Darnell Dockett?

[Vrill]

Should we give him a look?

 

[Mondio]

I really didn't watch him much last year, but he's been a guy I would have wanted for the past few years for sure. Was it purely salary cap? or is he starting to break down? slow down? If those answers are "not yet" I think his past certainly warrants a good look. Though if he has no signs of really slowing down, someone will probably pay him more than GB would offer. Peppers is an anomaly, getting older, but is a physical freak.

 

[yooperpackfan]

Big man, old man, torn ACL.
No thanks.

 

[Mondio]

Big man, old man, torn ACL.
No thanks.

if that's the case, put me down for a "no" too

 

[jaybadger82]

Vrill, you've cornered the market on creating threads about random FAs...

 

[Vrill]

When Dockett was healthy, he was one of the best DT's in the game. Keyword is healthy though I guess.

 

[SoonerPack]

I wouldn't be against it so long as the money was right. He did tear his ACL last August but other than that he missed only 2 games his first 10 years. He would bring some veteran leadership and so long as he comes back strong from the ACL I bet he would play with a chip on his shoulder which could benefit us. He is not what he used to be but neither was a guy named Pickett and he ended up contributing to a Super Bowl team. Again, I am saying I would only like the move if he came on the cheap but I honestly think he could help this team out. Have him checked out by the med staff and see if he is willing to take a hair cut to play for a title. Low risk IMO... G P G!

 

[Vrill]

We also wouldn't lose any comp picks by signing him.

The main reason I made this post, is because there are similarities between Dockett and Peppers. Both former teams thought their career was pretty much over and they were waived/cut.

Remember how many here thought that Peppers was a dumb signing due to his age?

DT is one of those positions that age is kind to.

 

[SoonerPack]

When his release hit the bottom line ticker I immediately thought about creating a new topic but I am glad you did V. To me, this is the kind of guy you can get on the cheap and reap big dividends from. Like you said there are no compensatory picks at stake and the man has proven to be a darn good player for some time now. The downside to a move like this is nominal especially when comparing it to the possible gain. I hope they at least bring him in and see what he has to say and gauge where he is physically. I couldn't agree more about your Peppers comment. That dude killed it last year and I don't anticipate there being a big drop-off this upcoming season. On the flip side I could understand some doubt or concern of some fans due to the financial commitment it took to bring him aboard but I can't see that being the case with DD. As always time will tell...

 

[PackerDNA]

For me, the red flags with Dockett aren't just being 35 on opening day; it's coming off an injury that forced him to miss the entire 2014 season.
A veteran like him could be very helpful, but would he agree to a much lesser contract to be a part time player? Odds are another team will offer much more than the Packers would be willing to, and the Cards- who cut him for cap reasons - have clearly stated they want him back.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

We also wouldn't lose any comp picks by signing him.

The main reason I made this post, is because there are similarities between Dockett and Peppers. Both former teams thought their career was pretty much over and they were waived/cut.

Remember how many here thought that Peppers was a dumb signing due to his age?

DT is one of those positions that age is kind to.

Dockett isn't even close to Peppers' talent level. The Packers shouldn't sign him even if he didn't miss the entire 2014 because of a torn ACL.

 

[ivo610]

I think DT is one of several positions we need to look at everyone who could potentially suit up. I would be interested in seeing what he wants and what kind of snap count he could handle as well as a physical

 

[SoonerPack]

This is the great thing about fandom. We can all throw our opinions out here and see what others think. I am obviously in the "what can it hurt" camp but obviously not all of you are. No worries.

 

[Vrill]

Dockett isn't even close to Peppers' talent level. The Packers shouldn't sign him even if he didn't miss the entire 2014 because of a torn ACL.

But lots of fans still thought that Peppers was done though due to his age. His last year in Chicago wasn't exactly that great. If someone predicted that Peppers would have had the year he did for us last year, they are fooling themselves.

 

[Vrill]

And to another poster above, he's 33 right now. He'll be 34 during the season. Not 35.

 

[Carl]

Considering most ACL injuries are non contact, DT is a not high risk pisition for tearing it again since it doesn't involve a lot running and cutting.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

But lots of fans still thought that Peppers was done though due to his age. His last year in Chicago wasn't exactly that great. If someone predicted that Peppers would have had the year he did for us last year, they are fooling themselves.

Peppers is a once in a generation athlete with HOF talent on top of it. Dockett has been a reliable player during his career but his run defense has been mostly terrible over the last three seasons he was able to play and as a DE he doesn't addresss the Packers biggest need on the DL.

 

[Vrill]

Peppers is a once in a generation athlete with HOF talent on top of it.

...but nobody was thinking this when we signed him last off season. That is what I am saying. If anyone thought Peppers was going to be as good as he was for us, they are liars

 

[Deleted member 6794]

...but nobody was thinking this when we signed him last off season. That is what I am saying. If anyone thought Peppers was going to be as good as he was for us, they are liars

That's true, but just because Peppers had a great season for the Packers after they brought him in as a free agent doesn't mean that will happen every single time.

 

[yooperpackfan]

We also wouldn't lose any comp picks by signing him.

The main reason I made this post, is because there are similarities between Dockett and Peppers. Both former teams thought their career was pretty much over and they were waived/cut.

Remember how many here thought that Peppers was a dumb signing due to his age?

DT is one of those positions that age is kind to.

Peppers wasn't hobbled by a serious knee injury.
When you add up his age with a big man on top of a serious knee injury it adds up to no deal to me.

 

[adambr2]

...but nobody was thinking this when we signed him last off season. That is what I am saying. If anyone thought Peppers was going to be as good as he was for us, they are liars

I honestly think Peppers' level of contributions were about exactly what many fans thought we would get out of him considering his ability and age, and obviously what Ted Thompson thought he would get out of him considering the investment price.

 

[Vrill]

I honestly think Peppers' level of contributions were about exactly what many fans thought we would get out of him considering his ability and age

uhhh, yeah, and I have a bridge to sell you.

 

[adambr2]

uhhh, yeah, and I have a bridge to sell you.

Sorry, did I miss something? Was Peppers a DPOY contender? Pro Bowler? All-Pro? No, he was a very solid contributor. Sack numbers were down again, but deflected passes were way up, and overall he made the defense better. Overall, I think it was pretty much what was expected of him. Do you honestly think Ted Thompson would have invested a minimum of $8.5M of cap in him if he didn't expect that?

You're acting in multiple different posts like you were just blown away by what Julius Peppers did this year. He was certainly solid, but nothing that was shocking or surprising. Just because you didn't see it coming doesn't mean many other fans didn't.

This was some exact quotes from me from when we signed him:

"Even at 34, Peppers still has good pass rushing ability which will be a huge boon to our defense.Consider at Chicago he had to be the man on D and here he just has to be another guy to bring heat opposite Matthews. He may flourish."

"We needed another playmaker on defense, and if he has enough left in the tank, he can be one. Best case scenario, we get that, finally get that pass rush opposite of Matthews that we have sorely been lacking, and this has a domino effect on the defense, making the secondary better (since they don't have to cover for as long) and helping other guys make plays as well and forcing quarterbacks into mistakes."


https://www.packerforum.com/threads/packers-ink-peppers.51020/page-2

Some were even more optimistic.

 

[Vrill]

Sorry, did I miss something? Was Peppers a DPOY contender? Pro Bowler? All-Pro? No, he was a very solid contributor. Sack numbers were down again, but deflected passes were way up, and overall he made the defense better. Overall, I think it was pretty much what was expected of him. Do you honestly think Ted Thompson would have invested a minimum of $8.5M of cap in him if he didn't expect that?

You're acting in multiple different posts like you were just blown away by what Julius Peppers did this year. He was certainly solid, but nothing that was shocking or surprising. Just because you didn't see it coming doesn't mean many other fans didn't.

This was some exact quotes from me from when we signed him:

"Even at 34, Peppers still has good pass rushing ability which will be a huge boon to our defense.Consider at Chicago he had to be the man on D and here he just has to be another guy to bring heat opposite Matthews. He may flourish."

"We needed another playmaker on defense, and if he has enough left in the tank, he can be one. Best case scenario, we get that, finally get that pass rush opposite of Matthews that we have sorely been lacking, and this has a domino effect on the defense, making the secondary better (since they don't have to cover for as long) and helping other guys make plays as well and forcing quarterbacks into mistakes."


https://www.packerforum.com/threads/packers-ink-peppers.51020/page-2

Some were even more optimistic.

You're quoting a tiny sample of the small Packer fan community here. That is hardly proof that refutes my claims. Everywhere I looked and heard when we signed Peppers, was that we were getting an old and washed up player and how it was pretty bad if Chicago waived him etc.

So what you're quoting there, is extremely isolated and isn't shared across the entire spectrum. Not by a long shot.

 

[Mondio]

I wasn't on here when we signed him, but he was about what i thought he was going to be. I was ecstatic that Chicago decided to dump him for money reasons and give money to Allen from MN. I knew immediately we got the better of that swap. I expected about 8-10 sacks with limited snaps. I expected him to make the guys around him better too and he did. When there wasn't sacks, there was pressure. The INT's returned for TD's were a nice surprise, but otherwise he was pretty much what I thought he was going to be. I expect his snaps to go down even a bit more next year, but still think he'll be about as effective minus the int's returned for TD's. Those are just bonuses for any defender in their career.