Notes: Longtime Starters Depart

A week into free agency, four starters have already exited Green Bay, and more defections are coming. The latest pair of players to take their talents elsewhere combined for 1,073 snaps last season. The following is a roundup of news and notes:

🏈TIGHT END TO CATCH PASSES IN CHICAGO

The Packers need to improve at tight end, and Robert Tonyan leaving for Chicago should compel GM Brian Gutekunst to address the position early in next month’s draft (let’s hope he does better than Jace Sternberger and Josiah Deguara). Tonyan caught a career-high 53 passes last season but averaged a measly 8.9 yards and scored only two TDs. While the former Indiana State star might have the best hands of any tight end in the NFL (three drops since 2018), he has a hard time creating separation and isn’t dynamic after the catch. He’s also a below-average blocker. Nevertheless, Tonyan, a wide receiver in college, deserves a lot of credit for becoming a player good enough to tie a franchise record for tight ends with 11 TDs in 2020 – a record that was originally set by Paul Coffman while Ronald Reagan was in the White House.

🏈VIKINGS POACH ANOTHER DEFENDER

A year after signing Pro Bowl outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith, the Vikings added another defensive starter from the Packers when they agreed to terms with end/tackle Dean Lowry on a two-year deal worth over $8 million. The former Northwestern star was never appreciated by fans, but he provided steady play for the past seven seasons. He didn’t ask to be on the field for 40-plus snaps a game or force Gutekunst to give him an extension worth $20M. With both Lowry and Jarran Reed gone, coordinator Joe Barry will be counting on Devonte Wyatt and T.J. Slaton to step up. While both youngsters possess the talent to be effective starters at this level, potential and production are two entirely different things. Huge Jonathan Ford (6-5, 340) is also still around, but he showed very little as a rookie. Look for Gutekunst to attempt to buttress this important position by adding an inexpensive free agent and a draft pick or three in the next few months.

🏈NEW SAFETY STRUGGLED AFTER INJURY

Tavarius Moore, signed by Green Bay last week, showed enough in seven starts at the end of 2020 to be in the mix for significant playing time the next season. Unfortunately, the former 49er suffered a torn Achilles a few months before the start of camp and spent all of 2021 on IR. He returned to the field last August but didn’t look quite the same. While Moore still ran fast in a straight line, his transitional quickness wasn’t what it was pre-injury. That was obvious when rookie Romeo Doubs raced by him in the exhibition opener. It was only one play, but it was probably enough to keep the 26-year-old from ever seeing more than 10 snaps in a regular-season game. Whether Moore earns a bigger role in the Packers’ revamped secondary will likely depend on how much better he moves another 12 months out from major surgery.

Moore (#33) is lined up in the slot at the top of the screen. He gets beat immediately and is left in the dust as Doubs catches a 34-yard touchdown.