He’s done an excellent job of retaining quality talent on favorable deals.  Way to go Teddy. Go Pack!

Packers Safety, Nick Collins has signed his tender offer ( 1 year – 3.3 mil) today according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. This is great news for the Green Bay Packers and their fans, who expected Collins to take quite a while to sign the offer.  This breaking news is a good indication that Nick Collins will be back in the fold next season and that him and the Packers seem to be on the same page.  Nick will probably have a new contract by time we see him at OTA’s and Mini-camp this summer.  This deal is another indication that Ted Thompson is committed to keeping last years core in tact and establishing continuity going into next season.  Way to get this done Ted.

Quotes: Nick Collins’ agent, Alan Herman

“Nick really likes it in Green Bay and wants to stay there. Hopefully, this will help us finalize a deal as we move forward.”

“We hope to get things moving as free agency moves forward over the next week or so”

Chad Clifton got the money he wanted and has agreed to stay with the Packers for another three years, most likely guaranteeing that he will retire as a Packer.

That’s definitely good news for the Packers, who saw their NFC North foes beef up their defensive lines yesterday. With Julius Peppers going to Chicago and Kyle Vanden Bosch signing with Detroit, the Packers are going to need all the help they can get on an already shaky offensive line.

It’s obviously tough to know if Ted Thompson plans on signing a free agent whatsoever (early indications are no), but the re-signing of Clifton is a great way to start the free agent period.

The Packers have decided to give tender offers to 9 of their restricted free agents. This list includes safeties Nick Collins and Atari Bigby, cornerbacks Tramon Williams and Will Blackmon, guards Daryn Colledge and Jason Spitz, end Johnny Jolly, fullback John Kuhn and tight end Spencer Havner. Notably absent were punter Jeremy Kapinos and running back DeShawn Wynn.

What does all this mean? Well, each tender is leveled so the team will receive some sort of compensation from any team who signs one of these players. For example, Nick Collins and Tramon Williams received the highest level tender both money-wise and compensation-wise. If any team gives these players a higher offer, they will have to surrender a both a first and third round pick for either Collins or Williams. Johnny Jolly also received a high first round tender. These moves basically assure that these players will be back with the team next year.

Giving Johnny Jolly a high tender worth almost $3 million dollars for next year seems like a bit of a surprise considering his availability for next year is in question. He has a felony drug charge that has a good chance of netting him a four game (could be more) suspension, with the possibility of jail time. His play on the field last year was undeniably a major factor in why the team would offer him such  a high tender.

Daryn Colledge, who is reportedly angry with the Packers, received a second round tender. This is also a high level tender that will most likely keep away offers from other teams. Colledge had made his desire to test free agency known and is not pleased that his options are very much limited now. Jason Spitz and Atari Bigby also got second round tenders, and will most likely be playing in green and gold next season (for at least the preseason).

Will Blackmon received a fourth round tender, so he will brought back for the preseason with a major opportunity to compete for playing time on defense. It is still up in the air whether the team should keep him or not though.

Low level offers were given to John Kuhn and Spencer Havner.

Contract negotiations between the Packers and unrestricted free agents LT Chad Clifton and LB Aaron Kampman were not settled by last night’s 11 pm deadline.  As a result, both veterans are now free to negotiate with other NFL teams.

Clifton is looking for his last big pay day

The Packers have stated that they want to retain the services of both players, but it appears the two will be playing elsewhere next season.

Contract negotiations with Clifton’s agent Jimmy Sexton reportedly heated up as the deadline approached, but still no deal was reached before the deadline. Another NFL agent stated that Sexton was seeking a similar deal to what LT Flozell Adams received from the Dallas Cowboys two years ago.

Clifton remains productive despite his age (33 years old) and recent injuries, but Adams’ deal was for six years at an average of $7.17 mil per season. It also included $16 mil in guaranteed money. Adams was a year younger than Clifton at the time of receiving his deal and was also coming off another Pro Bowl and injury-free season in 2007.

It is believed that Sexton is playing hardball with the Green Bay Packers because he is aware of the weak talent pool at tackle in free agency his offseason, and he knows the Packers do not want to be forced to find an immediate starter at the position in the draft.

While it is still very possible that Clifton rejoins the team (hopefully at a better price than listed above), 30-year-old LB/DE Aaron Kampman appears to be as good as gone. Kampman is only four months into his rehabilitation from reconstructive knee surgery, and the Packers really just don’t need him back all that badly.

Peace Kampman

Kampman appears to have several suitors, including the division rival Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks, Philadelphia Eagles, Tennessee Titans, and Detroit Lions. As well, the news just broke that Kampman is apparently the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ top free-agent priority.

It was also reported earlier this afternoon that Clifton is visiting Washington, D.C. to speak with the Redskins. The Redskins are in need of a LT after the retirement of Chris Samuels, and the Packers are reportedly very firm on an average salary of about $5 mil per season.

If the Redskins’ aggressiveness towards free agency in the past carries over into this offseason, then it’s hard to believe that Clifton will back with the Pack next season. But as I said earlier, Clifton’s agent Jimmy Sexton likes to play hardball.

Other unrestricted free agent news

Punter Jeremy Kapinos was also not retained by the Pack and is not expected to be back next season.

It looks like cornerback/return man Will Blackmon will receive the offer of the low tender in free agency.

This means that the Packer’s have the right to turn down Blackmon if he wishes to sign with another team and the Packers would then be compensated with a 4th round pick. The Packers low tender towards Blackmon consists of $1.76 Million.

However, with Blackmon’s long list of injuries any Packer fan could question on whether Blackmon should stay or go. Overall, I think there are more reasons to keep him around.

Reasons Blackmon should go:

1. The 4th year veteran is made out of glass. In all but one of his seasons he has been injured for seven games or more.

2. As I said before, the Pack get a fourth rounder if he signs with another team. That fourth rounder could be more valuable than the injury prone returner.

Reasons Blackmon should stay:

1. When Will Blackmon has played as a returner, he has been quite  successful. He currently has the franchise record tied with Desmond Howard for most punt return TD’s (3).  While the 08 season was the only one where he wasn’t injured for the majority of games, he had an impressive total of 1,157 yards on kick returns and 398 yards on punt returns.

2. With the uncertain future of Al Harris and with Pat Lee’s unproven  ability, having Will Blackmon fill in at corner couldn’t hurt.

3. If he did sign with another time and became successful, fans would go after Thompson for not resigning him.  One similar player is Allen Rossum, who was not resigned and is still a successful return man to this day.

Although the Pack has given Blackmon many chances, I think one more go around with him is necessary. If he gets injured again this year, it’ll be time for him to go.

In the first move the Packers have made with their eight resticted freeagents, they resigned backup safety and special teams ace Derrick Martin. Martin, who who finished second on the team in special teams tackles with 21, signed a two year deal with the team for an unspecified amount.

While the move appears to be minor, it shows the Packers’ commitment in keeping key special teams players. It also shows that Ted Thompson and company like what they have seen from the 4 year veteran.

Considering how much Martin struggled when he replaced Atari Bigby early in the season (his last significant playing time on defense), he must have shown something in practice to give the organization some confidence in him at safety. Martin’s agent, Brad Cicala, said that his client expects to see more time in the secondary next year. Possibly as a nickel or dime back.

While I’m not quite sure about Derrick Martin playing significant time on defense, I think this is a good signing because he is a valuable special teamer and the Packers don’t have to break the bank with a guy like Martin. He is just as good and cheap as anyone else on the backup safety market.

Watching New Orleans completely force the hand of the Colts late in the game last night made me think of one thing… The Packers really were good enough to do the same thing. You could say, “Oh, well Indy would have torn apart Green Bay’s D,” or “The Packers’ offense is good but it’s not dominant like the Saints.” But let’s look at the numbers shall we.

In the regular season the Saints had the 26th ranked passing defense while the Packers ranked fifth. Okay, maybe ranking in the upper 15% was a bit of a flash in the pan for the Pack because of an easy schedule; but had they faced tougher offenses would they have dropped 21 spots to 26? I don’t think so.

How about the run defense? You could tell last night that the Colts felt pretty comfortable running the ball. The reason being is because New Orleans gives up an average of 122 yards on the ground, good for 21st in league. The Packers? Only the top ranked running defense in the NFL, giving up 83 yards per game.

The turnover margin is also in the Packers’ favor with a league best +24, while the Saints –a team that proclaims to rely on turnovers- sits at +11.  So with all these statistics we can agree that the Packers defense is at least up to par with the “Who Dats?”

Now on to the offensive side of the ball. The Saints were outstanding putting up 6,461 total yards this year. This was the number 1 offense, but the Packers were not too far behind at number six, putting up 6,065 yards. Both teams were led by excellent quarterbacks. Drew Brees’ performance over the last few seasons speaks for itself. A-Rodge’s does as well. He actually put very similar statistics with the ex-Boilermaker. He had more yards and less picks, while Brees had 4 more TD’s and a slightly higher passer rating.

While numbers clearly aren’t everything, they provide a good way gauge a team. And if you’re gauging with these numbers, you could say that the only thing holding back the Packers from the Superbowl was a better defensive game plan against the Cardinals . Either way, with a few minor adjustments, these numbers give Packer fans all the more reason to be excited for next year.

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