Packers Training Camp Thread - Sign Ahmad Brooks, Pg 9

[neiLz]

I think Jordy can be similar to Fitzgerald later in his career. Last year Fitz moved almost solely to the slot and had a great year. Jordy bounced around all positions and played great. But I think Jordy can easily move to slot and play well and that is why I think Cobb is easily replaceable. I'd look to move cobb or cut him after this year unless he has a monster year.

[Turk Nowitzki]

I hope Cobb has a great year and eliminates the need for any kind of tough decision. I do believe he's a talented enough player to make that happen and he's still just turning 27 in a couple weeks.

[RRyder823]

Cobb isn't getting cut for at least 2 more seasons. Quite honestly it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to cut him next year. There's just not enough cap savings versus what you'd be replacing him with.

As for not wanting to pay 3 WRs big money. With the Packers cap shape they'll be more then ok doing it for a year. Not a concern. Adams will be locked up and all 3 will be on the roster next season



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[Profound23]

The answer with Cobb is simple. He earns his money on special teams. They gave him that huge contract then got scared off of playing him on punt/kick returns.

Even if he just returns 1 punt for a td, while returning some kick off returns to the other side of the field this offense is going to be #1 in scoring easily. He isn't worth his money as just a receiver.

[BucksPackers]

Doesn't cobb only have 2 years left on his deal anyways.......

In like 2 seasons Cobb- Mathhews- Jordy are all up for a new contract and I hope we don't spend too much on them.

[bizarro]

I'm really excited about this draft class and we haven't even seen Adams or Biegel. If they find their health - and we stay healthy - this could be a special class. We desperately need it.

[MickeyDavis]

Goode brought back to snap. They tried replacing him last year and brought him back, same thing this year. Supposedly they want someone faster to help with punt coverage. But the actual snapping is kind of important too.

[MickeyDavis]

Goode brought back to snap. They tried replacing him last year and brought him back, same thing this year. Supposedly they want someone faster to help with punt coverage. But the actual snapping is kind of important too.

[chonestown]

Goode brought back to snap.

Good.

[LikeABosh]

Are there any sleepers we should be looking to break out in 2017-18 season for us?

ESPN says Lowry based on camp performance so far.

www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/page/32for32x170808/predicting-2017-nfl-breakthrough-stars-all-32-teams-training-camp

That's funny. I was hoping he would be a guy to step up last year. Definitely had some good moments

[Turk Nowitzki]

Goode brought back to snap. They tried replacing him last year and brought him back, same thing this year. Supposedly they want someone faster to help with punt coverage. But the actual snapping is kind of important too.

I was wondering why they were trying to replace him considering I can't ever remember there being a major issue with the snapping when he's had the job.

[MickeyDavis]

Yeah his snapping was always solid. The article I saw said he was too slow and they thought getting s snapper who could run faster would help punt coverage. Sounds good, but not if the guy can't snap as well as Goode.

[MickeyDavis]

From the JS:

Ted Thompson has one player he absolutely needs to sign to a new contract within the next year.

The Green Bay Packers general manager has been proactive on Aaron Rodgers’ contract in the past, and there’s no reason to think he won’t be again. But really, it’s a must that he signs his quarterback to what will be a record-setting extension by next spring or summer.

Rodgers has three years left on his current deal, including this season, so you might be wondering why the hurry?

Here’s why: The franchise tag ain’t what it used to be, and for players, it’s now more blessing than curse.

That means the Packers shouldn’t let Rodgers get anywhere near the final year (2019) of his current deal. They don’t want the tag in play.

Let’s start with where things stand. Rodgers, 33, is the second-best quarterback in the game, and the Packers are perennial Super Bowl contenders because of him. They aren’t letting him go anywhere. So in that way, the franchise tag is their ultimate safety net.

But it comes with a steep price that’s a product of the 2011 CBA. Players used to hate the tag, but now, not so much. Especially quarterbacks. Kirk Cousins, who will have made $43.9 million playing on Washington’s tag in 2016 and ’17, has shown the way.

The price isn’t just the high cost of the tag, which is the average of the top five players at a position. It’s the even higher escalators for using it multiple times on the same guy.

For example, let’s say Rodgers' contract was up and the Packers tagged him for the first time this year. He’d make $21.68 million. To tag him again next year, they’d have to give him a 20 percent raise ($25.521 million). And to tag him a third time — that’s the maximum allowed per player — they’d have to offer a 44 percent raise over that, or $36.751 million.

So three years of tags would cost $83.5 million. And that’s at today’s prices. The tag will be higher in 2020, when Rodgers would be a free agent. By then it easily could be $25 million, perhaps more. For three years of tags, you’re talking at least $100 million.

If Rodgers gets close to even a whiff of free agency, then that’s where his contract talks will start: $100 million fully guaranteed. He’ll know all he has to do is get to 2020, when he’ll be 36, and he’s in for a windfall.

Don’t let that age, 36, fool you. For top quarterbacks, it’s not that old. The rules protect them, and sports scientists are learning more about longevity every year. Tom Brady, recently turned 40, has played some of his best football the last couple years. Drew Brees at 38 remains a premier player. Chances are, Rodgers still will be playing well even as he closes in on the big 4-0.

So when will Rodgers start getting a whiff of the tag? I’d say next fall. By then he’ll be only two years from free agency. If I’m him, that’s when I start baking the tag into contract talks. Because all he has to do is get within a year of free agency and it’s game over. All the leverage will be his.

But if the Packers get serious in the next 12 months, they can keep the tag out of it. Then the parameters will be recent quarterback deals, like Derek Carr’s five-year extension this offseason. Carr’s contract averages $25 million in new money and includes $40 million in full guarantees. Andrew Luck had $47 million in full guarantees with the deal he signed in 2016.

And Matthew Stafford should be the next big contract to drop. He’s in the last year of his deal, though he and the Detroit Lions are having trouble working out a new one. The Lions, no doubt, are running into the franchise-tag problems the Packers need to avoid.

I doubt Thompson and team vice president Russ Ball will start talks with Rodgers this season, though that wouldn’t be the worst idea. But I’ll be stunned if they haven’t worked out something with him by next spring or summer.

Rodgers says he wants to finish his career with the Packers, and there’s no reason to doubt him. He could have wrung more money out of them in 2013 but seemed to decide that past a certain point ($22 million average in new money) it would get counterproductive.

To be sure, Rodgers’ next deal will come with a steep price. It’s one any team would pay. But if the Packers wait too long, then they’ll really find out what expensive is.

[crkone]

From the JS:

Ted Thompson has one player he absolutely needs to sign to a new contract within the next year.

The Green Bay Packers general manager has been proactive on Aaron Rodgers’ contract in the past, and there’s no reason to think he won’t be again. But really, it’s a must that he signs his quarterback to what will be a record-setting extension by next spring or summer.

Rodgers has three years left on his current deal, including this season, so you might be wondering why the hurry?

Here’s why: The franchise tag ain’t what it used to be, and for players, it’s now more blessing than curse.

That means the Packers shouldn’t let Rodgers get anywhere near the final year (2019) of his current deal. They don’t want the tag in play.

Let’s start with where things stand. Rodgers, 33, is the second-best quarterback in the game, and the Packers are perennial Super Bowl contenders because of him. They aren’t letting him go anywhere. So in that way, the franchise tag is their ultimate safety net.

But it comes with a steep price that’s a product of the 2011 CBA. Players used to hate the tag, but now, not so much. Especially quarterbacks. Kirk Cousins, who will have made $43.9 million playing on Washington’s tag in 2016 and ’17, has shown the way.

The price isn’t just the high cost of the tag, which is the average of the top five players at a position. It’s the even higher escalators for using it multiple times on the same guy.

For example, let’s say Rodgers' contract was up and the Packers tagged him for the first time this year. He’d make $21.68 million. To tag him again next year, they’d have to give him a 20 percent raise ($25.521 million). And to tag him a third time — that’s the maximum allowed per player — they’d have to offer a 44 percent raise over that, or $36.751 million.

So three years of tags would cost $83.5 million. And that’s at today’s prices. The tag will be higher in 2020, when Rodgers would be a free agent. By then it easily could be $25 million, perhaps more. For three years of tags, you’re talking at least $100 million.

If Rodgers gets close to even a whiff of free agency, then that’s where his contract talks will start: $100 million fully guaranteed. He’ll know all he has to do is get to 2020, when he’ll be 36, and he’s in for a windfall.

Don’t let that age, 36, fool you. For top quarterbacks, it’s not that old. The rules protect them, and sports scientists are learning more about longevity every year. Tom Brady, recently turned 40, has played some of his best football the last couple years. Drew Brees at 38 remains a premier player. Chances are, Rodgers still will be playing well even as he closes in on the big 4-0.

So when will Rodgers start getting a whiff of the tag? I’d say next fall. By then he’ll be only two years from free agency. If I’m him, that’s when I start baking the tag into contract talks. Because all he has to do is get within a year of free agency and it’s game over. All the leverage will be his.

But if the Packers get serious in the next 12 months, they can keep the tag out of it. Then the parameters will be recent quarterback deals, like Derek Carr’s five-year extension this offseason. Carr’s contract averages $25 million in new money and includes $40 million in full guarantees. Andrew Luck had $47 million in full guarantees with the deal he signed in 2016.

And Matthew Stafford should be the next big contract to drop. He’s in the last year of his deal, though he and the Detroit Lions are having trouble working out a new one. The Lions, no doubt, are running into the franchise-tag problems the Packers need to avoid.

I doubt Thompson and team vice president Russ Ball will start talks with Rodgers this season, though that wouldn’t be the worst idea. But I’ll be stunned if they haven’t worked out something with him by next spring or summer.

Rodgers says he wants to finish his career with the Packers, and there’s no reason to doubt him. He could have wrung more money out of them in 2013 but seemed to decide that past a certain point ($22 million average in new money) it would get counterproductive.

To be sure, Rodgers’ next deal will come with a steep price. It’s one any team would pay. But if the Packers wait too long, then they’ll really find out what expensive is.

He rightfully should get the largest contract in history. It'll kill the books but he is in GOAT territory.

[MickeyDavis]

After an extended weekend, coach Mike McCarthy on Tuesday morning effectively ruled out four players for the Green Bay Packers' upcoming exhibition in Washington, including cornerback Damarious Randall.

Randall, along with rookie receiver Malchi Dupre, remain in the concussion protocol, McCarthy said. Don Barclay, the Packers' backup center, and rookie outside linebacker Vince Biegel also remain sidelined.

Randall was injured early in the first quarter of the Packers' preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles when he received a hard, blindside block from receiver Bryce Treggs. Dupre was injured early in the fourth quarter when Eagles safety Tre Sullivan tackled him high and hard on a receiver screen.

The Packers submitted both plays to the league for review, believing they were illegal hits.

"I don’t see either one of them playing this week," McCarthy said.

McCarthy said Barclay, who injured his ankle against the Eagles, will not practice this week or play in Washington. That leaves more reps and snaps for offensive linemen Lucas Patrick and Justin McCray, who are rotating at center for the first time in their careers.

Biegel remains on the physically unable to perform list, recovering from offseason foot surgery. He has not practiced since the team's second day of rookie orientation, and McCarthy said that will not change this week.

"Vince will not practice this week and he won’t be available for Washington," McCarthy said.

The Packers also announced they released defensive end Shaneil Jenkins, who had been signed Sunday after being waived by the Seattle Sehawks.

[crkone]

And Jones is done for the day with a foot/ankle thing.

[crkone]

Read on Twitter

[Iheartfootball]

And Jones is done for the day with a foot/ankle thing.

I read that as 'done for the YEAR'. Phew...

[Winglish]

It'll be nice if one of the rookie RB's could pass block. It limits the amount of options when Rip has to be in the backfield every play just in case he has to pass block.

Jamaal Williams is always willing to pass block. He picked up blitzes pretty nicely in college.

Not as big as a fullback, but he played in Ty Detmer's pro style offense so he knows the formations and reads and he has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. I think Packers fans will be pleasantly surprised.

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[MickeyDavis]

If you were charting all the receptions during Green Bay Packers' training camp, the leader wouldn’t be Jordy Nelson or Randall Cobb or Davante Adams.

It likely would be Max McCaffrey.

“Every day in practice he’s making plays,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said.

Last training camp it was Geronimo Allison who emerged out of a group of young receivers and earned Rodgers’ attention. Allison didn’t make the final cut, but he was signed to the practice squad and then elevated to the 53-man roster in Week 8.

The 6-2, 200-pound McCaffrey has the bloodlines to be an NFL player, but he has been forced to enter through a side door, not through the first round like his brother, Christian, or the third round like his father, Ed.

Max wasn’t drafted coming out of Duke in 2016. He signed with Oakland and took part in their training camp but was released on the cutdown to 75.

He went almost the entire rest of the year out of football until the Packers called and signed him to their practice squad Dec. 20. They saw enough of him in the next four weeks to sign him to the 53-man roster as an emergency option for the NFC Championship game.

Though McCaffrey was inactive, he made an impression.

The only problem was it wasn’t big enough to keep general manager Ted Thompson from drafting receivers DeAngelo Yancey in the fifth round and Malachi Dupre in the seventh. Given that Nelson, Cobb and Adams are fixtures, Allison would have to play himself out of a job and Jeff Janis is too valuable on special teams to cut him, McCaffrey faces a tall task.

“It’s always tough not to think about that stuff, but at this point, while I’m here, I’m here,” McCaffrey said. “You kind of do your job and that’s the reality. I know what my job is and I try to go out and be the best I can at it.”

The toughest challenge for McCaffrey has been adapting to a pro-style offense. In Duke coach David Cutliffe’s spread scheme, there aren’t options for each route based on the defensive coverage.

As McCaffrey put it, it was about running to a spot on the field as fast as you can.

“Here it’s a lot slower paced and you want to really focus on your route running during the route,” McCaffrey said. “So adjusting to that pro style was tough at first, but I’m just trying to improve each day.”

He does have a pretty good resource in his father Ed, who caught 565 passes for 7,422 yards and 55 touchdowns during a 13-year career that included stops with the New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos.

His brother, Christian, a Heisman Trophy runner-up at Stanford last year and now a member of the Carolina Panthers, makes a good training partner, too.

But during the offseason, McCaffrey went to someone he was sure knew the offense and was open to helping young receivers. Coaches can’t have contact with their players during the dead periods in the offseason, so McCaffrey asked Adams to help him learn the finer details of the offense.

“His willingness to learn is the biggest thing,” Adams said. “He’s texting me, asking me to send him clips from last year, releases (ways to get off the line of scrimmage) and things like that. He’s just a student of the game.

“And you can see it really means a lot to him out there, and the details are refined in what he’s been doing. If he keeps that up, he’s going to put himself in pretty good position.”

Practice Wednesday was a pretty typical one for McCaffrey.

In the one-on-one drills, he beat rookie Donatello Brown on an in-route on his first turn and then followed it up with a double move on his second turn that caused Brown to almost stop in his tracks and McCaffrey to fly by for what would have been a long touchdown in a game.

“We’ve been running a lot of moves similar to that so we were trying to fake a different route on that one,” McCaffrey said, downplaying the move. “A lot of it is just game tape and learning when DBs are going to bite on which routes.

“And we play with these guys all the time so it’s nice to know their tendencies.”

The rest of the practice, McCaffrey did what he usually does. He caught a first-down pass in front of rookie cornerback Kevin King and another first-down toss in the flat from quarterback Joe Callahan. In the 2-minute drill, he caught an 11-yard pass from Taysom Hill.

If he’s had a drop during training camp, it wasn’t obvious. His hands have been like glue. He caught only three of the seven balls thrown his way against Philadelphia a week ago, but one was for a 34-yard gain and another for 14 yards.

McCaffrey’s going to have a hard time beating out Allison, the speedy Trevor Davis and the physical Yancey for a roster spot. His speed is good (4.46 seconds in the 40-yard dash), but his strength isn’t (nine reps on the bench at his pro day).

“I’m not worried about it,” McCaffrey said. “That’s down the road. I take it day to day. And I’m on the Green Bay Packers. I love being here. I’m just trying to help this team.”