What took so long - Speaking of the Raiders, I predicted weeks ago on a my podcast that the Raiders would emerge as the top destination for Rodgers if he wishes to be traded. While all the focus was on the Jets or the 49ers, I kept wondering why Vegas wasn't being mentioned. Well, this week took care of that. A reunion with Davante Adams surely would appeal to Rodgers - it's pretty obvious how much he missed him this year.
Admit when you're wrong and move on - Ty Dunne had an interesting article on his "Go Long" blog about Eagles GM Howie Roseman and how he resuscitated the Eagles. After winning a Super Bowl in 2017, things went south, culminating in a 4-11-1 season in 2020 and the firing of coach Doug Pederson and his staff. Two years later, the Eagles are back in the Super Bowl. How? Roseman realized his mistake in signing Carson Wentz to a huge contract and was able to dump him to the Colts. He wasn't afraid to fire his Super Bowl-winning coach after a terrible season. He made some huge mistakes trying to get Jalen Hurts some weapons, drafting JJ Arcega-Whiteside over DK Metcalf or Terry McLaurin, then the following year selecting Jalen Reagor over Justin Jefferson. Ouch! However, unlike most teams, they didn't desperately hold on to their bad first-round draft picks through their rookie contracts hoping that something would come of them. They jettisoned both and then got things right the following season by taking DeVonta Smith and trading for AJ Brown. Of course, this is a cherry-picked example of how acting decisively can pay off. My point in all of this is that the Eagles are the anti-Packers, who value continuity above all else. They will hold on to obviously failing players, coaches and GMs for far too long, only making a change when the results are truly disastrous. It's why Ted Thompson was allowed to conduct the draft when he was ill, why McCarthy held onto his job until the Packers became an embarrassment, why Amari Rodgers kept getting thrown out there despite costing the team games, why Aaron Rodgers was given a ridiculous contract, to "stay, please stay," why Joe Barry is coming back in 2023. I'm sure you will all come up with other examples in the comments. but these will do for me.
Keepers - It's going to be a rough free-agent season for the Packers, regardless if Aaron Rodgers is back or not. They love to keep their own players, but the best they might be able to hope for is to bring back Yosh on an RFA second-round tender, keep some cheap backups (Krys Barnes, Justin Hollins), and then re-up the special teams aces they brought in last season. I'm talking about Keisean Nixon, Rudy Ford, Eric Wilson, and Dallin Leavitt. The only other possibility I see is Robert Tonyan if they can sign him to a one-year team-friendly contract.
TE or S - Which of these is the greater position of need for the Packers? Assuming Amos is gone, it's Safety for me. It was the greatest position of weakness last year and will only get worse without Amos. Don't get me wrong, I'd love a pass-catching weapon at a tight end, but I would consider that a luxury more than a necessity.
Jersey Al made a good point on some of this the other day....
