2025 NFL Free Agency

[Sunshinepacker]

The two most significant issues on the team were not really addressed in free agency. Nobody was added to help the pass rush and, more importantly IMO, nobody was added to replace what Watson brought to the offense. When Watson was on the field the receiving corps was literally one of the five most explosive and efficient groups in the league. When Watson was not on the field, the group was league average. Well, Watson isn't going to be on the field for most of next season so I'm not sure how the team plans to address how constipated the offense gets without a burner to force defenses to respect the deep ball. I've heard fans say that the team needs to run more through Kraft than rely on the receivers and I'll just point out that that is exactly what Miami did last year when they relied on Jonnu Smith rather than Hill and the Dolphins offense was much worse with that shift.

I know lots of fans like to say corner is a major need but corner was not the position that caused the Packers to lose in the playoffs. Aside from massive injuries, a constipated offense and not being able to consistently pressure Hurts were the major problems.

 

[Heyjoe4]

The two most significant issues on the team were not really addressed in free agency. Nobody was added to help the pass rush and, more importantly IMO, nobody was added to replace what Watson brought to the offense. When Watson was on the field the receiving corps was literally one of the five most explosive and efficient groups in the league. When Watson was not on the field, the group was league average. Well, Watson isn't going to be on the field for most of next season so I'm not sure how the team plans to address how constipated the offense gets without a burner to force defenses to respect the deep ball. I've heard fans say that the team needs to run more through Kraft than rely on the receivers and I'll just point out that that is exactly what Miami did last year when they relied on Jonnu Smith rather than Hill and the Dolphins offense was much worse with that shift.

I know lots of fans like to say corner is a major need but corner was not the position that caused the Packers to lose in the playoffs. Aside from massive injuries, a constipated offense and not being able to consistently pressure Hurts were the major problems.

Can't argue with that. The FA class was very weak when it came to finding a WR to replace Watson's presence. Metcalf would have been a great choice in a trade, but the Steelers gave him a 5 year, $150 mil deal and my guess is that this, along with the draft capital required, was a bridge too far for Gluten.

There should be some good WRs at #23 and, given the depth of DL/Edge talent, I'd be fine taking a speedy WR at #23.

 

[Magooch]

Can you explain or unpack these claims specifically - I'm confused if being honest.

Defense...we were a Top 10 defense last year, and lost only TJ Slaton from it, added Hobbs, and have three rookies that were very good (Bullard) to insanely good (Coop/Williams) entering their second season...how is there holes at all levels?

OL questions...crystalized quite a bit, we have 5 full time experienced starters and Morgan who was splitting starting time and had one start while playing with a shoulder injury. We need depth but questions? Jenkins to center is the clear and evident plan as that was how we handled Myers absence last year.

WR...I get.

QB....when Love has not been playing hobbled dude has been phenomenal.

I think D.C. is a little harsher than I would view it but I do kinda get some of those angles.

Yes we had a top 10 defense statistically, and maybe one could argue with "every" level but there are certainly multiple holes to be addressed still IMO. Even with Hobbs added I think many would say we still need help at CB and if not that we have some major holes at DL/edge that are still needing addressed, even prior to Slaton departure... Perhaps LB is "safe" but I don't think it's unreasonable to say we have some holes to fill in 2/3 levels of the defense still.

OL is still a lot of question marks too I think. We don't really have a clear idea of where everyone is going to play, Morgan showed some promise but if we're being honest is still a relative unknown (not a negative or positive necessarily). And of course when Jenkins went out injured our OL got positively ATE alive by Philly (which I mean, no shame in that. Super Bowl-winning dominant line after all, but still). If nothing else I think given that a.) when last we saw our OL it was getting mauled and b.) our first round pick for OL is still a somewhat unknown quantity overall and c.) we lost our starting C and are not 100% firm on where the rest of our guys will play, suffice to say IMO it's 100% fair to say there are certainly plenty of questions there. I'm not too worried as we have historically done just fine at sorting these issues out (and I suspect that will be the case here too) but yeah, a lot of questions nonetheless

WR, yeah, we're all in agreement lol.

QB...I don't know, it's hard for me to say. I feel in some ways Love's injury allowed him to dodge a bit of criticism? Not sure if that's fair or not. I guess what I mean is...he went out hurt Wk 1 as we all know. Then comes back Wk 4 and from then on out generally looks fairly solid. But then it feels kind of like....we treated him like he was healthy and "back" whenever he had a good game - nobody would be saying "He played a great game AND was banged up, less than 100%, still recovering from that injury"...until he had a bad game, and then it was "oh well he's still not back to full health, that injury has been nagging him still" or whatnot, know what I mean? I like Love a lot but I think it's being a little generous to insinuate (and I don't mean to put words in your mouth, just going off my interpretation of your post) that as long as he's healthy he'll be phenomenal, as though he hasn't had some healthy less-than-phenomenal games. I think many of us ended the season still trying to figure out what exactly we have in Love - is he going to be the late-23/24 guy who looked like a MVP, or more like what we saw in early 23/24 or much of his "healthy" 24/25? I don't think many could say too confidently which exactly we can bank on having going further, as much as I would like for that to be the case...

Still like I said, I think OP took a more harsh/critical tone than I would. IMO it's a very good roster that *should* be able to compete with anyone, but at the same time there are some big question marks and room for improvement still (but that is the case with just about everyone if you're being nit-picky)

 

[DoURant]

Corey Ballentine signed with the Colts.

 

[Schultz]

I think D.C. is a little harsher than I would view it but I do kinda get some of those angles.

Yes we had a top 10 defense statistically, and maybe one could argue with "every" level but there are certainly multiple holes to be addressed still IMO. Even with Hobbs added I think many would say we still need help at CB and if not that we have some major holes at DL/edge that are still needing addressed, even prior to Slaton departure... Perhaps LB is "safe" but I don't think it's unreasonable to say we have some holes to fill in 2/3 levels of the defense still.

OL is still a lot of question marks too I think. We don't really have a clear idea of where everyone is going to play, Morgan showed some promise but if we're being honest is still a relative unknown (not a negative or positive necessarily). And of course when Jenkins went out injured our OL got positively ATE alive by Philly (which I mean, no shame in that. Super Bowl-winning dominant line after all, but still). If nothing else I think given that a.) when last we saw our OL it was getting mauled and b.) our first round pick for OL is still a somewhat unknown quantity overall and c.) we lost our starting C and are not 100% firm on where the rest of our guys will play, suffice to say IMO it's 100% fair to say there are certainly plenty of questions there. I'm not too worried as we have historically done just fine at sorting these issues out (and I suspect that will be the case here too) but yeah, a lot of questions nonetheless

WR, yeah, we're all in agreement lol.

QB...I don't know, it's hard for me to say. I feel in some ways Love's injury allowed him to dodge a bit of criticism? Not sure if that's fair or not. I guess what I mean is...he went out hurt Wk 1 as we all know. Then comes back Wk 4 and from then on out generally looks fairly solid. But then it feels kind of like....we treated him like he was healthy and "back" whenever he had a good game - nobody would be saying "He played a great game AND was banged up, less than 100%, still recovering from that injury"...until he had a bad game, and then it was "oh well he's still not back to full health, that injury has been nagging him still" or whatnot, know what I mean? I like Love a lot but I think it's being a little generous to insinuate (and I don't mean to put words in your mouth, just going off my interpretation of your post) that as long as he's healthy he'll be phenomenal, as though he hasn't had some healthy less-than-phenomenal games. I think many of us ended the season still trying to figure out what exactly we have in Love - is he going to be the late-23/24 guy who looked like a MVP, or more like what we saw in early 23/24 or much of his "healthy" 24/25? I don't think many could say too confidently which exactly we can bank on having going further, as much as I would like for that to be the case...

Still like I said, I think OP took a more harsh/critical tone than I would. IMO it's a very good roster that *should* be able to compete with anyone, but at the same time there are some big question marks and room for improvement still (but that is the case with just about everyone if you're being nit-picky)

Good post. My thoughts. I hope we are not done at CB. IMO they still need an outside corner who plays well in press man coverage and is a willing tackler. DT is a slightly greater need to me than DE/Edge. GM should be able to get 1 of each in the draft, based on depth of talent. I am not worried that we do not know 100% who will be playing where on the OL as I am confident the staff knows who will be playing where. I also agree that more depth is needed and that has nothing to do with Morgan. IMO the OL has to be 7 deep minimum. As of now Monk seems to be #7. You think there are questions about Morgan? He at least had the pedigree to be a 1st rounder and showed signs of being NFL caliber when playing. Monk was a day 3 pick who I believe has not played many OL snaps if any at all. IMO they need 1 more OL in the draft that is more than just potential. WR, should probably draft best available all-around somewhere in 1st 4 rounds. If he is not a deep threat double down in the 6th or 7th round. If they keep all 8 picks (?) I could see a LB or TE late. After the draft reevaluate and sign another FA where necessary.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I think D.C. is a little harsher than I would view it but I do kinda get some of those angles.

Yes we had a top 10 defense statistically, and maybe one could argue with "every" level but there are certainly multiple holes to be addressed still IMO. Even with Hobbs added I think many would say we still need help at CB and if not that we have some major holes at DL/edge that are still needing addressed, even prior to Slaton departure... Perhaps LB is "safe" but I don't think it's unreasonable to say we have some holes to fill in 2/3 levels of the defense still.

OL is still a lot of question marks too I think. We don't really have a clear idea of where everyone is going to play, Morgan showed some promise but if we're being honest is still a relative unknown (not a negative or positive necessarily). And of course when Jenkins went out injured our OL got positively ATE alive by Philly (which I mean, no shame in that. Super Bowl-winning dominant line after all, but still). If nothing else I think given that a.) when last we saw our OL it was getting mauled and b.) our first round pick for OL is still a somewhat unknown quantity overall and c.) we lost our starting C and are not 100% firm on where the rest of our guys will play, suffice to say IMO it's 100% fair to say there are certainly plenty of questions there. I'm not too worried as we have historically done just fine at sorting these issues out (and I suspect that will be the case here too) but yeah, a lot of questions nonetheless

WR, yeah, we're all in agreement lol.

QB...I don't know, it's hard for me to say. I feel in some ways Love's injury allowed him to dodge a bit of criticism? Not sure if that's fair or not. I guess what I mean is...he went out hurt Wk 1 as we all know. Then comes back Wk 4 and from then on out generally looks fairly solid. But then it feels kind of like....we treated him like he was healthy and "back" whenever he had a good game - nobody would be saying "He played a great game AND was banged up, less than 100%, still recovering from that injury"...until he had a bad game, and then it was "oh well he's still not back to full health, that injury has been nagging him still" or whatnot, know what I mean? I like Love a lot but I think it's being a little generous to insinuate (and I don't mean to put words in your mouth, just going off my interpretation of your post) that as long as he's healthy he'll be phenomenal, as though he hasn't had some healthy less-than-phenomenal games. I think many of us ended the season still trying to figure out what exactly we have in Love - is he going to be the late-23/24 guy who looked like a MVP, or more like what we saw in early 23/24 or much of his "healthy" 24/25? I don't think many could say too confidently which exactly we can bank on having going further, as much as I would like for that to be the case...

Still like I said, I think OP took a more harsh/critical tone than I would. IMO it's a very good roster that *should* be able to compete with anyone, but at the same time there are some big question marks and room for improvement still (but that is the case with just about everyone if you're being nit-picky)

Very good and straightforward summary Magooch. Thanks!

I know I was guilty of saying to myself "Love is fine" on his good days, and then reverting to a convenient excuse of "He's playing through an injury" when he didn't perform well.

They still won 11 games, and had they not lost Jenkins, Reed, and Doubs in the wild card game at Philly, they may have pulled off an upset. Ok, that's still a long shot but those injuries, esp Jenkins (and with no Watson) took a big toll.

Love does have to put together a 17-game regular season along with playoffs to know if he's Favre-Rodgers good. And I don't much care if he's "that" good as long as the entire team ascends to contend for a SB. There are questions as you note and it may not be this year. But we have a team that's fun to watch and should eventually make a legit SB run.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Good post. My thoughts. I hope we are not done at CB. IMO they still need an outside corner who plays well in press man coverage and is a willing tackler. DT is a slightly greater need to me than DE/Edge. GM should be able to get 1 of each in the draft, based on depth of talent. I am not worried that we do not know 100% who will be playing where on the OL as I am confident the staff knows who will be playing where. I also agree that more depth is needed and that has nothing to do with Morgan. IMO the OL has to be 7 deep minimum. As of now Monk seems to be #7. You think there are questions about Morgan? He at least had the pedigree to be a 1st rounder and showed signs of being NFL caliber when playing. Monk was a day 3 pick who I believe has not played many OL snaps if any at all. IMO they need 1 more OL in the draft that is more than just potential. WR, should probably draft best available all-around somewhere in 1st 4 rounds. If he is not a deep threat double down in the 6th or 7th round. If they keep all 8 picks (?) I could see a LB or TE late. After the draft reevaluate and sign another FA where necessary.

Good thoughts on the team's situation Schultz. Yeah Gluten still has work to do at CB. Assuming JA is gone, Hobbs, Nixon, and Valentine is a slightly above-average CB group, without much depth. They need to add in the draft.

And I'm coming around to see that DT is probably a greater need than Edge/DE. Look at what Philly did to teams in the playoffs, especially the SB, with only a 4 DL rush. They need a disruptor in the middle, like Clark used to be, who can get penetration in the middle to the QB. Good news, there are a lot of good DTs, DEs/Edge in this draft.

So certainly there is still work to be done, and it's probably not possible to do it all this year. This team and the draftees and any other FAs will still contend. That's more than the large majority of teams can say.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Corey Ballentine signed with the Colts.

Ouch. I mean he was decent depth. Just puts more pressure to score during the draft at CB - and WR, DT, DE/Edge. That's why there is Gluten.

Let's face it though, he can't plug all these holes this year (well, I don't think so). What will be interesting is what he does at #23. Personally, Id like to see him take Matthew Golden, WR from Texas. Most will disagree. Another guy I like is LB Jihaad Campbell. The first round, past the top 10, is kinda weak. There is a lot of DL talent however. So Gluten can work his mid to late round magic.

It would be wild if Gluten rolled the dice and took a WR in round 1. Highly unlikely, just fun to consider.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I will say Dante Fowler could be that edge guy that mixes ability and affordability. He's essentially signed three straight years one year prove it deals, continually does solid and then this last year for the Commanders had one of his best years yet.

30 years old yes, but doesn't appear to be hitting a wall like many do around this time...had more snaps last year than Rashan (albeit not by much). A McDuffie level type two year deal would be sweet + give him some sack incentives to sweeten it.

I was holding out hope that the Packers would sign Fowler and it sounds like they were interested in him. However, he signed with the Cowboys yesterday on a 1 year deal for $8M.

 

[DoURant]

It would be wild if Gluten rolled the dice and took a WR in round 1. Highly unlikely, just fun to consider.

I've thought about this scenario. It's been over 20 years since they have, the Draft is in Green Bay, making a splashy pick to get the town buzzing seems possible.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I've thought about this scenario. It's been over 20 years since they have, the Draft is in Green Bay, making a splashy pick to get the town buzzing seems possible.

Good point, I hadn't considered. Damn talk about a splashy pick to get the home-town crowd excited.

I think Matthew Golden from TX is supposed to be there. I read that he ran a 4.29 40 at the combine. Speed isn't everything, but with Watson out, they have no deep threat.

I heard that the NFL brass weren't too excited about GB trading its 1st round pick and have no one to take on day 1. Looks like they'll take someone. Why not a speedy WR?

 

[tynimiller]

lol Gute don’t give a hill of beans what the league thinks, he’ll trade out of the first, trade up or trade it away entirely if he thinks it is the right move.

 

[Heyjoe4]

lol Gute don’t give a hill of beans what the league thinks, he’ll trade out of the first, trade up or trade it away entirely if he thinks it is the right move.

That's what I thought. So what if they don't have a pick on the first night? He could still move back and add picks, which might be a good idea this year. He'll do what's best for the team.

 

[Schultz]

I heard M. Gallup has unretired. This peaked my interest until I found his career drop rate.

 

[GreenNGold_81]

Keenan Allen is still out there, he may be that savvy vet to bring some experience to our WR room.
Nobody has traded for Hendrickson (or Tee Higgins) yet either.

 

[gopkrs]

Keenan Allen is still out there, he may be that savvy vet to bring some experience to our WR room.
Nobody has traded for Hendrickson (or Tee Higgins) yet either.

Allen looked to me last year like he still had another year in him. Injuries and the bears held him back imo

 

[tynimiller]

IF we want the best out there yet it's Cooper or Diggs. Coopper two seasons ago and three seasons ago had 1250 yards and 1160 yards. This last year abbreviated still put up 547 and 4 TDs.

Diggs was on pace before injury of breaking 1,000 yards yet again for the 7th straight season. Diggs would be unique because if recovery goes well, he should be back before Watson but will miss some time still.

 

[OldSchool101]

The two most significant issues on the team were not really addressed in free agency. Nobody was added to help the pass rush and, more importantly IMO, nobody was added to replace what Watson brought to the offense. When Watson was on the field the receiving corps was literally one of the five most explosive and efficient groups in the league. When Watson was not on the field, the group was league average. Well, Watson isn't going to be on the field for most of next season so I'm not sure how the team plans to address how constipated the offense gets without a burner to force defenses to respect the deep ball. I've heard fans say that the team needs to run more through Kraft than rely on the receivers and I'll just point out that that is exactly what Miami did last year when they relied on Jonnu Smith rather than Hill and the Dolphins offense was much worse with that shift.

I know lots of fans like to say corner is a major need but corner was not the position that caused the Packers to lose in the playoffs. Aside from massive injuries, a constipated offense and not being able to consistently pressure Hurts were the major problems.

These are all good points. Allow me to speak my opinion here. First of all, I realize this is about FA and we all get excited about it myself included. Gutey has been pretty successful drafting in general. At WR specifically he is 2 of 3 success rate in Day1-2, missing on a later Day2 Amari (#85). The problem with later RD3 things get picked over pretty good. In Day 3 Gute is 3 of 7 hitting on Doubs, Wicks and MVS, by RD7 it’s a long shot at best at WR. So naturally, as the draft evolves the probability drops.

So that said. Gute knows we need a WR and likely two. It’s no secret. Either through FA, the draft, before trade deadline or some combo of those. If for some reason FA doesn’t allow a value deal, then imo at minimum I think we’d see 2 draft picks spent at WR. 1 likely coming Day1 or Day2 and a second in that RD4-6 area.

 

[OldSchool101]

I understand this is about FA, but FA isn’t the only avenue, it’s one avenue and there are more than a dozen FA WR available. As far as tendency, while Gute has never taken a Day1 WR, I’m about 80% sure Gutey was going to go RD1 at WR in 2022 if available. That pairing of 2nd Rounders showed me where our focus was. I believe we’ll be laser focused at WR this year.

What I’m saying is if we can’t find one in FA? There’s a high likelihood we use a top #55 or better selection. If we insert someone at WR like a Tre Harris or Ayomanor or Jalen Noel? We’ll be fine and there’s still trade deals to look at.

Lastly I still can’t get over what bad luck Musgrave had. If we recall he had this wonderful Camp, then in game 1 Jordan goes down. Then we run run run the ball with Malik for several weeks and about the time Love returns? Luke gets injured almost immediately. Then he really didn’t get back until around playoffs and never got going. This year we’re adding in our RD2 Flex TE and likely a RD2 WR. I think that will give us some added juice for receiving options and I’m fully expecting us to involve Luke more. It’s also not unlikely we see Gute wait some to get a bargain on a “stop gap” WR on a 1-2 year deal. Someone who can come in and generate 500 yards 5 TD’s in the Pass attack.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Keenan Allen is still out there, he may be that savvy vet to bring some experience to our WR room.
Nobody has traded for Hendrickson (or Tee Higgins) yet either.

My guess is that if a deal were going to happen for Hendrickson or Higgins for GB, it would have happened already. I might be wrong - these deals can take a long time to pull together given the nature of a trade (v a FA signing).

Keenan Allen is interesting more as a veteran presence, as you note, in a young WR group. I just have a hunch Gluten may take a WR at #23. I don't think he has any real interest in Higgins. We'll know soon enough.

As for Hendrickson, man the guy is a beast. But at 30, and with Garrett's $40 mil AAV contract as an indicator of top Edge market value, it's gonna be tough to make anything happen. I don't think Gluten is willing to take on the risk of an expensive 30 y/o Edge rusher, no matter what he's done.

 

[GreenNGold_81]

My guess is that if a deal were going to happen for Hendrickson or Higgins for GB, it would have happened already. I might be wrong - these deals can take a long time to pull together given the nature of a trade (v a FA signing).

Keenan Allen is interesting more as a veteran presence, as you note, in a young WR group. I just have a hunch Gluten may take a WR at #23. I don't think he has any real interest in Higgins. We'll know soon enough.

As for Hendrickson, man the guy is a beast. But at 30, and with Garrett's $40 mil AAV contract as an indicator of top Edge market value, it's gonna be tough to make anything happen. I don't think Gluten is willing to take on the risk of an expensive 30 y/o Edge rusher, no matter what he's done.

I think any big trade would be at the draft, announce it at the podium. There's risk inherent with everything in the NFL. It's risky going into the season with who we have and relying on rookies to bridge the gap. Particularly if our aspirations are beating the Eagles, Vikes and Lions (and maybe MAYBE the Bears). I don't see Love as being that transcendent talent who will lift our team up regardless of who we have, we need to surround him with elite players if we want to compete for a championship again (like the Eagles with Hurts).

 

[Heyjoe4]

I think any big trade would be at the draft, announce it at the podium. There's risk inherent with everything in the NFL. It's risky going into the season with who we have and relying on rookies to bridge the gap. Particularly if our aspirations are beating the Eagles, Vikes and Lions (and maybe MAYBE the Bears). I don't see Love as being that transcendent talent who will lift our team up regardless of who we have, we need to surround him with elite players if we want to compete for a championship again (like the Eagles with Hurts).

Yeah that's well said. Maybe the Packers will do some dealing on draft day, but that usually involves moving up or back. If a trade is gonna happen, it will likely be before the draft,

And the North will be even more competitive. The Bears have made some excellent offseason moves to improve their team, especially the OL.

But so far, the Packers are standing pat. An improvement to the OL with Banks, and an ok player at CB in Hobbs. It's gonna take more than that to win the North. That leaves a lot riding on the draft, and further steps forward from the current players.

 

[milani]

No need if it isn't the right guy - I suspect some of the signings today we had convos with. Still some very packer type guys out there available.

Looking at the 32 teams the Pack are quieter than most. And that is not necessarily a bad thing. When you are so young you do not have all the restructuring to do. But a number of other teams went through a face lift. Will the 9ers return to their gold rush they had for a while? Or will they slide into mediocrity?

 

[Thirteen Below]

But so far, the Packers are standing pat. An improvement to the OL with Banks, and an ok player at CB in Hobbs. It's gonna take more than that to win the North. That leaves a lot riding on the draft, and further steps forward from the current players.

Agree, as usual. All three other North teams jumped headfirst into free agency, every one of them going all in and making a major effort to push themselves ahead of the other three. Gutekunst basically stood pat - adding an above-average corner, and replacing Myers with Banks.

There's no reasonable chance that we can match all those moves in the draft, especially with only 8 picks this year and picking in the #23 slot. Gutekunst may have a trade in mind, but it's not likely a single trade would improve the team as much as free agency improved the rest of the division. He chose to largely ignore the free agent market, so it seems to me that he's putting most of his chips on the hope that a number of the 2nd and 3rd year players take a big step forward in their development.

I don't want to sound pessimistic, because I trust the man to know what he's doing. But the fact that both of the teams who finished ahead of us, as well as the team that finished behind us, all made substantial moves to put themselves ahead of the other three teams (while we basically stood pat), makes me a little nervous.