Packers address their biggest offseason need by agreeing to sign young talent to a long-term contract in free agency
After adding a player to the offensive line, the Green Bay Packers has made a defensive move as well in free agency. The team is expected to sign former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs to a four-year, $48 million contract, with $16 million in guarantees according to NFL Network’s insider Tom Pelissero. Hobbs was […]
After adding a player to the offensive line, the Green Bay Packers has made a defensive move as well in free agency. The team is expected to sign former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs to a four-year, $48 million contract, with $16 million in guarantees according to NFL Network’s insider Tom Pelissero.
Hobbs was a fifth-round pick in 2021 and follows a Packers’ trend of prioritizing younger free agents entering their second deals in the NFL.
Cornerback was an obvious and glaring need for the Packers entering this offseason, especially after it became clear that former All-Pro player Jaire Alexander wouldn't stay around. Moreover, former first-round pick Eric Stokes and depth piece Corey Ballentine are free agents.
Without them, a group that was already thin in 2024 got more exposed. At this moment, the room has Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine, Kamal Hadden, Kalen King, Isaiah Dunn, and Kaleb Hayes. Outside of Nixon and Valentine, nobody has significant starting experience in the NFL.
For Brian Gutekunst, investing in the defense and betting on coordinator Jeff Hafley was a big priority in the offseason.
“Jeff Hafley did an amazing job coming in here in Year 1. Those guys really grew together. I think we were playing our best football on defense at the end of the year,” Gutekunst pointed out. “I'm a big believer that every year is a different year, but I do think some of the things we went through this year with a number of rookies playing a lot of snaps for us, along with X (Xavier McKinney) coming in from another team, so I think as those guys grow together, that communication will consistently get better and better. Really excited about where the defense is right now.”
Why the Raiders let him leave
They say in the NFL your next contract is the one you're getting because of what you're going to do, not because of what you have done. For the Raiders, they weren't really sure about all of that with cornerback and primarily nickel Nate Hobbs. He was a great player during his time in Las Vegas, but he was almost guaranteed to miss half a season, or at least five games of the season. He has yet to play a full season, and you could say it's because of his play style and role. But, it was something that the Raiders felt like they could pass on, especially seeing what his market value would be from other teams.
Hobbs was a great player to have in the slot when he was healthy. When he was out last season, the Raiders had rookies and young players fill in for him, and it went better than you would expect. This is just another reason the Raiders felt they could move on. Hobbs is going to join his former teammate, Josh Jacobs, and fit in perfectly with what they do on defense. And the good news for Green Bay is that he's still pretty young, going into his fifth season. He hasn't played as much football as you may think, so he's raw, and really hasn't hit his ceiling yet. The one downside is that his best ability is not availability.
Jaire Alexander’s future with the Packers takes interesting turn as free agency kicks off with uncertainty surrounding his status
Cornerback is still under contract
