Thompson Back In Running For Salary Cap Trophy

[Ace]

There´s no denying Hayward had a great rookie season. He has regressed since though so we´ll see how it works out for him in 2015.

If he can retrun to form I obviously have no issue paying him but if he doesn't I'm sorry I'm not going to pay him 6-7M per year like House got and some of these other DB's are getting.

 

[DaveRoller]

who cares if they have cap space unused that will be carried forward. Why should they spend it just to spend it? Over paying is not the way to go. it rarely pays off in the short term and it never pays off in the long term. You can give me a list of 10,000 points of light and still the league history shows that overpaying for players usually results in buyers remorse in the near or not too distant future. Just the guys from big contracts a year or 2 ago are being released for their teams already. So i'm not having that debate.

With that aside, who this year should they have spent money on? Because almost all of the guys I thought would add something to this team, signed for twice as much as any real worth to their team could be. I'm glad we didn't sign them.

Sure it sucks when we have holes on the team we can see and we don't know the "plan" or even when they have waiting in the wings, if anything. We don't know the long term plan and all we see is players going to other teams and unused cap space, but you don't get ahead by being foolish with money. I suppose it's why gambling is so popular. Everyone waiting for that one big payout, never realizing they lose 10x's that amount every year, but that one time, they "won".

Daniels and Hayward might be the only "lucrative" contracts coming up, but Mason Crosby is also up next year. Mike Neal, who after early injuries, then massive weight loss and position changes, has turned into a pretty serviceable starter and great rotational guy. I'm guessing they'd like to keep him and I'm sure other teams will be looking him at well.

Nick Perry is also due next year too. He's overall been a disappointment to me ,mostly because of injuries, but he did play better last year. In fact I'd say his eventual development and availability is what allowed them to move Matthews to the middle and really shore up that part of the defense. are the injuries a thing of the past? will he continue to grow? if those answers are yes, we'll need some money to keep him around too.

Then we have Sean Richardson and Tolzien again. Time will tell what they're worth. As of now he's the only back up qb, i'm guessing they want to see what he does with another year under his belt. I doubt he'll break any banks, but still, a guy that will be getting another contract from somewhere. Richardson? he's a guy they've always liked. He's a 2nd tier guy, not going to get a huge contract unless something changes radically, but still, another guy that is coming due next year too.

what about 2017? Sitton, Lang and Bakhtiari, Tretter, Barrington, a guy named Eddie Lacy, Hyde, Datone, Peppers (though I suspect he'll be done by then), and others.

Lots of names coming up, that I'd rather not have to lose by overpaying for a Devon House today. How many of those guys would have to go so we could sign a Suh? a revis? Maxwell?, Cromartie and his 20 mil guarantee? Julius Thomas? You could pick a couple guys for each of those signings and say good bye. and obviously Suh is such a difference maker. Detroit has had one of the most talented defensive lines in football for at least 2 seasons and nothing. On the offensive side of the ball they have had more than enough weapons to be better than good. How many games has Suh taken over and won for them?

anyway, yes this team has some areas that definitely need to be addressed, but there's a lot more to managing a team then what is happening right now and people need to keep that in mind. Of course, those that know this, know this, and others will never seem to grasp that concept for whatever reason.

in 2012 the Tampa Bay Bucs were called FA winners. They got Vincent Jackson, an all pro guard and Eric Wright for the secondary. How'd that work out for them?

The 49er's, winners, how do they look now? how much hardware did they add to the trophy case?
Of course the redskins were "winners" and how does that work out for them every year? do they even make the playoffs? They called Seattle a "winner" too because they got Matt Flynn I'd say things worked out well for them, but then that can happen when you have a qb making a few hundred thousand dollars playing at a level of those eating 10+mil a year. and that qb came in the 3rd round of the draft, NOT FA.

in 2013 the winners?

Denver, Chiefs, Seahawks again, but this time for Percy Harvin funny how they keep making the list with guys that aren't even on their team. I'm thinking they're winning for other reasons, but that's just me. (and just wait till they have to pay a QB), Giants and the Detroit Lions. How did being a FA winner work out of them?

Funny, I seem to remember some people saying NE "won" free agency last offseason when they signed Revis and Browner at CB (as well as others such as LaFell at WR).

Poor Patriots foolishly signing high-priced free agents.

As for 2013, you are correct many considered the Seahawks winners in free agency but not because of Percy Harvin whom they acquired via trade but rather because they signed bookend pass rushers Bennett and Avril.

No doubt they too regret being so aggressive in free agency.

 

[Mondio]

Last winners declared, Tampa again, Denver, again, baltimore, oakland and green bay at #5 according to NFL.com

and again, with Seattle, they have a great luxury of paying pennies to a qb that will probably be costing over 15 million per season soon. But hey, use the exception to prove the rule.

2013 NFL.com winners
the Eagles Detroit Seattle, and Atlanta exceptions don't prove rules. Wait till they have to pay a QB.

PFF has 3 winners for 2014, Tampa, Cleveland? and again no team loaded up more thru FA with big names that Denver, how did that work out for them?

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Last winners declared, Tampa again, Denver, again, baltimore, oakland and green bay at #5 according to NFL.com

and again, with Seattle, they have a great luxury of paying pennies to a qb that will probably be costing over 15 million per season soon. But hey, use the exception to prove the rule.

2013 NFL.com winners
the Eagles Detroit Seattle, and Atlanta exceptions don't prove rules. Wait till they have to pay a QB.

PFF has 3 winners for 2014, Tampa, Cleveland? and again no team loaded up more thru FA with big names that Denver, how did that work out for them?

You treat free agency as the only way to do it is to either sign several high priced free agents (winning free agency) or doing nothing at all. There´s something in between though and I would appreciate Thompson to sign some guys to reasonable contracts for positions of needs.

 

[Mondio]

so, so far, who that has been signed, should have been a Packer?

and who besides Peppers last year? and then tell me what that would impact that would have had on retaining Bulaga or Cobb?

 

[tynimiller]

so, so far, who that has been signed, should have been a Packer?

Honestly.....at the prices I don't see any. The sad truth is we signed who should have been a Packer so far in Bulaga and Cobb....an argument could possibly be made for Wilfork but I am not gonna make that argument.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

so, so far, who that has been signed, should have been a Packer?

and who besides Peppers last year? and then tell me what that would impact that would have had on retaining Bulaga or Cobb?

There are several defensive lineman who signed for reasonable contracts this offseason in Terrence Knighton, Dan Williams and Vince Wilfork. All of them would have been an upgrade over Raji and/or Guion and wouldn´t have caused any negative cap ramifications.

Actually at the time the Packers signed Peppers I thought they overpaid for him as well. The move worked out perfectly but sometimes teams have to take a risk like that.

 

[Mondio]

and was it because the Packers had no interest, or they liked where they were or where they could go better?

 

[DaveRoller]

Saying free agency did not work out well for teams like TB, Cleveland, Oakland, Miami is very true.

Saying that free agency worked out well for the Giants, Ravens, Seahawks, and Patriots (the past 4 Super Bowl champs) is also very true.

Asserting that free agency only leads to ruin is simply contrary to the indisputable evidence.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

and was it because the Packers had no interest, or they liked where they were or where they could go better?

I don´t know but honestly I don´t care. Thompson´s job is to improve the roster and there´s no denying the defense right now isn´t better than at the end of last season. Once again, it´s too early to evaluate his offseason moves but there´s reason to concern.

 

[Mondio]

and the seahawks are in a unique position to NOT have to be paying a QB, real QB money. The Giants? please, they haven't been relevant for a while. Look what happened to the Ravens when they had to pay a QB, QB money. I'll give you the Pats, but then, they have one of the best staffs and FO's in the league.

How many teams are declared FA winners? and how many even make the playoffs? You think the odds are in your favor? Would you like the Packers to get rid of Rodgers, so they can free up more money to be active in FA? it's a legit question.

 

[longtimefan]

who cares if they have cap space unused that will be carried forward. Why should they spend it just to spend it? Over paying is not the way to go. it rarely pays off in the short term and it never pays off in the long term. You can give me a list of 10,000 points of light and still the league history shows that overpaying for players usually results in buyers remorse in the near or not too distant future. Just the guys from big contracts a year or 2 ago are being released for their teams already. So i'm not having that debate.

With that aside, who this year should they have spent money on? Because almost all of the guys I thought would add something to this team, signed for twice as much as any real worth to their team could be. I'm glad we didn't sign them.

Sure it sucks when we have holes on the team we can see and we don't know the "plan" or even when they have waiting in the wings, if anything. We don't know the long term plan and all we see is players going to other teams and unused cap space, but you don't get ahead by being foolish with money. I suppose it's why gambling is so popular. Everyone waiting for that one big payout, never realizing they lose 10x's that amount every year, but that one time, they "won".

Daniels and Hayward might be the only "lucrative" contracts coming up, but Mason Crosby is also up next year. Mike Neal, who after early injuries, then massive weight loss and position changes, has turned into a pretty serviceable starter and great rotational guy. I'm guessing they'd like to keep him and I'm sure other teams will be looking him at well.

Nick Perry is also due next year too. He's overall been a disappointment to me ,mostly because of injuries, but he did play better last year. In fact I'd say his eventual development and availability is what allowed them to move Matthews to the middle and really shore up that part of the defense. are the injuries a thing of the past? will he continue to grow? if those answers are yes, we'll need some money to keep him around too.

Then we have Sean Richardson and Tolzien again. Time will tell what they're worth. As of now he's the only back up qb, i'm guessing they want to see what he does with another year under his belt. I doubt he'll break any banks, but still, a guy that will be getting another contract from somewhere. Richardson? he's a guy they've always liked. He's a 2nd tier guy, not going to get a huge contract unless something changes radically, but still, another guy that is coming due next year too.

what about 2017? Sitton, Lang and Bakhtiari, Tretter, Barrington, a guy named Eddie Lacy, Hyde, Datone, Peppers (though I suspect he'll be done by then), and others.

Lots of names coming up, that I'd rather not have to lose by overpaying for a Devon House today. How many of those guys would have to go so we could sign a Suh? a revis? Maxwell?, Cromartie and his 20 mil guarantee? Julius Thomas? You could pick a couple guys for each of those signings and say good bye. and obviously Suh is such a difference maker. Detroit has had one of the most talented defensive lines in football for at least 2 seasons and nothing. On the offensive side of the ball they have had more than enough weapons to be better than good. How many games has Suh taken over and won for them?

anyway, yes this team has some areas that definitely need to be addressed, but there's a lot more to managing a team then what is happening right now and people need to keep that in mind. Of course, those that know this, know this, and others will never seem to grasp that concept for whatever reason.

in 2012 the Tampa Bay Bucs were called FA winners. They got Vincent Jackson, an all pro guard and Eric Wright for the secondary. How'd that work out for them?

The 49er's, winners, how do they look now? how much hardware did they add to the trophy case?
Of course the redskins were "winners" and how does that work out for them every year? do they even make the playoffs? They called Seattle a "winner" too because they got Matt Flynn I'd say things worked out well for them, but then that can happen when you have a qb making a few hundred thousand dollars playing at a level of those eating 10+mil a year. and that qb came in the 3rd round of the draft, NOT FA.

in 2013 the winners?

Denver, Chiefs, Seahawks again, but this time for Percy Harvin funny how they keep making the list with guys that aren't even on their team. I'm thinking they're winning for other reasons, but that's just me. (and just wait till they have to pay a QB), Giants and the Detroit Lions. How did being a FA winner work out of them?

Cbs sport writer says packer grade A his only one

http://mweb.cbssports.com/nfl/write...2-grades-for-32-teams-but-only-one-a?v=1&vc=1

 

[longtimefan]

There are several defensive lineman who signed for reasonable contracts this offseason in Terrence Knighton, Dan Williams and Vince Wilfork. All of them would have been an upgrade over Raji and/or Guion and wouldn´t have caused any negative cap ramifications.

Actually at the time the Packers signed Peppers I thought they overpaid for him as well. The move worked out perfectly but sometimes teams have to take a risk like that.

Wlifork and Kingston signed cheap because of coaches and friends

It's not always about the $$$

 

[andeftw]

There are several defensive lineman who signed for reasonable contracts this offseason in Terrence Knighton, Dan Williams and Vince Wilfork. All of them would have been an upgrade over Raji and/or Guion and wouldn´t have caused any negative cap ramifications.

Actually at the time the Packers signed Peppers I thought they overpaid for him as well. The move worked out perfectly but sometimes teams have to take a risk like that.

Dan Williams basically signed a two year 15 million contract, there's no way the Packers can compete with that. Wilfork, and particularly Knighton, could have been had for very reasonable contracts and I'm disappointed the Packers didn't get either considering the available cap space.

 

[Vrill]

Rookies are coming into the league these days and playing huge roles for their team. This isn't the NFL of yesteryear. These days, rookies of all positions are coming into the league and playing vital roles and helping teams win and win big.

A rookie made the game winning INT in the Super Bowl this past year........

What I'm getting at, is that Free Agency isn't the end all be all anymore.

The draft is where teams are truly built. Free Agency should *only* be used for stop gaps and hole filling.

 

[Joe Nor Cal Packer]

The plan for Williams was put in place two years ago with Hayward.

OK that's an acceptable premise. Hayward played lights out in his rookie season and has the size and range to be a great corner. I would be very happy if this turns out to be the case. I guess the only issue is who does Ted spend his first draft pick on. Seems like CB is deeper than ILB, so I'd like to see ILB addressed first, maybe DE second, and CB third. Corners take time to develop anyway. Let's hope that Hayward can return to his roo

The plan for Williams was put in place two years ago with Hayward.

Sounds good to me. This draft is pretty deep at CB anyway. Would be nice to get a starting ILB round one, and then maybe a guy like Kevin Johnson in round 2, or he might be available early third if TT trades up. Second round? DE or NT, unless TT can still find someone in FA. I wish I could be more optimistic about Raji. Even if we get Guion back, he'll likely be suspended for the first four games. And it's time to add some strength in the interior DL anyway.

 

[Joe Nor Cal Packer]

Dan Williams basically signed a two year 15 million contract, there's no way the Packers can compete with that. Wilfork, and particularly Knighton, could have been had for very reasonable contracts and I'm disappointed the Packers didn't get either considering the available cap space.

Are Wilfork and Pot Roast gone?

 

[PackerDNA]

Are Wilfork and Pot Roast gone?

Yep. Wilfork to Houston, Pot Roast to Washington.

 

[OCBP]

Rookies are coming into the league these days and playing huge roles for their team. This isn't the NFL of yesteryear. These days, rookies of all positions are coming into the league and playing vital roles and helping teams win and win big.

A rookie made the game winning INT in the Super Bowl this past year........

What I'm getting at, is that Free Agency isn't the end all be all anymore.

The draft is where teams are truly built. Free Agency should *only* be used for stop gaps and hole filling.

Well, you have Corner, D-Line and LB holes. Given where GB drafts, do you think that all of those voids can be filled with 1st year players? I think that Williams would have signed a two year deal at $6M. I think it's a stretch to say that one of the current roster players can fill Williams shoes. Didn't TT try that experiment when he let Woodson walk? Also lost a veteran contributor in the locker room.

Hope that TT can repeat last year's successful draft--He'll need to. Once again, looks like a challenging year for the D.

 

[NelsonsLongCatch]

No need to worry, the money just rolls over. It'll be there next year to not spend.

 

[HardRightEdge]

With the money DB's are getting these days, does he really need to be all that good in order to get paid? Hasn't he already done more that House? They've both been injured throughout their careers, and Haywards rookie year was better than House's entire career to this point no?

Cover corners get paid; nickel corners not so much. If Hayward plays cover corner and has a good year he'll get paid...by somebody. So, we'll see.

 

[HardRightEdge]

Here's a video illustration of Thompson's handling of the defense in free agency:

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com...ers-demolish-road-star-inn-property/24921559/

 

[longtimefan]

Dan Williams basically signed a two year 15 million contract, there's no way the Packers can compete with that. Wilfork, and particularly Knighton, could have been had for very reasonable contracts and I'm disappointed the Packers didn't get either considering the available cap space.

King went to where his childhood friend played-- he took a very small contract for that

Wil went where his old coaches were at

Packers can't compete when player loyalty is that strong

 

[DOCTORAPK]

NetNews-Green Bay (3/16)
----

In the interest of competing for the little-known trophy for the most cap room left unused, Ted Thompson cut the entire Packers defense today, saying "we'll save a ton of money and we don't need a defense anyway".
Thompson waived 30 players, including future Hall of Famer Clay Mathews. Thompson signed the entire St. Norbert's college defense as their replacements. When asked why he made such moves, Thompson said, "We have the greatest offense in the league and we can outscore any one. So why pay for defenders? It puts us in a precarious position to not win the NFL Salary Cap trophy". When told by reporters that no such trophy exists, Thompson blurted out, "You're wrong!" and promptly left the room.

The news comes on the heels of the Packers starting corner Tramon Williams, signing with Cleveland, highly-regarded backup corner Davon House signing with Jacksonville. Thompson's season-starting inside linebackers are both gone, including A.J. Hawk, who signed a multi-million dollar deal with the Bengals. Both of the Packers defensive tackles are also unsigned.

Thompson came to the conclusion that a defense of professionals wasn't necessary. Thompson first asked the Green Bay cheerleading squad if they wanted to play defense, but they got defensive and said, 'no', in synchronization. The St. Norberts defense said they would if the Packers would pay their tuition and that was agreed to, putting the Packers nearly $100 million dollars below the salary cap.

A stunned Aaron Rodgers, now facing the prospect of having to score 100 points per game to win, simply said, "I'm leaving for L.A. right now with Olivia".

Matthews, as he was cleaning out his locker said he had just signed with the New England Patriots. Julius Peppers said he was returning to Chicago.

When informed about Thompson's decision, coach Mike McCarthy said, "we'll have to work on pad level and play calling".

Packer President Mark Murphy, once a Pro Bowl defender with the Washington Redskins said he would be available to suit up if Thompson called.

Brett Favre had no comment to the developments, remembering well what it was like to watch opponents score on his team at will after they had just scored.

Fantastic! Creative! ....Well Done. Thank You!

 

[Deleted member 6794]

OK that's an acceptable premise. Hayward played lights out in his rookie season and has the size and range to be a great corner. I would be very happy if this turns out to be the case. I guess the only issue is who does Ted spend his first draft pick on. Seems like CB is deeper than ILB, so I'd like to see ILB addressed first, maybe DE second, and CB third. Corners take time to develop anyway. Let's hope that Hayward can return to his roo

Sounds good to me. This draft is pretty deep at CB anyway. Would be nice to get a starting ILB round one, and then maybe a guy like Kevin Johnson in round 2, or he might be available early third if TT trades up. Second round? DE or NT, unless TT can still find someone in FA. I wish I could be more optimistic about Raji. Even if we get Guion back, he'll likely be suspended for the first four games. And it's time to add some strength in the interior DL anyway.

Kevin Johnson could be off the board by the time the Packers pick in the first round but will for sure not last to their second round pick. There´s no need to select a DE early, the team needs to add another NT in the draft.