Packers sign free agent

[Einstein McFly]

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WOW! I know he is versitile can play both ILB and OLB, but he is a backup and special teamer. How do you justify doing this deal and pass on Jenkins or Canty for 3 years and $8 million. This makes no sense to me.

Jenkins is getting up in age and Canty had a bum knee last year. I think a healthy Canty definitely helps our team, but we don't know how healthy he his and we won't until he plays through the season. As with drafts, these free agent periods need to be judged years down the road to see what the impact actually was. Of course, it's way more fun to complain and make like we're suddenly doomed.

Anyway, my earlier point was that paying three guys starter money makes sense if you're thinking that one or more of them (Hawk, lets say) won't be around after this year and you want to lock up his replacement (Jones, say) now. It'll look like a brilliant move down the line if they want to dump Hawk for poor performance or Bishop for injury reasons or if Bishop gets injured again. Look at how good we've been for years now. Don't you think that TT clearly know more about this stuff than most other GMs, much less a bunch of guy yacking on a message board?

 

[13 Times Champs]

Slaughter we are tilting at windmills between Jones and Hawk. I do agree Hawk is better than Jones. The problem is, both are being paid like starting material and neither one is. We should fear that either one is a starter.

btw, I'm convinced Brad Jones has pictures of TT with animals!

 

[HardRightEdge]

The Bears signed the other D.J. Williams for $900k base, $1.75 mil with incentives. He'll probably start. He's 30 years old, but still....

 

[rodell330]

Rodell, give it up on the Freeney thing, man. It has nothing to do with this. Freeney is not coming here nor would that be a good deal in substitute as mentioned a million times before. I don't even know why you ever even brought him up.

Uhhh because we need another pass rusher...my point is you can't tell me signing Brad Jones for 11 mil would be a better option Than Freeny. Theres two reasons right there. The point is if TT is willing to give Brad Jones that much money and not target sombody alot better then theres something seriously wrong.

 

[rodell330]

The Bears signed the other D.J. Williams for $900k base, $1.75 mil with incentives. He'll probably start. He's 30 years old, but still....

Waaaayyyy better player then Brad Jones man come on now.

 

[TJV]

This signing surprises and disappoints me. The Packers now have 7 ILBs: Hawk, Bishop, Jones, Smith, Francois, Manning, and Lattimore. Even with two returning from serious injury, that seems like a lot for two spots. (Maybe they think Smith will join Worthy on the PUP list and perhaps end up on IR?) Jones can backup at OLB but he didn’t get backup LB money even if he’s backing up inside and outside. One report said he got a $3M signing bonus so it should be cap friendly this season, but they’re paying three players to start at ILB (with Hawk and Bishop).

I’d understand this signing if Hawk were waived (I believe doing so would have been cap neutral). According to the packernews.com article Francois was promised a fair shot at starting. And Manning is waiting in the wings, too. I have a higher opinion of Jones’ play last season than many here – and obviously at least a few NFL teams do too – but I think they were covered at ILB without Jones. .

Having said all that I’ll bet that if Jones were the exact same player he is but played for another team, some here would be excited at his signing.

 

[J Mills]

Uhhh because we need another pass rusher...my point is you can't tell me signing Brad Jones for 11 mil would be a better option Than Freeny. Theres two reasons right there. The point is if TT is willing to give Brad Jones that much money and not target sombody alot better then theres something seriously wrong.

Only issue with that is Freeney hates the 3-4 just like Kampmann did. One of the reasons he is no longer in Indy is the 3-4. I will be shocked it he ends up with a 3-4 team.

 

[rodell330]

This signing surprises and disappoints me. The Packers now have 7 ILBs: Hawk, Bishop, Jones, Smith, Francois, Manning, and Lattimore. Even with two returning from serious injury, that seems like a lot for two spots. (Maybe they think Smith will join Worthy on the PUP list and perhaps end up on IR?) Jones can backup at OLB but he didn’t get backup LB money even if he’s backing up inside and outside. One report said he got a $3M signing bonus so it should be cap friendly this season, but they’re paying three players to start at ILB (with Hawk and Bishop).

I’d understand this signing if Hawk were waived (I believe doing so would have been cap neutral). According to the packernews.com article Francois was promised a fair shot at starting. And Manning is waiting in the wings, too. I have a higher opinion of Jones’ play last season than many here – and obviously at least a few NFL teams do too – but I think they were covered at ILB without Jones. .

Having said all that I’ll bet that if Jones were the exact same player he is but played for another team, some here would be excited at his signing.

I don't know what you are trying to insinuate but i for sure wouldn't be. At least the guy's i mentioned have been good play makers at some point. Outside of us Packer fans who else knows Brad Jones? like really?

 

[adambr2]

I don't know what you are trying to insinuate but i for sure wouldn't be. At least the guy's i mentioned have been good play makers at some point. Outside of us Packer fans who else knows Brad Jones? like really?

Yes because name recognition is the most important aspect of shopping for FAs.

Im not saying I like the signing, but if you actually look at the numbers, Jones was far more productive last year than the big name Dwight Freeney that you keep bringing up.

9 teams showed interest in Jones. Actual GMs and scouts had heard of Jones. It does not make an ounce of difference how many irrational armchair GMs at home had heard of him.

 

[Einstein McFly]

Waaaayyyy better player then Brad Jones man come on now.

LOL so all of the other GMs who were interested in Jones and weren't interested in in Williams (to the point where he's taking near the minimum) were wrong and you were right? Wow, it must be hard to type with all of those super bowl rings huh? And please take a look at guys who were 4-3 ends their whole careers and see how they did as 3-4 olbs before you start calling for Freeney. It didn't work in Indy, why would it work here? THIS ISN'T AN INDIVIDUAL SPORT. One guy has to fit into the scheme with everyone else for it to work.

 

[Bensalama21]

I was high on Jones after his rookie season.. I have to say I was impressed with the way he played after DJ Smith and Bishop went down

 

[NelsonsLongCatch]

The problem with DJ Williams isn't so much production as it is his multiple suspensions. He's one failed drug test away from being out for quite some time.

 

[GeeDogWarrior]

Pro Football Focus was the website that gave Clay Matthews a positive grade for the 2011 season - when everyone was calling him overrated cause he didn't have 120 sacks that year... yet we all watched teams double team him - PFF saw teams triple team him, they graded him positively...

They also graded Brad Jones positively... Dude played pretty good for a late round OLB playing ILB...
He may not have highlight hits every single play a game, like a Ray Lewis/Patrick Willis type - but he's a pretty decent all around linebacker - not much more you can ask for other than "We Want the Fastest/Most Biggest/Hardest Hittingest Linebacker that has ever lived!" la-la land type of player who would probably be a top ten pick - we aren't getting one of those any time soon... so settle for what's good for us and for what provides depth.

PS: (sees how much Ted paid Brad) Oh Crap - Not for that kind of money... what the heck? Brad Jones ain't worth that much.

 

[adambr2]

Let's also keep a little perspective on this signing. Jones got 3 million in guarantees, probably with a smaller base amount in year 1. If Jones is irrelevant in 2013 or in any way doesn't live up to this contract, they will cut him in a year and absorb a 2 million dollar cap hit, or cut him after 6/1/14 and spread the cap hit out at 1M each between 2014 and 2015. It wouldnt be ideal to have any amount of dead money from him on the cap, but this contract isn't going to be a cap crippler.

 

[burt packerack]

Since Brad Jones is young and improved last season, i think this is a fairly good sign.
"That's all I have to say about that" -Forrest Gump.

 

[Oshkoshpackfan]

Since Brad Jones is young and improved last season, i think this is a fairly good sign.
"That's all I have to say about that" -Forrest Gump.

Hmmmm....??? IDK.....a **** tiger can't change his stripes. I doubt that he is going to have some miracle turn around this year and earn that cash that TT awarded him with. By this point in his career, you are who you are...and in his case, that would be a average/below average LB. He is nothing to write home about and I don't know how he rates the cash he got being that Hawk took a pay cut and then Jones get a fat payday??? Unusual crap is going on.

 

[adambr2]

For what it's worth, Jones' cap number is only $2.5M this year. That's less than Kuhn or Crosby, by comparison.

If he plays really well, he'll be back in 2014 at a $4M cap number. If not, they'll cut him and absorb a $2M cap hit next year.

 

[adambr2]

Oh, and for anyone in the "sign Freeney!' crowd, he's seeking $6M per year. Hard to imagine a worse off-season idea than shelling out that much for a player who doesn't even fit our D.