Packers Daily Links: Steven Jackson Speculation
The potential of free agent running back Steven Jackson landing in Green Bay is speculated about at ESPN.com. That and more in today's Daily Links...
While sharing thoughts from former NFL executive Bill Polian, Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com debates the merits of the Packers adding free agent running back Steven Jackson of the St. Louis Rams. "That's also the best reason for connecting Jackson with the Packers, whose offense was embracing veteran Cedric Benson in 2012 before his season-ending foot injury," writes Seifert. "I think we can all agree Jackson is a more dynamic player, even as he approaches his 30th birthday this summer, and Polian considers him one of the true gems of the free-agent class." From a pure depth perspective, of course the Packers could use another talented running back. But can they afford to add a player such as Jackson with contracts due to Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews, B.J. Raji and others.
Speaking of "affording players," the salary-cap situation of the Packers is investigated at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, in which Pete Dougherty speculates how the Packers can create some more room. "If the Packers cut (Charles) Woodson and (A.J.) Hawk, they’d pick up $15.45 million in cap room," writes Dougherty. It's also a possibility that the Packers could ask Woodson and Hawk to restructure their contracts as well. Neither situation is set in stone, however, and it will be very interesting to see what the Packers do before the start of the league season officially begins in early March.
The quarterback position in Green Bay is analyzed by Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com. "While he didn’t miss a single game and only missed one snap – after being poked in the eye, with Harrell fumbling a goal-line handoff on the ensuing play – (Aaron) Rodgers continues to put himself in harm’s way with the number of sacks he takes," writes Wilde. Rodgers is partially at fault for a high number of sacks by holding onto the ball for too long , but it would seem the easiest way to reduce the number of sacks would be through improvement on the offensive line.
Former Packers great Jerry Kramer granted an interview to Bob Fox of Bleacher Report where he talked about the recent selection of teammate Dave Robinson (who Kramer calls "Robby") to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. "Robby and I and some friends went to dinner at Commander's Palace (New Orleans) on Friday night (the night before the Robinson's selection), and we just had an incredible dinner," said Kramer. "The folks that ran the place came over and fussed over us a little bit, and then they started bringing us over shrimp, craw fish, pompano and this and that, and we just had a great time. I toasted Robby about his induction during the dinner and there were 13 of us there, and Robby teared up a little bit. It was a nice moment."
A pre-Combine article on Central Michigan tackle Eric Fisher is written by Tyler Dunne at JSOnline, which includes some thoughts on the state of the Packers offensive line.
Also at JSOnline, a mock draft selection from Russ Lande has the Packers taking Georgia inside linebacker Alec Ogletree.
The annual check-up series continues at Fox Sports Wisconsin with running back Alex Green.
Postseason evaluation and report card grades are handed out to offensive lineman Jeff Saturday and safety M.D. Jennings at AllGreenBayPackers.com.
The potential of a blockbuster 2014 induction class for the Packers Hall of Fame is speculated about at PackersTalk.com.
The Packers official website lists the top five defensive plays of the 2012 season.
Special teams coordinator Shawn Slocum gets some attention at Acme Packing Company.
A mock draft at Lombardi Ave. has the Packers taking Alabama offensive lineman Barrett Jones.
Wide receiver Randall Cobb is the subject of a blog post at Pocket Doppler.
Brian Carriveau is the author of "It's Just a Game: Big League Drama in Small Town America," and editor of Cheesehead TV's "Pro Football Draft Preview." To contact Brian, email [email protected].
Comments (15)
February 12, 2013 at 09:30 am
I cannot wait for when we can retire the caveat "...with contracts due to Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews, B.J. Raji and others."
It's just a cloud hanging over every Packer discussion.
February 12, 2013 at 09:36 am
You can say that again.
February 12, 2013 at 10:13 am
I think we hashed over the possibility of a Steven Jackson trade last summer. At least he fits the bill. At 30, he might not be overly expensive either. Could be a piece of the puzzle to help make a run in the next two years - at the right price.
The GBP article suggests cutting Hawk nets $5M in cap space. Previous articles we've read state it would be about $2.5M before June1st and $3M after June 1st. Not sure what to believe at this point, but the prior article was more detailed about the numbers.
February 12, 2013 at 03:04 pm
Rodgers ran the ball 54 times last year was he holding the ball to long ?Maybe he should of taken another 50 sacks or threw the ball away 50 times.I am sick of hearing Rodgers holds the ball to long.Rodgers is playing at a level no one has played at and then for some one to say he holds the ball to long B.S....
February 12, 2013 at 03:14 pm
Sacks > INTs.
February 12, 2013 at 03:25 pm
Injuries aren't! But i agree that him holding the ball a little longer then some other quarterbacks is just who he is. I'm fine with it. Let's just improve our pass blocking so that the only sacks he takes are BECAUSE he's holding the ball too long.
February 13, 2013 at 05:25 am
you're assuming that he would throw an interception every time he got rid of the ball earlier.
not the case.
throw aways>sacks
February 13, 2013 at 05:43 am
There's not always an option to throw it away, though...
February 13, 2013 at 07:25 am
I'm doing no such thing.
February 12, 2013 at 10:25 pm
However he does hold the ball too long. Saying so isnt some how diminishing his accomplishments or high level of play, its a simple statement of evaluation. Even McCarthy has said as much but lets it go because he doesnt want to reel in Rodgers play making ability. Even Rodgers has pointed out that he has held the ball too long.
"Just because perfection is not attainable, doesnt mean you shouldnt try." Thats the motto I use in my professional life, and for a hyper competitive person such as Rodgers I imagine he is the same. Saying he has no faults or ignoring them is like saying he is perfect. He is not, because he is human. Stating such does not mean he is not playing at an extremely high level. Because if honestly that is all you can say about him negatively, thats pretty damn good.
February 12, 2013 at 10:46 pm
If Rodgers was the only one making mistakes I agree but 99% of problems come from other players.
February 12, 2013 at 06:34 pm
The Dougherty piece is really confusing. It doesn't even mention that the Packers still have 4.8M of Hawk's signing bonus to contend with in some way nor the 800K of dead money from the Saturday deal. Those things are kind of important.
February 13, 2013 at 09:45 am
Forget Steven Jackson. If the Packers want to sign a free agent RB it should be Chris Ivory. He'll likely come with a smaller price tag and way more upside than guys like Jackson or Ahmad Bradshaw.
Ivory is averaging 5.1 yards per carry on his career, is 24, and has only 256 total carries.
He has serious talent that is being underrated due to his relative obscurity in the very deep New Orleans backfield.
He could be a long term answer with Harris as a nice compliment/change-of-pace behind him.
February 13, 2013 at 09:53 am
Agree 100%.
February 13, 2013 at 01:04 pm
CHRIS IVORY. could not agree more.