AllGreenBayPackers.Com

Let’s play devil’s advocate one more time and look at why the Packers should trade up in the NFL draft.  This time I will be looking purely at the economics of the draft.  The classic example that Packer fans love in the 2005 NFL draft where Alex Smith was given the biggest rookie contract of all time at that point with $45.9 million deal with $24 million guaranteed while Aaron Rodgers only commanded a $7.7 million deal (less than Smith’s guaranteed contract) with $5.4 million guaranteed.  I’m not going to go in the relative value of Smith vs. Rodgers as players (as countless writers including myself have beaten the topic to death) but the take home message is that the Packers couldn’t lose economically: if Rodgers is the next Bart Starr, then they’ve got him at a discount for the first 5 years, if he’s decent the Packers paid a fair market value for him and if he’s a bust they can cut Rodgers without much penalty.  Smith on the other hand had to succeed; it was the only way to justify his massive contract.  Read more... (963 words + 1 image, estimated 3:51 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers is the NFC North's, and probably the NFL's, best draft choice since 2005.Introduction

Introduction
As Packers fans, we hear a lot about building through the draft and developing young players. I thought it would be interesting to examine each team in the NFC North to get a better idea of how drafted players impact current rosters.

So as baseball season gets underway, I decided to celebrate by writing over 2,000 words about the NFL draft.

I came up with a baseball theme (sort of) to accomplish this task. I break down each team’s drafts from 2005-11 by putting draftees in the below categories. I chose 2005-11 because it encompasses Ted Thompson’s time as Packers general manager. Here are the categories and an explanation of each:

Current Starters
This one should be obvious. Which players drafted from 2005-11 are current-day starters with the team that drafted them?

Home Runs
Players who have turned into pro-bowl caliber players or superstars.  Read more... (2235 words + 1 image, estimated 8:56 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

2011 Packers Yearbook:  Most Valuable Player (not named Aaron Rodgers or Clay Matthews))

(Be sure to place your vote in the poll below.)

Adam: Greg Jennings. This one would be more obvious if Jennings didn’t get hurt, but he gets the nod because of how powerful the Packers passing game was.

Al: I can’t pick on anyone on offense besides Rodgers, sooooooo, I’ll go with  Ryan Pickett. In the two games that Pickett missed, the Packers gave up 344 rushing yards. Playing the majority of the time in a two-man front, Pickett is just an immovable force on the line of scrimmage. Dom Capers always says his defensive philosophy starts with stopping the run, so that makes Pickett my choice. My second choice would be Desmond Bishop, for similar reasons.

Chad: It’s hard to compare offense to defense, but since the defensive unit was so bad this year, I think I’ll have to go with an offensive player. That being said, I can’t get past the performance that Jordy Nelson had this season. True, Greg Jennings is the better receiver, yet Nelson was putting up numbers all year. I can’t fault Jennings for the injury, but it’s hard to dismiss how well Nelson filled in for him and consistently delivered. And according to ProFootballFocus, Jordy was second only to Victor Cruz in yards per route run among wide receivers.  Read more... (568 words, estimated 2:16 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Surviving Sundays With No Packers Football

The Packers signed free agent center Jeff Saturday this week to replace the departed Scott Wells. Yes, I said the Packers signed a free agent. A free agent that I actually heard of, nonetheless.

I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to react to this occasion.  It’s been a while since Ted Thompson blew the dust off the checkbook he uses to sign free agents from other teams and actually brought someone in. Fans from other teams often celebrate like they just won the Super Bowl after inking a free agent so….congrats fellow Packers fans?

Thompson obviously didn’t know how to react to the occasion, either. He was so confused and out of sorts about what he just did that he turned around and did it again, signing free agent defensive lineman Daniel Muir.

Now, Muir fits the mold of a Packers free-agent signing much more than Saturday. Muir is a journeyman that Thompson signed and released once before. He’ll have to fight hard just to make the team and anything he contributes during the season will be a bonus.  Read more... (916 words + 1 image, estimated 3:40 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers throws a pass against the New Orleans Saints in last season's opening game.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell came down hard on the New Orleans Saints for paying bounties on opposing players. The punishment:

• Indefinite suspension of former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams
• One-year suspension of coach Sean Payton
• Eight-game suspension of general manager Mickey Loomis
• Six-game suspension of assistant-head coach Joe Vitt
• A $500,000 franchise fine
• Forfeiture of second-round draft picks in 2012 and 2013
• Future discipline of individual players to be determined

The NFL also confirmed that the Saints had a bounty on Vikings QB Brett Favre in the NFC championship game and on Packers QB Aaron Rodgers in the 2011 season opener.

Here’s more on the Rodgers’ bounty:

“Further, prior to the Saints’ opening game in 2011, Coach Payton received an email from a close associate that stated in part, “PS Greg Williams put me down for $5000 on Rogers (sic).” When shown the email during the course of the investigation, Coach Payton stated that it referred to a “bounty” on Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers.”  Read more... (346 words + 1 image, estimated 1:23 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Tebowmania in Wisconsin? Let's hope not.

If you are following me on Twitter, you know I’m a Tim Tebow guy.  I love the intangibles he brings to a team and the unique skill set he has.  Nothing makes me happier than someone going against the grain and succeed in doing so all while driving his detractors absolutely nuts.  He’s a great story, really.

That said, Tim Tebow has absolutely no business being on the Green Bay Packers roster.  Adam Schefter has tweeted a couple times about the Packers being a possible destination for Tebow now that the Denver Broncos have signed Peyton Manning.  I would implore GM Ted Thompson, however, to not even sniff around the former Gator star.

Why, you ask?

First off is the baggage that comes with Tebow.  Normally when someone talks about “baggage” in regards to a professional athlete, they’re talking about a checkered past or other skeletons in a guy’s closet.  This isn’t the case with Tebow.  Instead his “baggage” is an army of millions of blindly devoted Tebowmaniacs.  Read more... (789 words + 1 image, estimated 3:09 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny

Tim Tebow? That is what the offseason in Green Bay has come down to. Speculation that the Packers should give Tim Tebow a look either through trade or free agency if he is cut. Tebow would be brought in as a backup to Aaron Rodgers and compete with Graham Harrell for the second string spot.

Whether this move would be good, bad or whatever is not the point. The point is that Packers fans need to accept the quiet and eerie feeling that the team doesn’t even exist when free agency begins and huge contracts are being thrown around wildly (much like Tebow’s passes).

A visit by center Jeff Saturday, speculation of a move to get Tim Tebow and the latest, the re-signing of Jarrett Bush to a new, three-year contract.

The reaction of many fans is that Ted Thompson isn’t doing his job properly and that the Packers are letting their Super Bowl window run out. This team needs a better defense, that’s no secret. There needs to be an improved pass rush and new blood is certain to be brought in.  Read more... (708 words + 1 image, estimated 2:50 mins reading time)

---- Get AddToAny