Packers Free Agent Philosophy to Change?

For years, Green Bay Packers fans have wanted their team to spend more money. The demand was there, but Ted Thompson would not listen sticking to the plan of getting players through the draft versus dropping major coin on free agent. It appears the fan base will have their wish this offseason as NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reports Green Bay could sign as many as five free agents to revamp their defense to make a quicker, faster version of Dom Capers' 3-4 defense which will also mean B.J. Raji could be sent packing. Green Bay could be spending on some of the big players, but also some under the radar free agents worth looking at plus what it means for players on the team right now and Packers free agents.

This obviously excites some people, but it should be tempered as free agents are not a given to be great plus it does not mean they will be major free agents. Green Bay will be smart about it meaning they are not going to be major players with every free agent on the market, but I have to assume they have some targets to make their defense better. Green Bay realizes what they are doing is not working, and while they succeeded at stopping the run, their secondary plus their pass rush was nothing to talk about. It has not been since the Super Bowl season. This is where Green Bay wants to make a difference.

The other thing people need to realize is there is not a guarantee these contracts will be for top free agents where they are giving a guy, five years and 60 million dollars. They could sign a couple free agents in the range of one or two years for 12 to 16 million dollars. That's perfectly okay. Seattle Seahawks did that with guys like Michael Bennett, same goes with New England and San Francisco. All of them feasted off these big one or two year contracts, and while usually they cannot resign them, they help in the short-term. Green Bay is smarter to judge a player's full career versus one or two down years.

People were to create a wish list for free agents there are some names that could fit what the Packers want for 2014. The first name is Brian Orakpo from Washington. He plays outside linebacker, and a complete game-changer. Orakpo would create massive problems for opposing offenses seeing him and Clay Matthews on the outside. I would question why bring in an outside linebacker when they drafted Nick Perry a couple years ago and moved position for Mike Neal. Another name people would like is either Jairus Byrd or T.J. Ward at safety. Byrd is likable with his ability to make plays, and Ward is a straight up hitter giving Green Bay an edge they have needed for awhile. If Thompson signs a safety, it likely means he does not like the NFL Draft prospects.

A couple names that might go under the radar but worth a look would be Linval Joesph and Lamarr Houston. These are players whom have both been in a 4-3 system, but they have the beef to be part of a 3-4 especially if Green Bay is going a bit smaller.  The Giants defensive tackle is 330 pounds meaning he can move around to all three positions plus if the idea is to go small, it seems like Joesph, a former second round pick could contribute to this team. Houston is around 300 pounds, but I still think he could play a defensive end for Green Bay as a smaller guy along side with a couple others already on the Green Bay roster.

This also obviously raise questions about Green Bay's defense as they are today.  A couple things I would be interested to watch is what happens with Neal, Mike Daniels and Raji. Does Green Bay tell him to move back to defensive end, or use him as a hybrid like 3-4 systems in college football do with some of their players?  Also Daniels has to be a reason as to why Green Bay might be changing mentality a bit. They realize his star power and the fact he does not really fit right now with what the Packers have meaning Daniels should be expected to play a larger role with this squad.  As for Raji, I do not see him coming back to this team, same goes for Ryan Pickett. It sounds like Green Bay is tired of their old system and does not really want some of the key cogs back on the team.

In whatever way this goes down, it is still exciting. There was some criticism of Thompson not listening to his pro scouts and being too stubborn. Thompson basically shuts all of that down if this report becomes true as he sees a need to change because the window is slowly yet surely closing on this team.

Charlie.

Grading Green Bay Packers Defense/Special Teams

We are wrapping up the Green Bay Packers season with a grading of the offense/defense/special teams of the 2013 season.  I will also choose an MVP for both sides of the ball. 

Defensive line 
B.J. Raji - Many times when a player is in a contract year, they tend to perform above their head to get their money which there is nothing wrong that yet B.J. Raji is not one of those players. He had an sub-par year overall. There is nothing that made you think Raji is a even a homeless man's version of Vince Wilfork. I have no idea where his motivation has gone, but it is not there right now. I realize nose tackles are not really supposed to make tackles, but they are suppose to fill holes for the awaiting linebackers. If he still wants eight million dollars a year, I think he is honestly crazy. GRADE C-

Ryan Pickett - Not a bad year for Big Grease. He is not a flashy player at all, but Pickett makes some plays in front of the line. I also think he does a lot of good for the younger players on this team. People forget his contract is up, and he already said there is no retirement plan. I realize Green Bay likes to get younger, but Pickett's leadership would definitely be worth keeping him another year or two but what the hell do I know. GRADE C+  

Mike Daniels - ALL ABOARD THE BANDWAGON. I am fully supporting Mike Daniels. Easily, he became my favorite player on the defense. The guy is true bulldog in there being only six feet and 300 pounds. Daniels is built for a 4-3 more so than a 3-4 yet he does not give one single damn about it. The leverage he gets ins phenomenal, and I really do not see how a team gets a book on him when it all comes down to leverage. A six-footer can get underneath a 6'6 or 6'7 offensive lineman especially if he has the strength. GRADE A-

Johnny Jolly - What a year it was for him from a just coming back and being an emotional leader of this football team. It seemed like Green Bay had its edge back as football team for a little bit at the beginning of the year, and I felt along with others, Jolly was a big reason why that happened. The crowning moment of his year happened with the Atlanta game where he forced and recovered a fumble with everyone shouting 'JOLLY' 'JOLLY' 'JOLLY' in the stands. Hopefully, his injury lets him play again and I do not think one person wants to see him leave the team. GRADE B

Datone Jones - I have to say it has been a disappointing year for Jones. He made a couple plays here and there throughout the year, but definitely did not have the impact, I think folks including myself expected him to have with the team. Jones needs to live with Daniels, and figure out how he is doing it against these big offensive lineman. The grade is a low one, but I do think he will come back to be fine for the team. GRADE C

Linebackers
Clay Matthews - My assumption is the natives are beginning to get restless with Clay. He never seems to stay healthy while granted breaking one's thumb is not entirely the fault of the person. This pisses people off, and they begin to sour on him. Matthews made some impact plays leading up to him breaking his thumb, but really he can only be looked at like Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee. He changes the game when he is healthy, and that's not very often. I would kill to see one full year of Clay being virtually healthy. GRADE C+

A.J. Hawk - Easily, the best year of his career for Hawk. I am not saying he deserved to go to the Pro Bowl, but he made plays this year. Rather, it was not just Hawk filling the hole and making a tackle, it was him sacking the quarterback or getting a key interception. Speaking of sacks, Hawk had five of them this season which is a career-high for him. My assumption is we will be seeing more of Hawk rushing the quarterback next season.  This is a great bounce-back year for him, and I wonder whether Hawk will be able to keep this up. I tend to lean on yes. GRADE A-

Brad Jones - After having a great year that earned him a contract, this was a disappointing year for Jones. It is not all his fault. I would contend he played hurt for at least 75 percent of games this year meaning we should judge him playing differently. He had a bad hamstring multiple times then had an ankle injury at the end of the season. Jones is not a bad player, but he might be an average player which makes him mediocre when injured and that's a little concerning given his contract. He might be the one player I am most interested for next year.  GRADE C

Nick Perry - I think we need to all admit to ourselves that Nick Perry is not a left outside linebacker. It is not a position he seems to excel at even with Clay on the other side. Perry played well against Chicago and San Francisco coming from the right side and maybe it is time for Green Bay to experiment with Clay and Perry flipped. I realize the need to want Matthews coming off the blindside, but Perry is giving nothing from the left side. He does need to stay healthy though as he missed another five games meaning in two years, he has only played 16 games. GRADE C+

Mike Neal - I owe this guy an apology. I thought Neal would be just a workout warrior who could not stay healthy and I have been proven wrong. Neal played his ass off this year at outside linebacker. He did really well at that position. I think there is a future there for him, and I would not be opposed for a competition between him and Perry if they chose to keep him on the left side of the defense. There are definitely things Neal has to learn when it comes to playing the position, but that will come with time. GRADE B

Defensive Backs 
Sam Shields - To think, this was an undrafted rookie whom did not play much at cornerback at Miami. He had a big year for Green Bay when they won the Super Bowl then since there had not been much until this year. Shields delivered a defining play against Dallas, and he did a great job holding down some of the top receivers in the league. Shields is going to be wanted around the league, and will be expensive. I expect him to be back next season, but it would not surprise me to see someone overpay for him because his speed/catch-up speed is worth it. Shields' best is still left to come. GRADE B+

Tramon Williams - Quite the year for the longest member of the Packers secondary. People believed he was washed up. Many folks assumed he never recovered from his shoulder injury in 2011, and it had been downhill since then something changed against New York in the middle of the year. I have no idea what happened or what changed. I guess if you want me to venture a guess, I think Williams stopped playing scared he would hurt his shoulder again. I am excited to see what he has left for the following season. GRADE B-

Morgan Burnett - He will become the most-hated Packer to begin the year. Hell he already has been probably. I am willing to give him a little leash until we see what lines up next to him. I think MD Jennings hurt him more than we will probably ever know. Burnett seemed to play with an attitude of 'Cannot make a mistake' meaning he looked tentative out there. He made a couple of plays, but nothing special at all. Makes you wonder what Green Bay would have done if he did not get a contract and played this way.  GRADE D

MD Jennings -  If I have to watch MD Jennings attempt to play strong safety, I will gauge my own eyes out. It is one thing to be a strong safety that can come up and make bone-cracking hits yet not have the ability to cover anyone. It is another thing to be a strong safety that cannot hit or cover which could define Jennings. He will still be on the roster, but maybe he can go the Jarrett Bush route of being a good special teams player. Mike Gonzalez, MD Jennings and Marshall Newhouse caused me a lot of pain this season. GRADE F

Micah Hyde - This is a defensive and special teams grade. Out of the rookies, he probably had the second most impressive year next to Lacy. Sure he missed an interception in the playoff game, but Hyde played pretty well as a young secondary member. Green Bay now has quite the stable if Shields stays with Williams, Casey Hayward, Shields and Hyde. That's quite the group of secondary members who could really make some noise. I love the physicality of Hyde and his return game was valuable when Randall Cobb went out with injury. GRADE B

Special Teams 
Mason Crosby - Remember in late August, Crosby was having a kicking competition with a guy they brought in from the streets. He ended up dominating him including a 60+ year field goal. Crosby only missed four field goals all season. He did not even have a bad game for people to say 'Here we go again with the shit from Mason.' There is no reason to be worried about him next season. I feel like 2012 will just be a blip on the radar. GRADE A

Tim Masthay - Another great year for the Ginger Wolverine. I never feel nervousness when he is punting the ball. I would not say he is someone that can always flip the field, but Masthay improved as a punter this year. I can only imagine he gets better next season. The Ging as Aaron Rodgers calls him, owns the coffin corner. GRADE B

Charlie.