Perhaps the contract included a low base salary with heavy incentives, and performance escalators? I thought Raji was playing very well right up until the Bears game. Since then he's been an empty jersey, not much fight in that man.
Pack and BJ close to1 year deal
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Perhaps the contract included a low base salary with heavy incentives, and performance escalators? I thought Raji was playing very well right up until the Bears game. Since then he's been an empty jersey, not much fight in that man.
Jordyruns
Cheesehead
I needed a pick me up after the Lions Packers game and watched the highlights of the Packers Super Bowl. I started specifically looking at Raji on every play and I'm going to say he was a totally different person in that game at least (and most of the 2010 run.) Even on plays for the Steelers that worked out he still consistently got into the backfield and put pressure on Roethlisberger. A couple plays on the highlights he was not in and there was a noticeable difference in the pressure the D line was able to bring.
I remember a poll on here that postseason asking who was our 4th best player (behind Rodgers, Woodson, and Matthews) it was pretty split, Jennings got a lot, Clifton got some, Collins got some, Jenkins got some and I know I voted for Raji because to me he was so disruptive on that line offenses had to account for him. To me the Packers run started when his performance absolutely took off. I wanted to hold onto him for that reason but it has been 3 years and we have not seen that push and disruptive ability he brought at all, it really is a shame. This might need to be addressed in the draft now along with many other holes the Packers have but it's better than giving him his money for the lack of play he gives every week.
Looking back on it that 2010 Defense was so good, the talent was unbelievable, it really would have been hard for Capers to mess it up.
I remember a poll on here that postseason asking who was our 4th best player (behind Rodgers, Woodson, and Matthews) it was pretty split, Jennings got a lot, Clifton got some, Collins got some, Jenkins got some and I know I voted for Raji because to me he was so disruptive on that line offenses had to account for him. To me the Packers run started when his performance absolutely took off. I wanted to hold onto him for that reason but it has been 3 years and we have not seen that push and disruptive ability he brought at all, it really is a shame. This might need to be addressed in the draft now along with many other holes the Packers have but it's better than giving him his money for the lack of play he gives every week.
Looking back on it that 2010 Defense was so good, the talent was unbelievable, it really would have been hard for Capers to mess it up.
rodell330
Cheesehead
So is Raji being undercoached and not used right? or is he just not that good anymore? i would hate to see him leave and go somewhere and be a beast..on the other hand i would hate to see TT give him over 8 mil a yr in what i consider a down yr for him. A contract yr at that.
OP
OP
Werent BJ and Pickett nursing injuries?
rodell330
Cheesehead
I know Pickett was, don't remember hearing anything about Raji.
Raji has always been an up and down player. His old Coaches in College used to say that when the mood struck right he'd go out and just ruin practices and other times he'd be decidedly underwhelming. The trouble with him is that he was so freakishly good back in 2010 that he's built up quite a bit of name recognition, and surely some team will throw too much money at him in free agency.
Looking back I still think he was a good pick all things considered. No way we win a Super Bowl after the 2010 season without him.
H
HardRightEdge
Guest
There are two phases to this problem.
The first, long-standing phase, dating to 2011-2012, stems from Raji's change of role. In 2010 he had jet rushes, free-lancing and some pick-your-gap-and-swim-through-it freedoms, in keeping with the 2010 defensive theme of organized chaos. At the same time, there were more skilled players in the back 7 compensating for the resulting loosey-goosey gap control, particularly Woodson roaming the box and leading the team in solo tackles.
By 2012, all that was washed away. The jet rushes were a thing of the past; Raji was expected to control gaps. That's not really in his wheelhouse. For as big as he is, he's not very good taking on blockers head up and working off them to make plays. He's about as much of a finesse player as a 340 lb. man can be, and whatever inner sumo wrestler he might have had in him that was in reserve for selective spots in 2010 was lost in the wash of every-down hand-to-hand combat by the time we get to 2013.
Is he unmotivated and not an effort guy? Sure looks like it. But there is a chicken/egg question here. Is his play uninspired because Capers took his fun away? I think that's part of it. Did he need to have his fun taken away for the sake of a more cohesive defense in the wake of play maker losses and defense normalization, and he's failed to make a full effort to adapt? That's looks like part of it too...he doesn't look like he's trying very hard.
No matter...we're probably past the point of whys and wherefores.
In a charitable moment I would say he does not have the temperament for the job he's asked to do, and the ill-fitting role has worn on him. Playing DT in a more aggressive, risk-taking 4-3 with a stone-wall running mate to help cover his back might be a better fit and reinvigorate him.
The second phase of this problem is very recent. Raji's enhanced invisibility the last few weeks might stem from contract talks having broken off...his disappearance within a disappearance seemed to begin about the time the $8 million offer was leaked. These kinds of leaks are an indication the two sides stopped talking. Raji, in a word, has gone short-timer. You'd think he'd suck it up for the sake of his market value and make a late push. Perhaps he's just a sensitive soul, overwhelmed by the disappointment.
Bus Cook
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Perhaps he's just a sensitive soul, overwhelmed by the disappointment.
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13 Times Champs
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Following what HRE said, I have no hard evidence he wants to get away from Capers, but he has expressed disappointment with his role in Capers defense. He is playing like a guy who wants out.
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I'd say let him go and see if he can get that 8 Mill. Right now hes not worth it.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mu.../1210/nfl-most-overrated-poll/content.11.html
There you go, Raji apologists.. NFL players voted Raji the #11 most overrated player in the game.
I don't really regret drafting him because he did serve his purpose for us in 2010, and that 2009 draft class was so bad we probably couldn't have done much better at that slot anyway. I just don't want to re-sign him. He's a part-time player who can't play every down. He doesn't make impact plays. He has a questionable work ethic. He's not just going to start getting better with age.
Despite all this, he's expensive. There's really nothing there to like as far as signing him long-term.
There you go, Raji apologists.. NFL players voted Raji the #11 most overrated player in the game.
I don't really regret drafting him because he did serve his purpose for us in 2010, and that 2009 draft class was so bad we probably couldn't have done much better at that slot anyway. I just don't want to re-sign him. He's a part-time player who can't play every down. He doesn't make impact plays. He has a questionable work ethic. He's not just going to start getting better with age.
Despite all this, he's expensive. There's really nothing there to like as far as signing him long-term.
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Vltrophy
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Packers IMO will tell him he had his chance at $8M & will offer about $6.8 but max out at about $7.3
rodell330
Cheesehead
psshhh...even that's to much. We need to lock up Shields, Jones and Jolly. Besides we can go try and get Keven Williams or Henry Melton to replace Raji. Kevin Williams is older but he's still a good player with about two good yrs in him. Melton is younger but would be wayy cheaper and can play all over the line.
There you go again, Kevin Williams is just a big name. A one gap, gap shooting UDT, he is not a two gap block eating NT. That's like trying to replace Finley with Wes Welker.
Bus Cook
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That's the reason why I generally don't tender names when called on to provide one. Its too easy to take pot shots at suggestions, without tendering one of your own. The trolls beg for names so they can you their Bart Simpson imitations.
rodell330
Cheesehead
Replacing Finley with a guy who's probably a future HOFER and has three rings?? ok where do i sign?? Anyways, it's not about the name man, it's the fact that he's probably going to hit the market... and we can probably get him cheap and he can play some DE just like Henry Melton whos name you left out. Why do you act like guy's can't adjust to different schemes?
Stevie DK
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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...-of-packers-dl-bj-raji-during-a-contract-year
Good stuff about Raji playing some pure ball.
Could we tender Raji with a first or second rounder, and someone jump'd the bait, ohh boi that would be awesome.
Good stuff about Raji playing some pure ball.
Could we tender Raji with a first or second rounder, and someone jump'd the bait, ohh boi that would be awesome.
I stopped when I got to the part about Raji drawing double teams on every other play as whoever wrote that is clearly relying mostly on Raji's mainstream reputation without watching much film at all on him this year.
Anyway, Raji is an unrestricted free agent, not a restricted one, so there is no tendering him first round, second round, etc. If we put the franchise tag on him and someone signed him anyway we would get two 1st round picks as compensation, but nobody is going to do that.
H
HardRightEdge
Guest
It's been more like "impure" ball, as some of us have been saying for some time now, with which this report concurs. His lack of intensity has been palpable.
Tenders and compensation are for restricted free agents. Raji is, of course, unrestricted. A simplified way to understand restricted FA is that it only applies to guys who signed a rookie contract for 3 years or less.
rodell330
Cheesehead
Haha Raji hasn't been getting doubled that much...did Bj Raji write that column?? haha anyways, i saw him get handled a few times against ATL in one on ones a few times...same thing in the Detroit and Minnesota games to. I think Raji just needs to get mad! you know why Jolly can be out of the league for 2/3 yr's?? and come back and play like he hasn't missed a game? because he plays with an edge and he plays hungry. Raji is just to soft imo..has all the physichal tools but doesn't seem to have that nasty..i need to see some nasty from him. Dotson had it, Kampman had it, KGB had it, Brown had it, and Reggie White was the nicest guy in the world until that whistle blew.
We all need to get t-shirts that say..$$show me whatcha got$$...$$whatcha got Raji!!$$ with dollar signs on them. Like in that All State commercial he did.
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HyponGrey
Caseus Locutus Est
Raji not taking this makes me sad. Not like we don't have a few viable options though. How much is the DT tag next year?
Vltrophy
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Not sure but since they have him on a snap count I doubt he gets a huge contract. The rep for Raji is the same rep for Rodgers & Matthews. What a sweet paycheck for that guy
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I agree with trying to re-sign Jolly and Shields if they don't break the bank. I don't think James Jones will be back next year. Boykin is very similar to Jones in my mind and is a more instinctive player than Jones. The game comes naturally to Boykin and I think he will progress far more quickly than Jones ever did.
Raji is Raji. He is unreliable from game to game. If I were defensive coordinator, I'd want him gone and would want to replace him with a guy that had a consistently high motor like Daniels. Guys like that are far more reliable. I'm curious about how many snaps we'll see Boyd and Worthy play in the next three games. Boyd, Worthy and D. Jones are essentially all first year players and I feel safe in assuming they will make significant progress by the middle of next season. I still think Thompson will draft a DL by the middle of round 3.
Stevie DK
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Yes, Boyd is looking better week after week, but from what I saw on sunday, he got pushed around too easily, more than any D-linemen.
But there's definitely some talent to build on.
