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Looking at the list of available FAs, it's not a great list. A few positions are strong. Some of these guys will be tagged or will resign with their current teams before they even hit UFA.
At QB, Matt Cassel is this year's Matt Schaub. He'll be in big demand, and New England will probably tag him. Kurt Warner would be a nice fit for a contender lacking a QB. I don't see the Packers making a play for any of these guys.
At RB, Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward are studs. I'm assuming the Giants will try their best to keep one of these guys. The other is going to be the Michael Turner of this year's class. I don't see either guy coming to Green Bay. Maurice Morris, Correll Buckhalter, and Darren Sproles wouldn't be bad backups, but I don't see the Packers making much of a play on any of these guys.
At WR, there isn't much available. T.J. Houshmandzadeh will get big money. Antonio Bryant made himself some money in his contract year. Lance Moore will get some play as a RFA. He'd make a nice slot receiver for a lot of teams. There will be teams that take a chance on Devery Henderson, Nate Washington, and possibly Brandon Jones. The Packers will have little interest in any of these guys.
At TE, Houston won't let Owen Daniels get away. L.J. Smith might be a nice bargain after his injury plagued year. Jim Kleinsasser probably fits best where he's at. Bo Scaife is a decent all around TE with little speed to stretch the field. It's unlikely the Packers will have interest in any of these guys. Lee is probably as good as the guys not named Daniels, and Finley has some potential.
At OT, there are some decent players available. Jordan Gross will get huge money. Vernon Carey is a good, young player. Khalif Barnes and Stacy Andrews have been up and down, but mostly solid. Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas are warriors, but are old. Max Starks and Marvel Smith are inconsistent. Gross seems to be the only one that has the movement skills for the ZBS. It might be a pipe dream, but Gross would be one of the few FAs that would get me excited.
At OG, there isn't much. New Orleans won't let Jahri Evans go as a RFA. Chris Kemoeatu is a road grader type. Cooper Carlisle is a good fit for our scheme, but he's getting old. Mike Goff is on the decline. Mark Setterstrom was a good player for the Rams early in his career, but he's been ravaged by injuries. I'm not sure there's anybody worth going after here.
At OC, Matt Birk and Jeff Saturday are solid vets who probably have a couple of years left. I can't see Birk leaving his home town or Saturday leaving the Colts though. Jason Brown is a good, young, road grader type. Eric Heitmann and Richie Incognito have just been adequate starters. Maybe a veteran OC to stabilize the middle of the OL would be worth pursuing.
At DE, Julius Peppers is a stud. Terrell Suggs is a stud in the 3-4 defense, but I'm not convinced he's a stud as a 4-3 DE. Chris Canty would be an intriguing pickup because he's decent all around. The rest aren't very intriguing. Bertrand Berry is old and injury prone. Peppers would be a dream. Canty wouldn't be a bad fallback.
At DT, Albert Haynesworth is a stud, and count me as somebody who would love to get him. Most of the rest are undersized pass rushers. Rocky Bernard probably is the best of that bunch. He could provide an inside pass rush that the Packers lacked once Jenkins went down. Jovan Haye is similar to Bernard, but followed up a good 2007 season with a down 2008 season. More than anything though, we need a big 3 down stud DT that can stop the run and provide a pass rush. Outside of Haynesworth, I'm not sure another is available. Gabe Watson is probably the closest thing we need physically, but he's been a bit of a disappointment in his career.
At LB, there are some solid options available. Ray Lewis will stay in Baltimore. Michael Boley and Karlos Dansby are studs. Jonathan Vilma has played much better in 4-3 than his two years with Mangini in the 3-4. Channing Crowder has turned into a nice player. Bart Scott is solid in the 3-4. Not sure how he would translate to a 4-3. Angelo Crowell is solid, but missed the 2008 season with an injury. LeRoy Hill would be a good fit in our current scheme or a blitzing 4-3 scheme. Mike Peterson was a stud, but he's old. There are some LB options available that should be intriguing to the Packers.
At CB, Nnamdi Asomugha is a stud, but I can't see Oakland letting him go. Can they franchise him again? Dunta Robinson and Chris Gamble are solid. As long as Harris and Woodson are on the team, I'm not sure Green Bay would be attractive to any FA corners.
At S, there are some intriguing players available. Sean Jones is a solid all around safety. OJ Atogwe is a pretty good cover safety. Jermaine Phillips is solid also, but is better near the line of scrimmage. Beside Jones, two lesser names intrigue me the most - James Butler of the Giants and James Sanders of the Patriots. There are some guys to target here.
At P/K, two words - Shane Lechler. After the debacle of this season, he might be worth the money.
In short, I don't see us signing a FA QB, RB, WR, TE, or OG. OC has a couple of intriguing guys. OT has a handful of intriguing guys, but most aren't ideal for our system. Peppers, Gross, Haynesworth, Boley, and Dansby would instantly upgrade the team--but they'll be difficult to get. There isn't much at DT outside of Haynesworth. Canty is intriguing. There are some intriguing LBs and safeties available.
Pipe Dreams - OT Gross, DE Peppers, DT Haynsworth, LB Boley, LB Dansby
Other Guys That Would Get Me Exciting - OT Carey, LB Vilma, LB Crowder, S Jones, P Lechler (although it's hard to put a punter on here)
Sleepers That I Wouldn't Mind Getting - DE Canty, DT Watson, LB Hill, LB Crowell, S Butler, S Sanders
Other Guys That Might Fit - TE Smith, OG Carlisle, OC Saturday, DT Bernard, DT Haye
At QB, Matt Cassel is this year's Matt Schaub. He'll be in big demand, and New England will probably tag him. Kurt Warner would be a nice fit for a contender lacking a QB. I don't see the Packers making a play for any of these guys.
At RB, Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward are studs. I'm assuming the Giants will try their best to keep one of these guys. The other is going to be the Michael Turner of this year's class. I don't see either guy coming to Green Bay. Maurice Morris, Correll Buckhalter, and Darren Sproles wouldn't be bad backups, but I don't see the Packers making much of a play on any of these guys.
At WR, there isn't much available. T.J. Houshmandzadeh will get big money. Antonio Bryant made himself some money in his contract year. Lance Moore will get some play as a RFA. He'd make a nice slot receiver for a lot of teams. There will be teams that take a chance on Devery Henderson, Nate Washington, and possibly Brandon Jones. The Packers will have little interest in any of these guys.
At TE, Houston won't let Owen Daniels get away. L.J. Smith might be a nice bargain after his injury plagued year. Jim Kleinsasser probably fits best where he's at. Bo Scaife is a decent all around TE with little speed to stretch the field. It's unlikely the Packers will have interest in any of these guys. Lee is probably as good as the guys not named Daniels, and Finley has some potential.
At OT, there are some decent players available. Jordan Gross will get huge money. Vernon Carey is a good, young player. Khalif Barnes and Stacy Andrews have been up and down, but mostly solid. Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas are warriors, but are old. Max Starks and Marvel Smith are inconsistent. Gross seems to be the only one that has the movement skills for the ZBS. It might be a pipe dream, but Gross would be one of the few FAs that would get me excited.
At OG, there isn't much. New Orleans won't let Jahri Evans go as a RFA. Chris Kemoeatu is a road grader type. Cooper Carlisle is a good fit for our scheme, but he's getting old. Mike Goff is on the decline. Mark Setterstrom was a good player for the Rams early in his career, but he's been ravaged by injuries. I'm not sure there's anybody worth going after here.
At OC, Matt Birk and Jeff Saturday are solid vets who probably have a couple of years left. I can't see Birk leaving his home town or Saturday leaving the Colts though. Jason Brown is a good, young, road grader type. Eric Heitmann and Richie Incognito have just been adequate starters. Maybe a veteran OC to stabilize the middle of the OL would be worth pursuing.
At DE, Julius Peppers is a stud. Terrell Suggs is a stud in the 3-4 defense, but I'm not convinced he's a stud as a 4-3 DE. Chris Canty would be an intriguing pickup because he's decent all around. The rest aren't very intriguing. Bertrand Berry is old and injury prone. Peppers would be a dream. Canty wouldn't be a bad fallback.
At DT, Albert Haynesworth is a stud, and count me as somebody who would love to get him. Most of the rest are undersized pass rushers. Rocky Bernard probably is the best of that bunch. He could provide an inside pass rush that the Packers lacked once Jenkins went down. Jovan Haye is similar to Bernard, but followed up a good 2007 season with a down 2008 season. More than anything though, we need a big 3 down stud DT that can stop the run and provide a pass rush. Outside of Haynesworth, I'm not sure another is available. Gabe Watson is probably the closest thing we need physically, but he's been a bit of a disappointment in his career.
At LB, there are some solid options available. Ray Lewis will stay in Baltimore. Michael Boley and Karlos Dansby are studs. Jonathan Vilma has played much better in 4-3 than his two years with Mangini in the 3-4. Channing Crowder has turned into a nice player. Bart Scott is solid in the 3-4. Not sure how he would translate to a 4-3. Angelo Crowell is solid, but missed the 2008 season with an injury. LeRoy Hill would be a good fit in our current scheme or a blitzing 4-3 scheme. Mike Peterson was a stud, but he's old. There are some LB options available that should be intriguing to the Packers.
At CB, Nnamdi Asomugha is a stud, but I can't see Oakland letting him go. Can they franchise him again? Dunta Robinson and Chris Gamble are solid. As long as Harris and Woodson are on the team, I'm not sure Green Bay would be attractive to any FA corners.
At S, there are some intriguing players available. Sean Jones is a solid all around safety. OJ Atogwe is a pretty good cover safety. Jermaine Phillips is solid also, but is better near the line of scrimmage. Beside Jones, two lesser names intrigue me the most - James Butler of the Giants and James Sanders of the Patriots. There are some guys to target here.
At P/K, two words - Shane Lechler. After the debacle of this season, he might be worth the money.
In short, I don't see us signing a FA QB, RB, WR, TE, or OG. OC has a couple of intriguing guys. OT has a handful of intriguing guys, but most aren't ideal for our system. Peppers, Gross, Haynesworth, Boley, and Dansby would instantly upgrade the team--but they'll be difficult to get. There isn't much at DT outside of Haynesworth. Canty is intriguing. There are some intriguing LBs and safeties available.
Pipe Dreams - OT Gross, DE Peppers, DT Haynsworth, LB Boley, LB Dansby
Other Guys That Would Get Me Exciting - OT Carey, LB Vilma, LB Crowder, S Jones, P Lechler (although it's hard to put a punter on here)
Sleepers That I Wouldn't Mind Getting - DE Canty, DT Watson, LB Hill, LB Crowell, S Butler, S Sanders
Other Guys That Might Fit - TE Smith, OG Carlisle, OC Saturday, DT Bernard, DT Haye
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