Free Agents you would like to see sign with Green Bay in 2019?

[brandon2348]

There is no way Thomas is going to sign a 1 year prove it deal. Not Happening.

You might be able to play with the guaranteed $ a bit but Someone will give him close to what he wants.

 

[C-Lee]

Give me ET3!

 

[HardRightEdge]

Because of those injuries and his age, the only way I am comfortable signing Thomas is on a 1 year prove it deal and it wouldn't be for the top $ he was wanting before his injury either.

That said, I think the Packers have a 1-2 year retool and settle in with the new coaches time frame ahead of them, so really not sure if I want to see any of those "prove it on year deals" on high end guys this season in Free Agency.

To me, a "prove it" deal is one where a younger player has not lived up to his draft status or he had a solid start in the first year or two and then faded in his first contract year.

With a player like Thomas, there really isn't anything to prove. Even if he managed to get through a year without injury while still being highly productive, he'd be a year older with the risk still on his resume. It's not like you'd turn around and give him a 3 or 4 year deal after that. A one year deal for this type of player (Wilkerson being another example--age, snap counts, decline) is "pay as you go", followed by 2 years tops with more "pay as you go".

 

[HardRightEdge]

There is no way Thomas is going to sign a 1 year prove it deal. Not Happening.

Probably. Then don't try to sign him.

 

[brandon2348]

Probably. Then don't try to sign him.

That's the slippery slope of free agency though. We have a team with a 35/yo franchise QB(with injuries piling up) so weighing out the risk vs reward has to be accounted for in that equation. At some point the Packers are going to have to push all the chips into the center of the table. If not this year then most likely next.

Just because QB "A" can play into his 40's doesn't automatically mean QB "B" can and if he can at what level can he.

 

[HardRightEdge]

That's the slippery slope of free agency though. We have a team with a 35/yo franchise QB(with injuries piling up) so weighing out the risk vs reward has to be accounted for in that equation. At some point the Packers are going to have to push all the chips into the center of the table. If not this year then most likely next.

Just because QB "A" can play into his 40's doesn't automatically mean QB "B" can and if he can at what level can he.

Haste makes waste.

 

[brandon2348]

Haste makes waste.

Its "Now Time" more then ever.

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[Pokerbrat2000]

To me, a "prove it" deal is one where a younger player has not lived up to his draft status or he had a solid start in the first year or two and then faded in his first contract year.

You are correct, I definitely used the wrong term in regards to Thomas, although he will have to prove that he is fully recovered from his broken leg .

Whatever you want to call the contract, Thomas is a guy that I wouldn't be comfortable signing for more than 1-2 years if his asking price is too high. Nor would I accompany that with a lot of guaranteed money.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

IMO, Thomas will be looking for something in this neighborhood and not just a one year deal.

Eric Berry $13 mil
Kam Chancellor $12 mil
Reshad Jones $12 mil
Harrison Smith $10.25 mil
Devin McCourty $9.5 mil

It is being reported that the Panthers are signing Eric Reid to a 3 year, $22M+ deal

 

[A-aron Rodgerz]

Its hard to know atm what the market will be for safeties this offseason. Last year 7m+ was a pretty decent payday for a safety but maybe Reids deal will change that. The Packers are abismal at safety right now so something will have to happen. I don't see this draft class being the answer this year so free agency I think is where we're going to make our move. I don't see one of the box safeties really giving us the help we need so that's why a guy like Thomas makes sense for me. Not that there aren't other guys but I think Thomas is the type of player that could take our defense to the next level. We ranked 19th in the league last year in turnover differential in a year that Rodgers threw 2 interceptions...AWFUL. This defense seriously lacks playmakers right now so if we're somewhere near the ballpark of what he wants I think he's absolutely worth it. As someone already mentioned above, at some point we need to start being aggressive if we want to take advantage of what's left in Rodgers career. Giving Thomas a chunk of our open cap would still allow us to make moves in other areas. Signing a big safety is still a much cheaper option than getting a top edge or guard. Plus, this draft looks like we will have an opportunity to go get the edge guy we want so spending money on an expensive edge doesn't make sense to me. Like I said, I don't know how the market will play out for safeties this year but if we can get him for a solid deal (not excessive) it would still leave room for us to get guys to at least be competent in the other positions of need.

 

[Favre>Rodgers259]

IMO, Thomas will be looking for something in this neighborhood and not just a one year deal.

Eric Berry $13 mil
Kam Chancellor $12 mil
Reshad Jones $12 mil
Harrison Smith $10.25 mil
Devin McCourty $9.5 mil

It is being reported that the Panthers are signing Eric Reid to a 3 year, $22M+ deal

Given the current "market" I would be comfortable with an $11.75M/4 year contract. Due to the injuries, I'd protect myself by only guaranteeing $24M to compensate for them . If he starts every single game of the season, including playoffs, I'd add maybe a $1.5M bonus due at the end of every season that he does so.




I'd also like to bring up another Thomas, Demaryius. He wants to still play, and while his production has dropped, so has the QB play in Denver. I think AR covers the spread on him. Outside of a WR in the 1st Round(which I'm strongly against), I think he easily replicates the production from Cobb if he's sent packing. Based on how he trashed Denver and Elway he could be a real team guy who's willing to take a team friendly deal.

 

[Cheese Headed Monster]

Reid and the Panthers just screwed everybody who needs a safety. Now its either over pay or get nothing

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

A potential FA I would like to see the Packers look at is Tampa Bay slot WR Adam Humphries. 25 years old, pretty much a carbon copy of Cobb physically and he managed to put up pretty decent #'s last year despite the QB carousel in Tampa Bay. Humphries is known as a very smart and good route runner, he and Aaron might be able to establish some good chemistry quickly. Humphries has also had a very healthy 4 years in the league. Missing one game in 2016 due to a concussion.

 

[Cheese Headed Monster]

Also how do teams afford these guys? Its like if we had Luke K. then that would be it, we wouldnt have a chance of getting someone else like Reid on top of Luke. Its like damn come on.

Edit: I know its been said a million times but I am sick of signing has been OR no name players. You can bet that whoever we sign in free agency this year will not be a big name. Its gonna be some average player that we all say "oh yeah hes not bad" and then will spend time on here convincing ourselves that we arent disappointed AGAIN that we did not land a big name player. MARK MY WORDS.

P.S. Ill be happy to be wrong

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Also how do teams afford these guys?

How? Raise ticket prices, concessions, merchandise sales, advertising, etc......Salaries are just numbers on a spread sheet to NFL GM's, they just have to make sure to align the numbers correctly in regards to the cap.

 

[Half Empty]

Also how do teams afford these guys? Its like if we had Luke K. then that would be it, we wouldnt have a chance of getting someone else like Reid on top of Luke. Its like damn come on.

Edit: I know its been said a million times but I am sick of signing has been OR no name players. You can bet that whoever we sign in free agency this year will not be a big name. Its gonna be some average player that we all say "oh yeah hes not bad" and then will spend time on here convincing ourselves that we arent disappointed AGAIN that we did not land a big name player. MARK MY WORDS.

P.S. Ill be happy to be wrong

Subjectivity rears its ugly head again. Need to know who the big name players were over the past however many years and what their contracts looked like. I definitely am one that hasn't been disappointed in landing one

 

[Cheese Headed Monster]

How? Raise ticket prices, concessions, merchandise sales, advertising, etc......Salaries are just numbers on a spread sheet to NFL GM's, they just have to make sure to align the numbers correctly in regards to the cap.

Even though I am not local to GB, I wouldnt want my fellow fans to have to pay more to see a game or drink a beer there. Maybe we need to advertise more lol Cause surely merch sales are high given the size of the Packer fan base. I'm just guessing though

 

[Half Empty]

How? Raise ticket prices, concessions, merchandise sales, advertising, etc......Salaries are just numbers on a spread sheet to NFL GM's, they just have to make sure to align the numbers correctly in regards to the cap.

I'm sure the point was how teams afford the high priced options in terms of the cap, not their balance sheets. "Just" is a pretty cavalier word for a really tough process.

 

[brandon2348]

Even though I am not local to GB, I wouldnt want my fellow fans to have to pay more to see a game or drink a beer there. Maybe we need to advertise more lol Cause surely merch sales are high given the size of the Packer fan base. I'm just guessing though

TV Revenue.

 

[Cheese Headed Monster]

Subjectivity rears its ugly head again. Need to know who the big name players were over the past however many years and what their contracts looked like. I definitely am one that hasn't been disappointed in landing one

Yeah I don't know exact players, going off of PokerBrats list above though, guys like that, we will never sign. Ever.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I'm sure the point was how teams afford the high priced options in terms of the cap, not their balance sheets. "Just" is a pretty cavalier word for a really tough process.

Yes and no. If you asked me "how do I afford to spend $2 more on a 6 pack of beer?" I would answer "I have a fixed budget, so I spend $2 less on chips". Now if I lost my job, my fixed budget gets completely rewritten, no chips, no beer. NFL GM's might have the concern of "budget beer or budget chips", but they know that every year that total budget is not only there, but probably increasing.

 

[Half Empty]

Yes and no. If you asked me "how do I afford to spend $2 more on a 6 pack of beer?" I would answer "I have a fixed budget, so I spend $2 less on chips". Now if I lost my job, my fixed budget gets completely rewritten, no chips, no beer. NFL GM's might have the concern of "budget beer or budget chips", but they know that every year that total budget is not only there, but probably increasing.

OR, in my context...

Yes and no. If you asked me "how do I afford to spend more on a pass rusher?" I would answer "I have a fixed cap, so I spend less on a wide receiver". Now if I lost my job, my fixed budget gets completely rewritten, no chips, no beer. NFL GM's definitely have the concern of "budget beer or budget chips", but they know that every year that total budget is not only there and has to be managed, but probably increasing.

 

[HardRightEdge]

Its "Now Time" more then ever.

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I'm very sorry the doctor has given you only one year to live.

 

[brandon2348]

I'm very sorry the doctor has given you only one year to live.

I'm expecting and predicting a very aggressive approach to the 2019 season and it has nothing to do with my health.

 

[HardRightEdge]

I'm expecting and predicting a very aggressive approach to the 2019 season and it has nothing to do with my health.

I don't have any expectations, only the understanding that if you blow dough on old players on the downside of their careers or those with an injury history you're not likely to get what you expect. Take Graham for example. So, don't do that.