Is it April 30th yet? Football season can’t get here soon enough for most fans, and April 30th “Draft day” kicks off the new beginning in my opinion. Some fans like the free agency frenzy and believe that’s the start of the season but I have learned Ted Thompson doesn’t dabble in free agency too often except to retain his own, so as I said draft day is the day I look forward to for the new season.
At this stage of the game fans are freaking out about who was lost and who should be signed, lets take a look at where the team stands after the dust has settled, first and foremost Thompson secured two of his own in Bryan Bulaga and Randall Cobb, with the exception of Kuhn the offense is pretty much intact and Kuhn is a 90% chance of being signed soon.
The loss of House and Williams opens a huge hole in the secondary that has most of us wondering 
why Thompson didn’t be more aggressive to retain one or even both of these guys. House in my opinion should have got starter pay even though his ability to stay healthy was a issue he did prove to be a strong cover corner when thrust into the starting role. Was he worth 7 million a year? I would tend to lean on the yes side if he stays healthy but that is a big “IF”
As for Williams they did offer him a fair price for his age and downward spiral in his play this past season so I can’t blame Thompson for not being aggressive in his case, Tramon got way overpaid and that’s good for him, now he can collect his retirement money as he fades away in Cleveland.
Thompson did sign Kyle Sebetic a DB that I’m sure has everyone asking, “Who? why? what?”, but let me just say – this kid has talent. I watched him play his high school career he likes to hit and has good ball skills, he just ran a 4.51 40 yard dash so he even gained some speed since I last saw him. Tramon ran a 4.57 and was undrafted so who knows maybe this kid can surprise us all.
There is good news for the middle of the defensive line being reported today, Letroy Guion has agreed to a one year deal and should be signed either later today or early tomorrow, soon after this story broke Ian Rappaport tweeted that the Packers also came to terms on a one year deal with Bj Raji now if these reports are true which they are coming from a pretty reliable source I believe the defense just got a lot better up front.
Now if ILB is not already on the roster look for Thompson to address that in the draft, but as I stated in a earlier post I believe Barrington and Bradford will be the starting ILB’s this year and Matthews will jump in on certain packages.
Tight end is another position McCarthy talked about he likes the way Richard Rodgers has matured and started playing in the last 8 games, but he also said he likes to have a stable of TE’s for special teams purpose and would not pass on a top player if available in the first round, Maxx Williams is one and another who could be a steal is Darren Waller, Georgia Tech, 6-6, 245, 4.45 at combine who should be around in the mid rounds. I expect Thompson to target at least one if not two TE’s in the draft this year.
Well these are just a few thoughts I figured I would toss out there so let me know some of yours in the comments below or on the facebook fan page.
Go Pack Go!
Thanks Jeff
I,very been a fan since 1966, i enjoy watching the packers, live in Oklahoma but still enjoy the pack.
Here in Asheville NC they have the biggest fan base of any NFL team. The venue where we gather to watch games and boo the Bears is PACKED.
Very cool, James! I like Asheville.
I like both House and Williams, but not at the prices they ended up getting. I have full confidence Thompson will address this need via draft or keep looking at more modestly priced free agents.
Raji was the piece we were missing on D last year. While Guion played better than expected, he was not a run stuffer and often failed to take up blockers for the LBs to make plays. Pro Football Focus rated Guion’s play at -5.2, which is nothing to brag about. I still think the Packers address NT in first couple rounds of the draft.
Injuries are part of the game. I can’t hold injuries against any players (EG: House, Datone Jones, and Perry). House was our best CB last year against the elite WRs in our division, and much better than Shields. He will be missed.
CB depth is now a big need in the draft. If Shields (who has also had some injury concerns), Hayward, or Hyde go down, we don’t have reliable backups. In my opinion, Hayward was one of the best slot corners in the game due to his ball hawking skills. Moving him to the outside may or may not work, but it creates a hole at the slot. I have little confidence in Hyde filling that role. CB is only 2nd to QB for the time that it takes to learn the position in the NFL, as well as the potential to be a bust. Thompson doesn’t draft CBs in the first few rounds of the draft. I expect he’ll address that need in the later rounds of the draft.
Kyle Sebetic is listed as a S. Can he play CB in the NFL?
If Raji remains healthy, that helps our ILB situation considerably. I don’t think the Packers are sold on Bradford from their comments lately. I look for Joe Thomas to step up and start next to Barrington at ILB. Bradford and Hubbard are likely to both see time at ILB too. Although Hubbard has physical attributes more suited for OLB, McCarthy has stated many times that he wants to find ways to get his best players on the field, and this is one way to do it.
Will be interesting to see how it plays out with all the young players and new roles. Go Pack go!
David he played corner in high school and from these clips of him in Dayton he looks like a cover corner there as well so not sure why he is listed as a safety….https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlVLBNPSnwk