General manager Brian Gutekunst stayed busy as the Green Bay Packers added two new faces and welcomed back a pair of old ones as free agency moved into its second phase. The following is a brief roundup of the latest news and notes:
šLONG SNAPPER SIGNSĀ 3-YEAR DEAL
For the second straight March, Gutekunstās first acquisition in free agency was a specialist. On Wednesday, former Rams long snapper Matt Orzech agreed to terms with the Packers on a three-year contract. Heās expected to replace Jack Coco, whose rookie season was filled with low snaps. The 27-year-old Orzech spent the past two seasons in Los Angeles, where he played a big role in Pro Bowl kicker Matt Gayās recent success. Since taking over as GM, Gutekunst has drafted a punter (JK Scott), traded for a punter (Corey Bojorquez), signed a punter in free agency (Pat OāDonnell), drafted a long snapper (Hunter Bradley), and signed a long snapper in free agency (Orzech). Thatās one way to do it. The much more common way is to sign them off the street, which is how the majority of specialists find work in the NFL.
šFORMER 49ER ADDS DEPTH AT SAFETY
Tarvarius Moore signed a 1-year contract with the Packers on Friday. The former 49er will get a chance to compete for a starting job at safety in training camp but is more likely to make his biggest impact on special teams, where heās logged 600 snaps in his career. Mooreās outstanding size (6-2, 200) and speed (4.3) are assets on kick coverage. While he barely played on defense last season after missing all of 2021 with an Achilles injury, the 26-year-old did start the final seven games of the 2020 campaign. The Packers could be looking for two new starters at safety, with Adrian Amos testing the free-agent waters and Darnell Savage likely moving to nickel back full-time. While it would be a mild surprise if Moore claims one of those jobs, thereās never any harm in adding an inexpensive and physically talented young player to the mix.
šSPECIAL TEAMS STANDOUT RETURNS
On the same day Gutekunst declined to tender Tyler Davis, he signed the restricted free agent tight end to a one-year deal worth a bit more than the league minimum ($1.04M). The former Georgia Tech star has caught only eight passes since joining the Packers in 2021, but heās improved as a blocker and has contributed 595 snaps on special teams. Davis had everybody, including Gutekunst, buzzing during OTAs last spring, but he didnāt carry his impressive work into the fall. As I warned at the time, heās the kind of player whoāll always look better in practice than in games. Davis runs well in a straight line, but heās tight in the hips and struggles to separate from man coverage. He also doesnāt elude tacklers in the open field. Thatās also the scouting report for Josiah Deguara, the other veteran tight end on the roster. Keeping Davis as a backup makes sense, but Gutekunst must add a more athletic tight end between now and training camp in July.
šSPECIAL TEAMS STANDOUT RETURNS (Pt. 2)
Rudy Ford should never be any teamās preferred starter going into training camp, but the veteran safety proved to be more than just really good at covering kicks and punts in 2022. Thatās why Gutekunst re-signed him to a 1-year deal worth up to $2.5M. The 28-year-old from Auburn replaced Savage in Week 10 and immediately provided a spark to a struggling defense by intercepting Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott twice in the Packersā most impressive win of the season up to that point. Ford remained in the lineup for the next seven games, where he experienced more highs and lows than a rollercoaster. While he delivered another pick and plenty of big hits, he also allowed three completions of over 40 yards and two TDs. Most of Fordās problems in coverage were more mental than physical, which continued a career-long theme. Thatās why a player who runs in the low 4.4s at 200 pounds has been with four franchises since 2018.
šDONāT EXPECT TRADE TALKS TO DRAG ON
Aaron Rodgers will be a Jet; the only question is when? A friend from high school who worked in NFL front offices for over 20 years and told me three weeks ago that the relationship between the quarterback and the Packers was kaput, believes negotiations wonāt drag on for too much longer. He expects the trade to be made official before the end of the month.
Unfortunately, we fell just short of reaching our goal. I included the link in this post in case anybody decides to make a last-minute donation to the site. If not, I want to thank you for supporting Packers Notes throughout the years, and Iāll see you again down the road. Go Packers!
A few more things:
-If we don’t reach the goal by Monday, I’ll be issuing refunds sometime next week. I’ll also be mailing the refrigerator magnets before the end of the month to those people who donated at least $15.
-I want to sincerely thank all of you who’ve frequented Packers Notes through the years, especially those of you who’ve donated your hard-earned money. I realize there are literally hundreds of free Packers sites out there, so your generosity has never once been taken for granted.
-Even if I shut down the site for a while, this won’t be the last post. I intend to write something once the Aaron Rodgers trade becomes official, so come back and read my thoughts on the big deal.
Can you share how short you are of your goal?
Hi Bryan. I’d rather not because I don’t want anybody donating more than once. Thousands of people enjoy this site, so there’s no reason for any one person to do more than their share. But we are getting very close, and I’d be surprised if the goal isn’t reached by the end of the weekend.
regarding the timeline for the trade.. isn’t June 1 significant in terms of dead money. from what i understand, post June 1 is better for the Packers.
also, it seems like a lot of folks in Packer Nation are hoping for pick 13 in this year’s draft. i know that picks in the current year are more valued than picks in following years; however, i think it would make sense for both the Jets and Packers to focus on ’24 and even ’25 picks as potential trade compensation. why? the Jets are looking to peak this year while the Packers will not be expecting to compete for a Super Bowl this year. pick 13 this year is more valuable to the Jets than the Packers. on the other hand, it is possible that the Packers will really want the Jets’ first round pick next year, and/or in ’25.. especially if Jordan Love does not look like the future franchise QB for Green Bay.
also, in the name of fairness, conditions applied to (a) future pick(s) seem(s) appropriate. i think Rodgers is more than a one-year player for the Jets and compensation should be appropriate for a multi-year player. finally, and this has not been communicated enough from the pundits: Rodgers has the ability to be a franchise-changing player for the Jets, even at age 39/40. Rodgers could become the best QB they have had in their franchise’s history: this year or in 2024.
guys like Rich Eisen are trying to put Rodgers into the same category as place-holding 1-year QB rentals.. that is just stupid. Rodgers ceiling is greater than any player Eisen is comparing him to. any red-flags being attached to Rodgers are amorphous.. he goes on dark retreats, he took Ayahuasca, he’s not married, he does not pander to big media names like Schefter, blah, blah, blah. attaching conditions to trade compensation ensures fairness for both organizations.. organizations which may well want to work with each other multiple times in the future.
eric, your second paragraph is filled with smart analysis. I couldn’t agree more.
Agreed! Good points Eric!
A little more sent, hope you reach your goal to continue posting. This is my favorite Packer site by far.
Hey Joe. Thanks, but I really don’t want anybody donating twice, so I’m going to send you a refund. But, believe me, I appreciate your generosity. I’m confident we’ll reach the goal by the end of the weekend.
Understood. Hoping you hit the goal. I realize this is a hobby for you and therefore needs to be worthwhile but just want to say itās hands down my favorite Packer site and has made me a smarter fan of the team. Hereās to folks coming through last minute to keep it going.
Either way, thank you for continuing to put out content. Hope we get to see more.