Defensive line depth

[hoosier]

I hope you washed your hands after reaching deep into your anus to pull that out.

Nonsense. I rely only on acute observation, relentless drive to discover, and high order analytical operations.

[Smidgeon]

Nonsense. I rely only on acute observation, relentless drive to discover, and high order analytical operations.

And a website.

[hoosier]

That's the discovery part.

[pbmax]

That's the discovery part.

Exactly. Google doesn't Google itself, you know. Someone has to get the work done.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I've given TT a pass on the Cullen Jenkins debacle, figuring that the packers just got unlucky with timing. But after reading Dougherty's chat yesterday, maybe TT really did screw this up.


Comment From Bob in Minnetonka: Pete -- Thanks for the chat. I'm still somewhat puzzled that TT did not resign Jenkins--especially if he essentially only got a one year $4-5 million deal with the Eagles. How worried should fans be w/o Jenkins and with Neal getting an MRI on his knee (i.e., his durability)?

Pete Dougherty: Agreed on Jenkins, he came at an incredibly cheap price for a player of his caliber with no immediate long-term commitment -- the big money doesn't kick in until next year, and it's not guaranteed, so he could be cut next February. Going into FA they had no way to know the price would be so low, but when he lasted on the market and the teams dried up, I'm surprised they didn't make a call. Concern with Neal's injury history is more than valid. They need him.

Comment From ChrisChris: Pete, what makes you think Jenkins even wanted to come back after not being shown 'the love' (aka contract) in-season? How do you know Thompson and his staff didn't reach out as free agency opened?

Pete Dougherty: He's said so publicly, a couple times in the offseason he said he was still open to it. He's generally been the kind of guy to speak his mind on such matters, so if he wasn't open to it there's a decent chance he would have said so. Also, I talked to Raji the first week of camp, and he said he spoke with Jenkins after Philadelphia signed him, and he thought Jenkins would have come back if the Packers had made a competitive offer.

[mraynrand]

Perhaps TT made his decision based only on Jenkins past and anticipated future health. Maybe he just figured Jenkins is pretty much done. It didn't seem like all that much to keep him, so it can't be the money. We'll know soon enough if he was right.


Edit: I don't think this post adds much

[Harlan Huckleby]

Perhaps TT made his decision based only on Jenkins past and anticipated future health.

Same thing could be said about NEal, who has injury pattern.

The fact that Jenkins was available for one-year-deal throws the long-term considerations out the window. Jenkins is 30, not 50.

[mraynrand]

Same thing could be said about NEal, who has injury pattern.

More like Harrell, eh? But I get your point. Maybe Patler and you (others?) are right - they expected a higher price and let him go and when the price dropped it was too late to get him back. Screwed the pooch as they say.

[Harlan Huckleby]

when the price dropped it was too late to get him back.

That's the old theory. The new theory (according to Pete Dougherty) is that the Packers had an opportunity to make reasonable offer and didn't bother.

Bring Ted Thompson to the public square and flog him! Umm, actually it's still not so clear, but we can flog now and apologize later if need be.

[Patler]

It's difficult to know who to believe, but in several interviews TT recently has said the Packers were in contact with Jenkins' agent throughout FA, and that it was Jenkins' decision not to come back to GB. I suspect aspects of the offer from the Eagles were better fiinancially than what the Packers offered, and so the agent rebuffed the Packers. The Packers tend to tie salaries of injury-prone players to gameday roster bonuses. If the Eagles 2011 salary is certain, with a potentially big payday after this year, the agent may have preferred it to a less certain salary from the Packers in 2011 and beyond.

Jenkins is a good player, but not a great player. Apparently the entire league has concerns about him for some reason, or the Eagles would not have gotten him as cheaply as they did. Pass rushing DEs usually command lucrative deals. I would have liked to have seen Jenkins back this year, but I can't get overly concerned that he will not be back. I will trust TT to find a replacement or replacements and Capers to compensate for changed ability/performance of the replacement(s).

[Harlan Huckleby]

Jenkins is a good player, but not a great player. Apparently the entire league has concerns about him for some reason, or the Eagles would not have gotten him as cheaply as they did. Pass rushing DEs usually command lucrative deals. I would have liked to have seen Jenkins back this year, but I can't get overly concerned that he will not be back. I will trust TT to find a replacement or replacements and Capers to compensate for changed ability/performance of the replacement(s).

I was watching Jenkins last night in Eagles humblng loss to Pittsburgh. He pretty great at slipping past blockers. Overall, I guess he qualifies as good+.

If CJ Wilson had come into camp and played like a starter, I'd feel better about the situation.

[pbmax]

There is also a question about structure of the deal. Jenkins and his agent got to claim they made a 5 yr./25 million dollar deal with some number guaranteed. the Packers do not do many contracts with 4 years and 21 million dollars of bogus money. If that held true, the agent would have preferred the Eagles offer if only for the PR. And that doesn't even cover Patler's point about injury protection for the team, something the Eagles may not have insisted upon.

And I cannot believe we are still questioning whether letting the aging veteran go is the smart move. It is the smart move and has been proven to be so. Yes, it can leave you with a short term gap, but the variables are all in your favor. Young untested players don't usually get worse. Jenkins will.

[Pugger]

I suspect the Packers were not given the opportunity to counter Philly's offer to Jenkins.

[Harlan Huckleby]

And I cannot believe we are still questioning whether letting the aging veteran go is the smart move .

Are you trying to drive Driver out of town?

There is no magic formula. Ya, generally it works to replace expensive, declining veterans with up-and-comers. In the case of Jenkins, it appears they could have shored-up a team weakness at reasonable cost/commitment. It appears to have been a big mistake.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I suspect the Packers were not given the opportunity to counter Philly's offer to Jenkins.

maybe not. But there is some evidence to the contrary.