Packers stay quiet during first week of free agency
The Green Bay Packers re-signed running back Aaron Jones to a four-year deal on the Sunday before the start of the legal tampering period. In the week since, the team has done little outside of tendering exclusive rights and restricted free agents, simple procedural decisions all teams make around the start of the new league year.
The Packers haven’t re-signed an unrestricted free agent or signed an outside free agent. In fact, no team in the NFL has been quieter in terms of player retainment or acquisition during free agency’s first week.
The Packers brought back Jones and have stood pat, with a tight salary cap situation restricting activity and forcing general manager Brian Gutekunst to stay patient during the first wave. The team had to execute several contract restructures just to get under the cap by last Wednesday.
It’s certainly possible the Packers won’t make a move until prices really start to drop and cheap, one-year deals are possible for a host of capable veteran players.
The team must also make decisions on a few in-house free agents. There’s a good chance a few players could be back on near-minimum deals.
As of Monday morning, the following players remain free agents for the Packers:
CB Kevin King
G Lane Taylor
TE Marcedes Lewis
DL Damon Harrison
DB Will Redmond
RB Tyler Ervin
WR Tavon Austin
DL Billy Winn
T Jared Veldheer
LB James Burgess
DL Tyler Lancaster
S Raven Greene
CB Parry Nickerson
The Packers took the first week off of free agency, but the second week could start to provide the bargains Green Bay is looking for in the open market.
Of course, the salary cap remains a constraint. Will the team restructure Aaron Rodgers’ deal, or complete an extension for Davante Adams? Both moves could open up space, and provide options for adding veterans. If neither contract is touched, the Packers will likely remain quiet and may do little in terms of adding players.
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Which free agents are left at Packers' need positions?
