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.

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.

The Bears signing of Mike Martz shows one thing. That they are desperate to improve their team. Who wouldn’t want to? The Bears traded away two of their first round picks for a quarterback that was a total disappointment.  Jay Cutler threw the most interceptions out of any QB (26) and finished with an un-impressive quarterback rating of 76.8.  Who knows? Maybe Cutler had a bad year due to the lack of talent that surrounds him (other than Greg Olson and Johnny Knox). Or maybe Cutler was glorified by his time in Denver.  Maybe Cutler really isn’t that good. Spending 2 first round picks was a very high investment that did not pay dividends. To exacerbate the Bears position even more, they traded away their highest pick in the upcoming draft for Gaines Adams, who died shortly after. RIP.
Thirdly, Matt Forte, who had a solid rookie season, pretty much did the opposite in this 2009 season with only four total touchdowns. It looks to be that Forte had a fluke of a rookie year.
With all of this in mind, it seems that the Bears only chance at success will either be shown in beneficial free agent pick ups or changes in personnel.  So far Chicago has taken the latter approach. The Bears just signed one of the extremely aggressive Mike Martz, who may in fact make the team better for quite a few reasons.
1. Lovie and Martz have a great relationship. The two were very successful in St. Louis together and Martz’s offense was once named “The greatest show on turf.”
2.  The rest of the receivers are almost sure to put up bigger numbers.  While Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, and Johnny Knox are nothing like Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, and As-Zahir Hakim, I would say that those receivers should be able to be larger threats than they were under Ron Turner.

3. Martz could utillize Greg Olson and make him a big difference maker.

While all these are reasons the Bears could improve, it is my theory that Bears will still suck.  A team can have the best personnel in the world, but if there’s no talent to back it up, then there will be no chance at victory.  I believe a safe prediction can be that the Vikings will once again be the only threat to the Packers in the NFC North…. Unless the Bears sign ‘out of this world’ free agents.

It’s a great time to be a Packers fan.  Three straight wins, a newly ranked #1 defense, and a pretty good chance of earning a wild card home game are all things to relish at the moment.

However, what the Packers need is a signature win to prove they can make a run in the playoffs.  Most people are quick to argue that the win over Dallas could be considered the biggest W of the year, but the Boys’ have proven to be a flash in the pan with a few lackluster performances since then, so unfortunately the win doesn’t look or sound as impressive as it might seem.

The good news is that the Packers have, in my humble opinion, two remaining games that could truly build momentum going into the playoffs. I’m talking about Baltimore on Monday night, and December 20th at Pittsburgh.

Yes, Baltimore and Pittsburgh are holding on for their playoff lives at this point.  But you can’t ever discount a defending Super Bowl champion at any point in the season, and winning a game at Heinz Field would be something that not even Minnesota could do.  If Pittsburgh remains in the playoff hunt until that game, it’ll be a showdown for the ages.

The Packers will face off against the two Rays on Monday Night Football

As for Baltimore, they looked solid in their win against Pittsburgh on Monday. The defense showed signs of life, albeit against a Dennis Dixon-led Steelers team (note: I’m not slamming D.D. at all. Dude can throw, showed some flash running the ball, and looked confident in the pocket. In fact, that one start could earn him millions this offseason).

Plus,  you can’t forget about the budding chemistry between Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, and their veteran receiving core.  These guys are legit, and the strong veteran leadership will make sure they don’t quit at any point in any remaining games.

The rest of the schedule consists of a trip to Chicago (sandwiched between the Baltimore & Pittsburgh games), home against Seattle, and a finale at Arizona.  You could make an argument about Arizona being a big game, but it’s only worthy of the “signature” status if a victory that day assured us a playoff spot. And with the wild card race shaping up as it is, I could very well see that happening.

Mike McCarthy has most likely saved his job by passing the win total from last season, but questions about his coaching will linger if we can’t get a truly big win this year.