The Free Agency Thread

[PackerDNA]

Not one team other than ours is said to be even slightly interested in House. Get better players, forget putting the band back together.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Not one team other than ours is said to be even slightly interested in House. Get better players, forget putting the band back together.

I actually think this is why House is so polarizing, he is familiar to most of us. Some like him, some don't. Had he been "John Baker" a 7 year player for the Titans, more people might have been on board with it being a depth signing.

I think the Packers are banking on House and his 2015 season, when he was healthy, a full time starter and had a pretty decent season. He lost his starting job in 2016 when the Jags new coordinator Todd Wash went to a zone coverage defense and put Jalen Ramsey, Prince Amukamara and Aaron Colvin ahead of him. Last year, he was injured too much to fairly evaluate him IMO. Again, I like him for depth and over the other guys not named King and Williams. I suspect the Packers will use a high draft pick and possibly sign another FA CB between now and Sept.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Is Cowboys David Irving about to become a Free Agent? SMH. No real comments until the truth comes out.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

Not one team other than ours is said to be even slightly interested in House. Get better players, forget putting the band back together.

House, for the contract he signed, would be a terrific signing...if he was expected to be the third corner. Signing him to be the team's #1a/b corner is ill-advised. Take solace in the fact that his contract is a decent value for the player they're signing. It's not House's fault that the defensive personnel in the secondary are so underwhelming that the #1a/b corner on the team is signing for basically the vet minimum. (note, i'm denoting House as 1a/b because I'm not sure he's that different from Williams).

 

[hallzi43]

Williams is head and shoulders better than House.

 

[gbgary]

For what they are worth.....all 6 of these mocks have Ridley going after the Packers pick at #14 and one has him as late as #29.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/mock-draft/

i've seen at least a dozen having him go in the top 10. either way he's a 1st round pick.

 

[gbgary]

gute mentioned trading up a couple of times today. we'll see if it's just more of the "we're in the conversation" kind of stuff or not. imo with Rodgers only playing a few more years (if he's lucky) they need to be aggressive and go get what they want. whatever 14 turns into it needs to be a no-brainer impact starter. their 2nd pick needs to nearly be the same. i hope they trade back into the 1st if they stay at 14.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

I certainly hope so. That would mean a defensive players gets pushed down to the Packers but I think the Packers gets stuck with Davenport (a bust waiting to happen) or Ridley at 14 because the better defensive players have all been taken.

In that case Gutekunst should be aggressive and trade up in the first round.

Disagree, I don’t see how taking those 3 positions on the first two days has any impact on taking extra cbs and wrs. With 12 picks and then 6 there’s plenty left over for a TE, OL and whatever else we need.

Edge
Cb
Wr
Cb
Te
Ilb
Wr
Ol
Edge
Cb
Wr
Ol

You're right, that might work.

I hope this helps some to come to grips that he was simply a depth signing as well as an insurance policy and nothing more. Minimum base salary for an 7-9 year veteran is $900K

Actually House signed for the veteran minimum base salary of $915,000. With the Packers paying him a $90,000 signing bonus he will only count $720,000 against the cap because the deal qualifies for the veteran minimum benefit.

House, for the contract he signed, would be a terrific signing...if he was expected to be the third corner. Signing him to be the team's #1a/b corner is ill-advised.

I fully expect House to be the third cornerback at best behind King and Williams.

 

[Favre>Rodgers259]

I certainly hope so. That would mean a defensive players gets pushed down to the Packers but I think the Packers gets stuck with Davenport (a bust waiting to happen) or Ridley at 14 because the better defensive players have all been taken.

I don't believe any team gets "stuck" with picking a player. They can trade back or simply reach for a position of need. At 14th Overall and this QB Centric Draft, we are far from stuck.

I know mocks are to be taken with a grain of salt, but I've never done a mock where Landry, Ward, Alexander, Vander Esch, or Vea weren't available at 14. We can definitely upgrade the defense at 14 with a quality player.

I also agree Davenport needs to go in the 2nd Round.

i've seen at least a dozen having him go in the top 10. either way he's a 1st round pick.

Ridley is a Top 10 pick because of how "weak" this WR class is. Last year, Ridley would have struggled to make the Top 25. I really hope he falls, because he will dictate how the run on WRs goes. The farther back he goes the better WR we can get in the 3rd or 4th. I'm also not against Gute trading back into the 1st to grab him after going defense at 14. If the Patriots miss out in Rosen they'd be a prime partner to look at.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

In that case Gutekunst should be aggressive and trade up in the first round.

I agree. Trade up for James, Smith, or Landry and I'd be happy. However, I think there's a good chance that the Packers end up trading down, which in general is a good idea but i think those three guys are worth trading up for.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I agree. Trade up for James, Smith, or Landry and I'd be happy. However, I think there's a good chance that the Packers end up trading down, which in general is a good idea but i think those three guys are worth trading up for.

Trade UP for Landry?

 

[Sunshinepacker]

Trade UP for Landry?

Yeah. Trade UP, to like 12. Up doesn't always mean the third pick. Smith and James would obviously need to be higher picks.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

I don't believe any team gets "stuck" with picking a player. They can trade back or simply reach for a position of need. At 14th Overall and this QB Centric Draft, we are far from stuck.

I know mocks are to be taken with a grain of salt, but I've never done a mock where Landry, Ward, Alexander, Vander Esch, or Vea weren't available at 14. We can definitely upgrade the defense at 14 with a quality player.

I also agree Davenport needs to go in the 2nd Round.



Ridley is a Top 10 pick because of how "weak" this WR class is. Last year, Ridley would have struggled to make the Top 25. I really hope he falls, because he will dictate how the run on WRs goes. The farther back he goes the better WR we can get in the 3rd or 4th. I'm also not against Gute trading back into the 1st to grab him after going defense at 14. If the Patriots miss out in Rosen they'd be a prime partner to look at.

Landry and Ward are the only guys you mention that are worthy of the 14th pick in the draft. Vea might be but he's not so dominant that it would be worth drafting the guy at a position that's already the strength of the defense (for what that's worth). Alexander would be decent if the Packers traded down for him and LVE was good for one year but he's not a sure enough thing for the 14th pick.

 

[Favre>Rodgers259]

Landry more than likely will still be there at 14. If we're moving up it's for Smith, James, Fitzpatrick, or Ward

 

[hallzi43]

Landry and Ward are the only guys you mention that are worthy of the 14th pick in the draft. Vea might be but he's not so dominant that it would be worth drafting the guy at a position that's already the strength of the defense (for what that's worth). Alexander would be decent if the Packers traded down for him and LVE was good for one year but he's not a sure enough thing for the 14th pick.

LVE would absolutely be worth the #14 pick. He would be the best athlete in our defense on day 1 BY FAR.

Vea would absolutely be worth the #14 pick depending on how Pettine is going to use the dline. He will be special for someone.

 

[hallzi43]

If you are moving up it would only be for Ward. They are said to covet his ability.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

LVE would absolutely be worth the #14 pick. He would be the best athlete in our defense on day 1 BY FAR.

Vea would absolutely be worth the #14 pick depending on how Pettine is going to use the dline. He will be special for someone.

I would love to see both LVE and Vea off the board before we pick. Nothing against either player, but that puts 2 other guys, that might otherwise be gone, into our potential selection pool.

 

[hallzi43]

I would be super happy with having Smith, Edmunds, or LVE on the Packers. All 3 would provide huge boosts to our defense.

Would also like Landry if we go the pass rusher direction.

If we aren't trading up to get Ward I worry we reach on a corner. Probably Hughes.

Fitzpatrick and James would be neat additions if they fall. I think it would be wasteful to move up for either of them though.

 

[hallzi43]

I would love to see both LVE and Vea off the board before we pick. Nothing against either player, but that puts 2 other guys, that might otherwise be gone, into our potential selection pool.

Vea could for sure. I don't think LVE will go before us. Edmunds or Smith could very well fall to us and they are the top 2 rated lb's. I guess you never know though between LVE and Edmunds. Both are raw stud athletes and LVE's stock does seem to be rising. He could be higher on someones board.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

LVE would absolutely be worth the #14 pick. He would be the best athlete in our defense on day 1 BY FAR.

Vea would absolutely be worth the #14 pick depending on how Pettine is going to use the dline. He will be special for someone.

Best "athlete" doesn't mean that much. LVE has the potential to be very good but hasn't shown the skill that would deserve the 14th overall pick. Vea, as I said, is very good but he's not SO good that it would be worth adding another DT to the dline. I don't care how Pettine uses the dline, there's just no effective system that would need Daniels, Clark, Wilkerson, AND Vea. I'm all for depth on the dline but the Packers have plenty of 300+ pound interior depth. What the Packers need are edge rushers; Matthews is on the decline on Perry is always hurt.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

I would be super happy with having Smith, Edmunds, or LVE on the Packers. All 3 would provide huge boosts to our defense.

Would also like Landry if we go the pass rusher direction.

If we aren't trading up to get Ward I worry we reach on a corner. Probably Hughes.

Fitzpatrick and James would be neat additions if they fall. I think it would be wasteful to move up for either of them though.

Fitzpatrick will be good and might, might, be worth moving up a spot or two. James though, he has the potential to be one of the best defenders in the NFL. His versatility is off the charts and he's basically custom-built to defend passing games like the Eagles, Patriots, and Saints that make heavy use of the short-throw game and incorporate running backs into the passing game. Put James on the defense and you're base defense is also a nickel defense because he's big enough to stop the run, skilled enough to rush the QB (check out his tape, he has ACTUAL pass rush moves, not just hitting open gaps in the line), and he can cover tight ends, slot receivers, and running backs.

 

[Alex]

Is no one very high on Josh Jackson? Has good size for a corner. Might be just me but I'd like some size out there other than King.

 

[PackerDNA]

Is no one very high on Josh Jackson? Has good size for a corner. Might be just me but I'd like some size out there other than King.

Stiff in the hips, and a little on the slow side. One year starter.
Not as high on him as some.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Is no one very high on Josh Jackson? Has good size for a corner. Might be just me but I'd like some size out there other than King.

Depends on what scheme Pettine is planning on running and how he would use Jackson. I don't think Jackson would have been a great fit for Capers defense, but maybe Pettine would use him differently. The knocks on Jackson seem to be consistent. Not a great press corner. Can get faked easily by a good route runner, a bit slow. But he does have great ball awareness and hands, so who knows. I don't know my X's and O's as well some here do, but he seems to fit more as a nickleback or even possibly as a safety in my mind.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Stiff in the hips, and a little on the slow side. One year starter.
Not as high on him as some.

I'm not high on Jackson either, I think his 8 interceptions has him graded way higher than he deserves. That being said, if Jackson is a guy that the Packers draft at #14 I would say "They must know what they are doing with him and see great potential". Hard to deny that he doesn't have the tools, except the speed thing, but that can be masked a bit with better technique.