Josh Sitton.

[Pugger]

Everyone stop panicking. He is a Guard. Not a starting QB. If Daryn Colledge can get you to the NFCCG, then this is survivable.

You are right, of course, but we all want a decent line to keep our fabulous QB upright and healthy. *Fingers crossed*

[Pugger]

just remember this when eddy is averaging 2.3 yards per carry, and a-rod develops happy feet cause he keeps getting drilled

Sitton was never a good run blocker ya know...

[King Friday]

OK on the FA point, but King was talking about Sitton's trade value. TT reportedly shopped til he dropped. No takers.

If Thompson is shopping a guy at this point just hours before final cutdowns, then's he's probably going to release him if he can't move him. That's common knowledge. That is why he didn't get anything for Sitton at this point.

My point was that if this was a scenario put into play months ago...and I assume it was...then I'm surprised Thompson didn't make the move earlier to get some value for Sitton. I guess he and the brain trust were not confident enough in the OL depth to do that until they went through all of camp. Perhaps the debacle that was the HOF game hurt the Packers chances of evaluating their OL depth sooner to give Thompson the chance to make the call a little sooner.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Sitton was never a good run blocker ya know...

I'm guessing this is sarcasm since Sitton was a good run blocker in past years. His release calls into question where he stands now, at least in my mind. It is harder for a couch cowboy to judge an interior lineman than a tackle; there's just so much more conjestion on tv.

[Harlan Huckleby]

If Thompson is shopping a guy at this point just hours before final cutdowns, then's he's probably going to release him if he can't move him. That's common knowledge. That is why he didn't get anything for Sitton at this point.

That's a valid point - to a point. It's not the low round draft pick that deters a deal. I assume teams prefer to wait till he's a free agent so they can negotiate a lower contract. But the fact that there are no takers means that Sitton's skills have declined - he'd be worth his contract to some team if he was still a really good player.

You're right that we'll get a fuller measure of Sitton's market value once he becomes a free agent. I overstated the case when I called Sitton a goose egger.

My point was that if this was a scenario put into play months ago...and I assume it was...then I'm surprised Thompson didn't make the move earlier to get some value for Sitton.

Possibly Thompson has been putting out feelers for Sitton for months. It became a fire sale on Saturday. We don't know.

[Pugger]

If Thompson is shopping a guy at this point just hours before final cutdowns, then's he's probably going to release him if he can't move him. That's common knowledge. That is why he didn't get anything for Sitton at this point.

My point was that if this was a scenario put into play months ago...and I assume it was...then I'm surprised Thompson didn't make the move earlier to get some value for Sitton. I guess he and the brain trust were not confident enough in the OL depth to do that until they went through all of camp. Perhaps the debacle that was the HOF game hurt the Packers chances of evaluating their OL depth sooner to give Thompson the chance to make the call a little sooner.

Of course we don't know how long Ted has been shopping Sitton.

[3irty1]

The only way I can wrap my head around this is three things are true:

1) Sitton's back is worse than previously thought. We know it affected him on the field last year and that it dictated his offseason.

2) 6.85M is about fair market value for a solid starter, and cheap for a resume like Sitton's. This move must really help the beancounting of next years free agent exodus. If cap space alone were the reason, they would have cut him months ago.

3) When Ted said "best for the team and growth of the offensive line" he wasn't talking about youth for the sake of youth with turds like Lane Taylor or Barclay. For the team to grow in any meaningful sense this gets a guy with serious potential on the field. Put me in the Bak, Spriggs doubleswitch camp.

[pbmax]

Radio said this isn't true (per NFL network). He still has to clear waivers, so he cannot sign with a team until monday, or that team picks up his entire salary for this season. I have no clue how this works, but according to NFL XM Radio, that's the deal.

I think I had this wrong. Masthay had an article written about him but the vested vet caveat was about his contract not waivers. Radio was probably right.

I'd be stunned if someone picked up Sitton's deal on waivers.

[Patler]

Doesn't the veteran's salary become guaranteed when he is on the roster for the first game? In the past we have seen teams release a veteran on Saturday and resign him on Monday to get away from the guarantee if he is looked at as a backup, or otherwise not yet ready to play. Sitton may be on the street until a week from Monday.

The fact that GB intended to release Sitton didn't discourage teams from trading for him, his salary versus perceived value did. Trading for him ensures that you get him, and a low draft pick, or a conditional pick isn't much to pay for it. If you let the Packers cut him, you are competing against other teams to get him. The fact that no team was willing to trade for him shows that no team was willing to give up anything to ensure that they got him. Teams were willing to take their chances in not getting him.

[pbmax]

Doesn't the veteran's salary become guaranteed when he is on the roster for the first game? .

Yep. That is part of the vested veteran.

[Patler]

TT didn't wake up Saturday morning and suddenly decide to get rid of Sitton. I suspect this has been under consideration all off season, and TT has floated the possibility of Sitton being available for quite some time.

Signing Taylor to a $4M contract has always felt a bit odd for several reasons. Taylor isn't the typical backup lineman, he has no versatility. Having him as your backup guard on game days puts you at a disadvantage unless you keep 2 other OL active, and GB likes to go with just 2 backups, with each having at least some versatility. While Sitton and Lang both had injuries last year, and Sitton almost never practiced in recent years, both guards showed up on game days ready to play until Lang missed a game last year. Taylor's contract seemed a bit generous for the role it seemed he would have. OL and QB are the only positions that don't commonly use rotations of players. The backups play only if the starters can't. Other backups play a few regular snaps on a routine basis, or factor into ST plans, etc. Taylor would not.

TT made the mistake of keeping Driver longer than he should have. Sitton's back isn't likely to allow him to play well for more than a short time, and they may have concluded that it already diminished his value below his 2016 salary, and that Sitton's money can better be used to extend contracts for Bakhtiari, Tretter or even Lang.

[vince]

Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter
Looks like former Packers' Pro Bowl G Josh Sitton's first visit will be to...division-rival Chicago Bears, per sources. Saints could follow
9:01 AM - 4 Sep 2016

[red]

yipee

[pbmax]

I just wished I saw the improvement in Taylor that apparently the coaches and Ted have seen. Because he looked abominable in 2 of the preseason games. Especially versus the Chefs.

[vince]

The only way I can wrap my head around this is three things are true:

1) Sitton's back is worse than previously thought. We know it affected him on the field last year and that it dictated his offseason.

2) 6.85M is about fair market value for a solid starter, and cheap for a resume like Sitton's. This move must really help the beancounting of next years free agent exodus. If cap space alone were the reason, they would have cut him months ago.

3) When Ted said "best for the team and growth of the offensive line" he wasn't talking about youth for the sake of youth with turds like Lane Taylor or Barclay. For the team to grow in any meaningful sense this gets a guy with serious potential on the field. Put me in the Bak, Spriggs doubleswitch camp.

He hasn't played one rep at guard as far as I've seen, but maybe Murphy is the best option at guard. He can't handle the edge - yet anyway, but he's as strong as an ox.