Free Agents and Green Bay

[Patler]

99% of the players, all things being equal, would rather go to south florida, the west or east coast, maybe chicago. All things aren't equal. Most of the comments about not wanting to go to GB go back to the times when we sucked. I think that GB post 1992 is a far more inviting place than pre 1992.

GB made a giant leap forward under Bob Harlan in making the facilities an inviting place for players, and they continue to make improvements. But other teams are doing the same. While it will win them points from FAs when compared to some teams, they are not head and shoulders above everyone in that regard. The good thing is that they will not lose players just because their facilities are bad, as I believe they did at one time.

[Zool]

The one time? Come on Woody, that's pure foolishness and you know it.

I will grant that Irving was a great player though. He physically dominated corners and got away with physically abusing them.

As Zool pointed out, he wasn't very fond of the 'straight and narrow' but it's interesting to read his legal troubles. A line from his first brush with the law: "When arrested he was lying on the floor covered in cocaine with multiple strippers performing sexual acts upon him". Not sure that makes him an asshole!
He undoubtedly like to party, but it seems he was a pretty slippery guy. I think he ended up with only one conviction, from the initial incident?

It's the multiple sexual assault charges that I'm speaking to. Where there's smoke, there's fire. Asshole. Also he's very hard to watch on NFLN.

[Guiness]

It's the multiple sexual assault charges that I'm speaking to. Where there's smoke, there's fire. Asshole. Also he's very hard to watch on NFLN.

Don't know what to make of the sexual assault charges. The cheerleader that brought charges was convicted of perjury.There was another one or two incidents but nothing ever came of them. When I read about him he reminds me of Roberto Alomar when he was in Toronto - young rich athlete with a sense of entitlement, the guy who, when he gets in trouble, says "do you know who I am?". So ya, asshole.

He was an absolute tool on NFLN. He obviously doesn't have that little switch in his head that tells him was is acceptable and what isn't - that little comment about Romo's grandmother's dalliances with slave brothers might've been something he joked with him about, but some kind of stupid to say it on air!

[MadScientist]

They signed Peppers, and that guy from MN this year, and they generally don't have too much of a problem re-signing their own FA's. So if they want a guy they can get him. It may be a little tougher sell, but not prohibitively so. In the 80's, when the recent history was pathetic loosing and the facilities were not first rate, Green Bay was a very tough sell.

These days the lack of FA's is mostly due to long term considerations coming from TT. First there's how the contract will play with the rest of the roster (does it leave room for extending our own FA's and will it create higher contract expectations). Second, how will it affect comp picks. Since there are some known losses that will generate comp picks, a FA signing is almost a trade of a pick for a player. One year of an older vet that costs a 4th or 5th round pick won't happen here.

[Brandon494]

Lmao on that guy from Min? We can't get a guy if we want him....certain things have to line up right. Woodson doesn't become a Packer if another team offers him anything close to what we did.

[Tony Oday]

We dont sign UFA so who cares if they like it in GB?

[MadScientist]

Lmao on that guy from Min? We can't get a guy if we want him....certain things have to line up right. Woodson doesn't become a Packer if another team offers him anything close to what we did.

On the flip side Woodson has said how much he liked his time in GB, so if somebody is hesitant about GB, Woodson's accounts may make them think twice about rejecting Green Bay.

[Patler]

On the flip side Woodson has said how much he liked his time in GB, so if somebody is hesitant about GB, Woodson's accounts may make them think twice about rejecting Green Bay.

Woodson is proof of the argument that FAs are hesitant to come to GB. He has admitted that he did not want to come to GB at all, and even let it affect his attitude the first year. He said it was the only opportunity he had for continuing to play corner and receive a salary he felt was fair. Sure he liked the football atmosphere after experiencing it, but really hasn't talked up anything other than that.

[oldbutnotdeadyet]

Actually, Green Bay grows on a person, especially if they like fishin and huntin. If, instead, they like coke, hookers, and big money endorsements, not so much...

Where was I going with this??

[Patler]

They signed Peppers, and that guy from MN this year, and they generally don't have too much of a problem re-signing their own FA's. So if they want a guy they can get him. It may be a little tougher sell, but not prohibitively so. In the 80's, when the recent history was pathetic loosing and the facilities were not first rate, Green Bay was a very tough sell.

These days the lack of FA's is mostly due to long term considerations coming from TT. First there's how the contract will play with the rest of the roster (does it leave room for extending our own FA's and will it create higher contract expectations). Second, how will it affect comp picks. Since there are some known losses that will generate comp picks, a FA signing is almost a trade of a pick for a player. One year of an older vet that costs a 4th or 5th round pick won't happen here.

GB was a great landing spot for Peppers. It gives him one last hurrah for a Super Bowl, and is within decent travel distance from his residence north of Chicago. Throw in what seems to be a very generous financial package from the Packers, and it was probably an easy decision for him.

TT insists that they do pursue FAs every year, yet they rarely sign anyone. We know he is very selective about overpaying anyone new, so the only logical conclusion is that all being equal, GB is a tough sell to a free agent.

By and large, the Packers pay their own FAs quite well. These are people who, like Woodson, learned to appreciate the football side of GB, and learned to deal with the rest of it. Good pay, comfortable in their role, an easier sell than an outside FA. But that is exactly why TT's emphasis is where it is. It is easier to re-sign his own guys than to lure in someone new, and in this case "easier" might mean cheaper even when the player is seemingly overpaid like Brad Jones.

Don't overlook the fact that there are frequent examples of players who seem to be anxious to get out of Green Bay, regardless of what they say. Walker, McKenzie, Wahle (even apart from his prohibitive bonus that year), Sharper (who absolutely refused to even discuss any contract changes with the Packers, Longwell, Wells, Jennings and even Jenkins seemed more than happy to leave. Most talked about it a year or two in advance.

[red]

Its obviously a factor. Woodson is proof you can spend enough to overcome it. But if a player has options, it is probably a point in favor of the bigger city.

Having regularly secured good players in FA and continued success, plus Rodgers and a Super Bowl winning coach are pretty good selling points. From White, Santana Dotson, Seth Joyner, Al Harris (trade plus contract extensions), Woodson, Pickett and Peppers, its clear you can come to Green Bay and do well. If you secure one of those guys every few years, the story you can sell to a prospect is pretty positive.

and the woodson episode shows just how much of a problem it is imo

no one else wanted him, he was next to done, yet we still had to give him a top market deal for him to come here

luckily he broke out of his injury funk and was worth every penny for us, but at the time, that deal was pretty insane

[smuggler]

He had other offers. We just offered to pay him like an elitevor near-elite player and no one else did.

[Rastak]

He had other offers. We just offered to pay him like an elitevor near-elite player and no one else did.

Plus I think other teams wanted him as a safety and GB said he would be a CB which is what he wanted, if memory serves me.

[red]

if you're a black kid that grew up in the south (where a lot of good football players are coming from now), its a massive culture shock to go to green bay.

when i was young, my folks moved me from wisconsin to arkansas. the only black people i had ever seen in my life were packers and brewers, then all of a sudden half my school is black. that was a bit odd at first

then the weather sucked, it was always fucking muggy and hot, even in the winters

i couldn't understand anything that anybody said,white or black

the food and culture was all completely different. it was like living on another planet

now if i had tons of money, was older, and had a choice, i wouldn't have moved there, i would have moved someplace that was a little bit more like what i was use to

in green bay, its cold 7 months out of the year, its muggy and hot as shit for 2 months out of the year, that leaves 3 months out of the year when its pleasant

its very white, even still today. its not as totally white as it was in the 70's and 80's, but its still mostly white. the last time i was in green bay,i saw 3 black people. one was eddie lacy, one was edgar bennett, and one was an old guy in his 60's that i starred at for awhile trying to figure out when he must have played for the packers. a young black kid who has grown up around his own kind is gonna feel way out of place in GB. just like a white kid would feel out of place at grambling. a southern black kid going to chicago, detroit, new york or the like would feel a little less culture shock because those huge towns at least have lots of other black people around. not so in green bay

and really, for any young rich kid, there isn't much to do if you don't like hunting or fishing. you don't have all kinds of big clubs where you can get all kinds of tail. there's no places where you can drive you're fancy fast ass cars because the winters destroy the roads which then destroy anything with 4 wheels in the spring

if milwaukee was a bit closed to GB and you could convince you the players that they could live 15 minutes from the team, and 15 minutes from a big city with all the fun, then things might be completely different

[red]

He had other offers. We just offered to pay him like an elitevor near-elite player and no one else did.

this is from charles own mouth, from his wiki page

On April 26, 2006, Woodson and the Green Bay Packers reached a 7-year contract agreement that could be worth as much as $52.7 million with bonuses and incentives. He earned $10.5 million in the first year of the deal and $18 million over the first three years. He will receive a $3 million bonus if he is selected to the Pro Bowl in two of the first three years of the contract.[17] Woodson has stated that at the time of the contract he "did not want to come to Green Bay" due to a perception that the city is less than cosmopolitan, but was forced to do so because the Packers were the only team to offer him a contract. The cornerback has since lauded the Packers organization, Mike McCarthy, and the people of the State of Wisconsin for having faith in him, and has declared that "it was truly a blessing coming to Green Bay."