The Green Bay Packers are historically prudent in free agency; not wanting to splash cash for established players who could be on the decline.
Rather, they prefer to draft and develop, and would rather let go of a top player a year early – e.g. center, Corey Linsley; and running back, Aaron Jones – instead of a year too late.
Yet, under general manager, Brian Gutekunst the team’s free agency activity has managed a resurgence of sorts, with the team bringing in numerous big-ticket players in March; from edge rushers, Za’Darius and Preston Smith; to running back, Josh Jacobs, and safety Xavier McKinney – both acquired this past season.
This year, however, it seems like despite having their most amount of cap space in over half a decade, the team may revert back to their more cautious selves come mid-March, in comments made by Gutekunst on Sunday, via the Wisconsin State Journal.
“âCertainly, weâd love to be in that situation every year where you have a lot of flexibility to do what you need to do,â Gutekunst said during his after-the-season Q&A session with reporters last month. âDepending on the opportunities that are out there (for) your football team or where youâre at can dictate some of that.
âWhenever there are players like âXâ or Josh that are out there, which isnât very often, I think even if you donât have great flexibility, you have to really consider adding those kinds of players because thereâs just not that many of them.â”
The idea that there are not very often top-level free agents that ring the Packers’ bell will certainly be concerning to the fans of a team in need of high quality, true blue-chip talents, particularly at receiver and on the defensive line.
Gutekunst’s next statements, however, may provide some semblance of optimism for the Packers faithful.
“âI view every offseason that we have to attack it aggressively. (But) the opportunities that present themselves, whether that be free agency or trade, are different every year,â Gutekunst said. âEvery year thereâs not going to be a Josh Jacobs or a Xavier McKinney out there to go get. So weâll see what transpires through the free-agency class â who gets re-signed, who doesnât, if thereâs salary cap casualties, if thereâs trade opportunities, all those.
âWe always operate under the aggressive mindset, but we have a process that we go through and weâll see whatâs available. If itâs right for us, then weâre going to attack it. If theyâre not there, itâs not there.â”
As we know, “aggressive mindset” can mean very different things for different teams. Although the Packers have stated a desire to start really competing for championships, it is in Green Bay’s DNA to be prudent and cautious when it comes to free agents.
And this attitude generally serves the organization well, as the vast majority of big-time FA’s are overpaid and/or past their prime upon receiving their large contracts.
But if the Packers really want to compete, they may have to buck their trends and stay true to their word, and actually play aggressively in the market next month.
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