The Cuts and Signings: The Aftermath

The NFL cut down day was Saturday and the Packers made those cuts and I was wrong on 11 of them. The first day after the Day was Sunday and Ted Thompson/Brian Gutekunst was silent on adjusting the lineup, but, of course, they signed 8 of those cuts to the practice squad and 3 of those signings were 3 players I had kept, but were cut (running back Joel Bouagnon, fullback Joe Kerridge and guard/tackle Adam Pankey).

The other practice squad signees signed on Sunday were center Austin Davis, outside linebacker Kendall Donnerson, defensive tackle Tyler Lancaster, defensive tackle James Looney and inside linebacker Greer Martini leaving two spots open. Other moves were waiving running back Devante Mays, tackle Kyle Murphy and cornerback Quinten Rollins from injured reserve with injury settlements even though those moves haven't been officially announced yet and may never be.  

Position Evaluation: Quarterbacks and Receivers

I’ve been reading the pap and FAKE NEWS coming out of Green Bay since the end of the season and the restructuring of the front office and have a few observations. First, FAKE NEWS is alive and well with Ted Thompson now behind the curtain running the show instead of being the tired old face of the team like he’s been for the last 13 years.

The pap usually reserved for Larry McCarren and his “happy news reports” has been almost universal, especially in the evaluation of the Ted Thompson’s roster despite the fact the Packers could only beat the Bears, Bucs and Browns when the crutch (Aaron Rodgers) was removed. I’ve seen reports that the Packers will automatically be in the hunt for the Super Bowl once again, despite the fact the Packers haven’t been for many years, Dom Capers’ incompetence accepted. It’s like the old joke, “A man needs surgery on his hand and asks his doctor if he will be able to play the piano after the surgery. The doctors says of course, and he said, that’s funny I couldn’t play the piano before.”

With all of that aside I will evaluated the Packers roster over the next few days starting with the quarterbacks and wide receivers.

The Packers Are……..

There are 4 games left in the 2017 season and the Packers are still in contention to earn a NFL record 9th straight playoff appearance, despite the loss of the best quarterback in the game Aaron Rodgers (for 8 games), their No. 1 running back Ty Montgomery (for 7 games and the season), their No. 2 who became their No. 1 running back Aaron Jones (for almost 3 games), their No. 1 left tackle David Bakhtiari (for 5 games), their No. 1 right tackle Bryan Bulaga (for 7 games and the season), their No. 1 left guard Lane Taylor (for 1 game), their No. 1 tight end Martellus Bennett (for 5 games and the season), their No. 1 slot receiver Randall Cobb (for 1 game), their No. 3 tackle Kyle Murphy (for 9 games and the season), their No. 4 tackle Jason Spriggs (for 8 games), their No. 1 right cornerback Damarious Randall (for 2 games), their No. 1 left cornerback Davon House (for 3 games), their No. 1 strong safety Morgan Burnett (for 4 games), their No. 1 left outside linebacker Clay Matthews (for 1 game and for half the plays during a game), their No. 1 right outside linebacker Nick Perry (for 2 games), their No. 1 left inside linebacker Jake Ryan (for 1 game), their No. 1 3rd inside linebacker Joe Thomas (for 8 games), their No. 1 right defensive tackle/end Mike Daniels (for 2 games), their No. 1 nose tackle Kenny Clark (for 1 game), their No. 1 backup cornerback Kevin King (for 3 games and lost for the season), their No. 1 backup safety Kentrell Brice (for 6 games and the season), their No. 1 edge rusher off the bench Ahmad Brooks (for 4 games) and their No. 1 long snapper Brett Goode (for 6 games).

The injuries have gotten so bad (97 games lost to injury) there are only a handful of key players who have been available for all 12 games (Brett Hundley, Jordy Nelson, Davante Adams, Aaron Ripkowski, Corey Linsley, Jahri Evans, Lance Kendricks, Richie Rodgers, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Blake Martinez, Kyler Fackrell, Dean Lowry, Justin Vogel and Mason Crosby).

My Thoughts on the final 53 plus 10

Breaking down the 2017 Green Bay Packers the best I can say is the Packers will not contend for a Super Bowl for the seventh straight year.

The Packers have two legitimate All-Pros in quarterback Aaron Rodgers and wide receiver Jordy Nelson. They three more possible Pro Bowlers in left tackle David Bakhtiari, tight end Martellus Bennet and free safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix with maybe defensive lineman Mike Daniels (in Dom Capers’ two-man line there is not much for a lineman to do that take up space).

The Current State of the Packers

The Packers have hit their rightful level I'm afraid. They have lost 3 in a row and 4 of their last five to fall under .500 (4-5) for the first time this late in the season since 2008.

 

While the offense hasn't been up to the lofty standards of the Aaron Rodgers era it has seemed to found some sort of productiveness averaging 27.25 point a game over the last 4 games after averaging 22.8 the first 5 games.

 

The ironic part of the offensive explosion is the Packers only score major points in 1 of the 4 quarters during a game - the 2nd quarter - where the Packers have scored 80 points compared to 60 in the 4th, 58 in the 1st and a measly 25 in 3rd quarter.

 

Staty Stuff

The Green Bay Packers (2-1) will host the New York Giants (2-2) at "The Shrine" LAMbeau Field on Sunday Night Football with the most insufferable color man in the business in the broadcast booth Chris "The Best in All of Football" Collinsworth.

 

Aaron Rodgers Needs To Be Back

Aaron Rodgers verses Eli "Packers Killer" Manning is the big matchup with the Odell Beckham, Jr. and his fragile psyche against the banged up Packers secondary the under-card.

Bye Week: What They're Saying?

This week NFL.com has a list of the Top 10 Deep Threats, so let's take a look at where our favorite buzz cut Packer landed. 1. A.J. Green, (Bengals); 2. DeSean Jackson, (Redskins); 3. Odell Beckham, Jr. (Giants); 4. Allen Robinson (Jaguars); 5. Julio Jones (Falcons); 6. Antonio Brown (Steelers); 7. Alshon Jeffery (Bears); 8. Emmanuel Sanders (Broncos); 9. Amari Cooper (Raiders); 10. Will Fuller (Texans).

Week 2 - Musings And Predictions

It looks like starting cornerback Sam Shields will not be playing because of a concussion. Outside linebacker Jayrone Elliott (hamstring), cornerback Josh Hawkins (hamstring) and safety Chris Banjo (hamstring) did not participate in practice and may be inactive on Sunday night. The other two on the injury list wide receivers Trevor Davis (shoulder) and Jeff Janis (broken hand) were full participants.

 

The Vikings will be without starting defensive tackle Shariff Floyd (knee) and may be without starting right cornerback Xavier Rhodes (knee) and starting left tackle Matt Kalil (hip). Last week's hero inside linebacker Eric Kendricks has an ankle injury, but he was a full participant as was running back Adrian Peterson (ankle). Former Packer wide receiver Charles Johnson has a quad injury, but he was also a full participant.

 

With that out of the way now down to tacks. Even though Shaun Hill did a decent job at quarterback in the win over the Titans No. 1 draft pick Sam Bradford will start this week. The key to him or anyone is getting a rush on him, so if the pass rush is there the Packers should keep the game a low scoring affair.

The Rumors of Marshawn Lynch's Retirement are Greatly Exaggerated

Jordy Lynch Answers Questions - Well Sort Of

I've been talking about the Bill Belichick infestation spreading through the league and the need of nipping this in the bud right now. It had already spread through 1265 Lombardi Ave front office and could be seen in any press conference General Manager Ted Thompson gives when he gives non-answers to serious questions on a daily basis.

 

It migrated down to Chicago a couple weeks again when Head Coach John Fox lied about the "sickness" of his No. 1 draft pick Leonard Floyd the day after he was carted off the practice field with a shoulder injury.

 

Well the winds have shifted and the virus has returned to Green Bay and its seems Jordy Nelson has caught a double dose of the Belichick/Lynch strain.

 

Freaking Out

Jordy Nelson "tweeked" his other knee and everyone is laughing it off except me. The national press and the local press breathed a sign of relief when Nelson announced that"It's not the ACL. No one needs to freak out."

Hoping on a Ghost

After I found the offensive line free agents not worth a look I will turn to the skill (sorry linemen, but that is what they call them) positions to see if an upgrade is out there.

The Real Ghost Jordy Nelson

Wide Receivers: Not a single starter had a good season, including the Ghost of Seasons Past Jordy Nelson.

With Nelson missing the entire season Randall Cobb was the leading receiver (79-829-6TD), but he averaged only 10.3 yards a catch. James Jones was a season saver averaging 17.8 yards a catch with 8 TDs (50-890), but he hit the wall and unless he is signed to a veteran's minimum he shouldn't be asked back.

Sober and Somber

Lions snap 24-year old losing streak at Lambeau Field

It's a gloomy day and it has nothing to do with the rain coming down outside. The Packers have officially hit their low mark of this season with the loss to the lowly Lions for the first time at Lambeau Field since 1991. There are no knights on white horses coming to save this season, so it's now left to the players on the field, the coaches on the sideline and up in the sky box to dig deep down and come up with a solution, if there is one.

 

Packer Backers are very superstitious with our rituals and wearing the same clothes, etc, etc, etc, but something Timmer said during the loss to the Panthers, "nothing we do means anything," hit the problem right on the head. I guess I was the only one who heard him because he wasn't saying to anyone, he was just lamenting to himself about the futility of the fans and I would add pundits to do anything about the play of our beloved Packers. The Packers are now in free fall with a chance of a long losing streak in the offing.

 

Outside The Box, But Still Inside the Lines

After the loss of Jordy Nelson Monday the sun came up and the Packers went back to business preparing for Saturday's pre-season game against the whining Eagles, which actually sets up my next comments perfectly.

The Eagles have been calling out a well-known dirty player of long standing linebacker Terrell Suggs of the Ravens. On the scale of dirty players there are two currently that set themselves apart from the "Pigpen" crowd safety Brandon Meriweather and Suggs.

Meriweather is well known to lead with his helmet as he launches for the head. He holds the distinction, if that is the right word to use, as the only player to get the best of Eddie Lacy in a one-on-one confrontation knocking him out of the game and the next with a concussion his rookie year when he was with his third team the Redskins (who were and are so bad they'd sign anyone, including Donald Trump if he could play football). Ironically (there is a God), Meriweather was knocked out the game with a concussion of his own when we went for a high hit against James Starks.

Eddie Lacy gets a concussion during the Packers Redskins game

 He is currently with his fourth team the New York Giants and he started his controversial career with the Patriots (the acorn doesn't fall too far from the tree) before being released and signing with the Bears (also seems appropriate). Meriweather is totally unapologetic saying he wouldn't change how he plays and would just pay the fines for illegal hits.

The Injury Report:

"Yes, Virginia there is a silver lining"

 

Jordy Nelson down and out

It was made official. Jordy Nelson will miss the entire season with a torn ACL suffered on the opening drive of the second pre-season game against the Steelers.

 

This will be the second time Nelson will have suffered a lost season although not quite as bad as this time. After having his breakout season in 2011 when he earned the starting job (played in all 16 games starting 9) he caught 68 passes for 1,263 yards and 15 TDs. Then in 2012 he suffered through lingering ankle and hamstring problems all season long finishing with 49 catches for 745 yards and 7 TDs.

 

Actually not only did Nelson have an off-year, but Greg Jennings was also hurt dropping from 67 catches for 945 yards and 9 TDs to a career low 36 catches for 366 yards and 4 TDs because of a groin injury he suffered before the season limiting him to only 8 games and 5 starts.

Post-Game Instant Analysis: The second pre-season game at the Steelers

The Good, The Bad and The UGLY

 

The Good:

The first string offense (minus David Bakhtiari at left tackle) looked very good taking the ball 80 yards in 10 plays on the opening drive of the game to a score. The good elements of the drive were not only good passing by Aaron Rodgers, but excellent running by Eddie Lacy, including a touchdown run from the seven. Then surprise, surprise James Starks converts the two-point conversion on the ground for only the second time since 2009.

The Bad:

Aaron Rodgers about to be sacked for a Safety

Don Barclay at left tackle was a disaster. He gave up a sack in the end zone for a safety and gave up another sack as well as many shaky runs in between with the first string. Barclay stayed in the game with the second string until there was 1:40 left in the third quarter and wasn't any better until his final series against the third stringers.

Post-Game Analysis: The Offense - Receiver Edition

WIDE RECEIVERS:

(Targeted 20 times with 12 catches for 132 yards and one touchdown)

 

Davante Adams Surrounded

The starting trio of Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams were targeted 10 times. Rodgers likes Adams and threw to him seven times, but he caught only 3 for 17 yards. Nelson caught both passes thrown his way (25 yards) and Cobb caught his only pass for 16 yards.

 

I noticed last year that Rodgers seemed to favor Adams more as the season progressed and it seems to continue this year as the defenses cover Nelson and Cobb or not. I just hope he doesn't forget them, because they always seem to find a way to get open as evidenced by catching all three passes thrown their way for 41 yards.

 

When you look at numbers the Packers have a lot of wide receivers on the roster. Behind the Big 3 there are eight on the roster three returning from last year's roster and five newcomers.

 

The first one to talk about is former 2014 5th round (176) choice Jared Abbrederis. A home-state boy all the way around born in Wautoma and played at the University of Wisconsin where he played in 53 games, starting 39, and finishing as the all-time leading receiver in catches (202) and second in yards (3,140) and touchdowns (23) as where as the all-time leader in kickoff return average (25.8) and fifth all-time in punt return average (10.7). This was an excellent choice, but after missing his rookie season with a knee injury he has now been sidelined with a concussion. It seems his career is over before it got started.

DRAFT DAY TRADES

The Packers hold the No. 30th draft pick in the first round and my guess is General Manager Ted Thompson will probably trade down to acquire more draft picks than trade up. I have a reason for making that prediction.

 

When the draft opens Thompson has nine picks. The Packers have all seven of their own picks (No. 1-30; No. 2-62; No. 3-94; No. 4-129; No. 5-166; No. 6-205; No. 7-247) and two compensatory picks (No. 6-210 and No. 6-212), which can't be traded, for losing wide receiver James Jones to Oakland and center Evan Diertrick-Smith to Tampa Bay. Defensive end C. J. Wilson to Oakland and offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse to Cincinnati were also free agency losses, but they weren't deemed good enough for compensation).

 

Thompson has been very active on draft day making 27 trades on draft day during his previous 10 drafts. In his first draft he traded down in the third round (No. 89) for two No. 4's (115 and 126). He then traded down again trading the No. 4 (126) for two No. 5's (167 and 175), and a No. 7 (245). He traded down for the third time trading the No. 6 (175) for a No. 6 (195) and a No. 7 (246).

 

In the end he traded away a No. 3-89 (DT Atiyyah Ellison), a No. 4-126 (T Todd Heremans) and a No. 5-175 (DT Anttaj Hawthorne) for a No. 4-115 (S Marviel Underwood), a No. 5-167 (CB Mike Hawkins), a No. 6-195 (WR Craig Bragg), a No. 7-245 (LB Kurt Campbell) and a No. 7-246 (G Will Whitticker). To sum up three draft picks for five.

 

ANALYSIS: None of the five picks Thompson acquired amounted to anything (see Lombardi's Den Draft Redux) while Ellison played six years for seven teams; Heremans was a solid starter for the Eagles for 10 years before signing with the Colts recently; and Hawthorne played two seasons with the Raiders and ended his short career in the Arena League. RESULT: Minus.

 

INTEREST HEATING UP FOR COBB

Randall Cobb

It seems someone does love Randall Cobb and I'm afraid its not the Packers. Reports today (Feb. 24) are the Raiders have put out the welcome mat for the Packers' No. 1B wide receiver/slot receiver/halfback, who was coming off an injury plagued season where he missed 10 games in the middle of the season with a broken shin only to put up big numbers during his contract year with career highs of 91 catches, 1,287 yards and 12 touchdowns.

 

The lack of movement on a new contract during the season was curious considering Cobb was going to attract attention and his demand of $9 million contract is very reasonable and isn't a budget buster. Thompson will have around $30 million cap money to spend and maybe more when he purges the roster of the expensive deadwood (i.e. hopefully Count Hawkula), so what's the deal?

 

First, it seems Thompson saw an $8 million saving when rookie wide receiver Davante Adams moved up the depth chart leaping over Jarrett Boykin to claim the No. 3 spot and then turning it up a notch at the end of the regular season and in the playoffs proving he could be the go-to man on the outside when Jordy Nelson was being double-teamed. I think that is the reason no contract talks were started during the season.

Free Agency and Ted Thompson

It seems General Manager Ted Thompson feels good about letting Randall Cobb hit free agency. I've got a problem with that for two reasons. It will drive up the price if the Packers do re-sign him, but more importantly Cobb will end up signing elsewhere.

 

Randal Cobb

 

Thompson pre-empted Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson when it was their time to test the free agent waters and ended up with relative sweetheart deals. He could have done the same with Cobb as most reports kept saying Cobb was waiting for the front office to make a move and most Packers want to remain Packers.

 

From the lack of contract I have to conclude the development of Davante Adams has caused Cobb to be expendable. Like I said I have a problem with that. Except for the broken shin Cobb has been a durable player and last year took the step to become a superstar. In the Packer offense there is a need for three No. 1 receivers and right now before Cobb walks (and I think the odds are better than 75 percent he will and much to my chagrin will probably end up in Seattle to replace Percy Harvin) leaving just two.