Packers mailbag: Free agency remaining targets and draft strategy
It's been a crazy week for the Green Bay Packers. David Bakhtiari and Aaron Jones are out, Josh Jacobs and Xavier McKinney are in, and a lot more can still happen over the next few days and weeks. So, let's discuss the Packers decisions on today's mailbag. Safety is a non-premium position, so I like […]
It's been a crazy week for the Green Bay Packers. David Bakhtiari and Aaron Jones are out, Josh Jacobs and Xavier McKinney are in, and a lot more can still happen over the next few days and weeks. So, let's discuss the Packers decisions on today's mailbag.
Safety is a non-premium position, so I like the approach to attack that as a need in free agency, freeing up the draft to select more valuable players. That doesn't mean you can't draft safeties, it's just that you can do it in later rounds, when it's hard to get a day 1 starter. So I would still think about a veteran, and the perfect piece is Jordan Fuller.
He is not expected to be expensive and knows Jeff Hafley from their time together at Ohio State. Fuller is not a star, but is a competent starter to complement McKinney's game.
That's an interesting question, Felipe, and it made me go back and watch some Boston College tape in 2023. The personnel is obviously different, and we can't know for sure if Hafley will run a similar scheme in Green Bay. But Boston College's defense is pretty "line up and play". Not many stunts, not many front variations. And the San Francisco 49ers also play this way.
So I expect blitzes from off-ball linebackers and even defensive backs eventually, but the defensive line will be what it really is.
Last year showed us that no, they don't. Talent is the most important thing. Obviously, young players tend to make more mistakes eventually, but the Packers are well coached, and these young players are adaptable and smart. I would argue that the Packers are actually trying to get younger on defense, and that's why Xavier McKinney makes so much sense. On offense, they released their two oldest players in David Bakhtiari and Aaron Jones, so the youth movement is still a big premise of the front office.
It is not, but I love it. Except for Isaac Guerendo, who had a good Combine but wasn't as productive in college, the rest of the group is really intriguing, and they fit what the Packers need positionally.
I'm extremely curious to see Lukas Van Ness as a 4-3 edge rusher, because that's probably his ideal position. For the most part, it will also be good for the Packers' cornerbacks, because philosophically, Jaire Alexander, Eric Stokes, and Carrington Valentine are man corners.
On the other hand, I'm slightly concerned with Preston Smith, because his role is not so clear, and with the linebacker position. It's a scheme that demands a lot from its off-ball linebackers, and Quay Walker hasn't shown he can handle it, especially as the primary linebacker on the field.
It's not something that philosophically I advocate for, but Brian Gutekunst has shown willingness to do it. If he is running out of first-round grades and the value to move up is decent, he will pull the trigger — and he has excess capital to make it happen. Since Gutekunst took over as the general manager in 2018, he traded up in 2018 (for Jaire Alexander, after moving down), in 2019 (for Darnell Savage), in 2020 (for Jordan Love), and technically in 2023 during the Aaron Rodgers' trade.
Tom Silverstein reported that the Packers are mostly done with the expensive part of free agency. So yes, I expect them to go to the cheap portion of the market. The Packers need an off-ball linebacker for depth reasons, so I would say Isaiah Simmons is an intriguing option. Safety Quandre Diggs might be an option, too, but I'm still not sure that he will be in fact cheap. More possible names: Tashaun Gipson and Oren Burks, and some of their own free agents, like Yosh Nijman and Eric Wilson.
Micah Hyde has been better, but the question is for how much longer. He is 33, and age is an especially difficult factor to overcome for defensive backs. Jordan Fuller is 26.
Eric Stokes is not the only Packers player to have handled multiple hamstring injuries, and that's probably a factor in the decision to change the strength and conditioning staff. Stokes and wide receiver Christian Watson will visit a UW hamstring specialist to evaluate how they can limit future issues, and that's a big step forward for him to get healthy.
Packers 2024 free agency tracker
Green Bay enters the new league year with flexibility to invest
