Plenty of talent and depth at defensive line in 2025 draft class for Packers to tackle need

Paul Bretl | 2/28/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — As general manager Brian Gutekunst said on Tuesday at the NFL Combine, if the Packers are going to accomplish the goals that they have for the 2025 season, the pass rush has got to get better.

A not-to-be-overlooked positive from last season when it comes to the defensive front play was how Green Bay performed against the run. The Packers finished the 2024 season allowing the third-fewest yards per carry and held opponents to under 100 rushing yards per game for the first time since 2009. They would also rank sixth in ESPN’s run-stop win rate metric.

However, a defense can’t truly maximize the effectiveness of a good run defense if they can’t pressure the quarterback steadily. The benefit of being able to slow the run on early downs is that the offense is then behind the sticks and in obvious passing situations. But if the front can’t capitalize and get after the quarterback on those long down-and-distances, then the impact of the early down success is negated.

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On paper, the Packers’ pass rush was top 10 in sacks last season and in the middle of the pack in pressure rate. However, those figures do not tell the entire story. This was a very feast-or-famine pass rush, posting some big days against lesser opponents while they struggled to generate any sort of regular pressure against the NFC’s best.

Defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley drumming up pressures through blitzes or simulated pressures also contributed to those end-of-season stats. The trickle-down effect of this is that, as Matt LaFleur pointed out after the season, it led to Hafley having to adapt and adjust throughout the season, so much so that we didn’t even get a really good look in 2024 at what the Hafley defense is truly supposed to look like.

When it came to the front four’s ability to win steadily, that wasn’t happening. A more accurate portrayal of that group’s performance is pass rush win rate–how often a defender wins his matchup–and Green Bay ranked 26th in that category.

“I think the biggest thing and we talked a little about it earlier is just the fact we need to affect the quarterback with four,” Gutekunst said. “How we do that kind of remains to be seen. We had good moments last year, but it just needs to be more consistent. It needs to be able to control the game when we need to control the game and finish games off.”

The good news for the Packers when it comes to getting more out of the pass rush this season is that this year’s draft class is loaded. And I mean absolutely loaded.

One of the best in the business when it comes to the NFL draft is Daniel Jeremiah, and on his most recent top 50 prospects big board, 14 of the players on that list were either defensive ends or defensive tackles. On Pro Football Focus’ big board, a whopping 31 of the top 100 prospects are defensive linemen, including 10 of the top 30 players overall.

With the NFL Combine taking place, a few things to watch for when it comes to these two position groups as it pertains to the Packers is at defensive end, Green Bay prefers bigger bodied edge defenders–250-plus pounds–who can hold up in the run game. The 3-cone drill, which can measure a player’s agility and ability to bend, is important as well.

At defensive tackle, there has been more variance under Gutekunst from an athletic measurement standpoint in terms of who the Packers draft, but at both tackle and end, explosiveness is always going to be an important skill-set, so watch the 10-yard splits on the 40-yard dashes, along with the vertical and broad jump numbers. Arm length is something else to keep your eyes on.

On the field, as Gutekunst described earlier in the week, the Packers are going to prioritize versatility over scheme, and not only along the defensive front but throughout the roster. In the trenches this means having the ability to line up across multiple gaps, not being a one-dimensional pass rush or defender, winning in a variety of ways, and the ability to handle different responsibilities over the course of the season.

“I think you’ve got to be really careful about when you’re selecting players that are one scheme fits because that stuff can change,” Gutekunst said. “It can change with our staff. What we started out doing at the beginning of the year last year as Haf got familiar with what we could and couldn’t do, and injuries play a part in that, and we adjust.”

A few names to keep your eyes on during this pre-draft process for the Packers along the defensive front include IDL Kenneth Grant (Michigan), DE Shemar Stewart (Texas A&M), DE Nic Scourton (Texas A&M), IDL Derrick Harmon (Oregon), IDL Walter Nolen (Ole Miss), DE Donovan Ezeiruaku (Boston College), and DE James Pearce (Tennessee), among others.

With there being so many high-end prospects in this year’s class, the draft very well may be where the Packers choose to address this need over free agency, preferring to add a high-upside, four-year rookie deal to the books over a veteran addition that could come with a hefty cap hit.

Given the level of talent in the draft at these positions, coupled with an improved pass rush being such a key factor in helping the Packers get to where they want to go this season, this is very much a position group that we could see Gutekunst double-dip at this offseason.

“I think you’re always looking with pass rushers, you can never have enough,” Gutekunst said after the season. “And I thought there were times this year we did that we were able to rush with four. I think every team in the league, that’s how you’d prefer to do it. Drill rush with four and affect the quarterback. There was periods of time where we didn’t do that well enough. I think everybody understands that that affects your football team.”

Packers finding No. 1 receiver won’t come easy this offseason

Paul Bretl | 2/27/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — With the Packers’ passing game struggling to find consistency down the stretch last season, much of the offseason attention outside of the building has been on the receiver position. Specifically, the timeless question when it comes to the Packers is does Green Bay need a true No. 1 target in their offense?

Adding to this speculation was running back Josh Jacobs during Super Bowl week, who said that the offense needed a player that is “proven to be (a No.) 1.”

For GM Brian Gutekunst, he heard Jacobs’ message and regularly meets with players to help him keep a pulse on what the feelings are in the locker room and on the team in general. So I’m going to guess that this wasn’t the first time Gutekunst had heard this. However, it also isn’t going to alter how he goes about the offseason either.

“What our players say in the media doesn’t really affect the way we’re going to go about things,” Gutekunst said at the NFL Combine. “I have a lot of private conversations with our players, and that’s very important to me. How they feel about our locker room and our team is important to me, but what happened that doesn’t really move the needle for me.”

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After the Packers’ young group of wide receivers burst onto the scene in 2023, collectively as a group, we didn’t see that unit take that step forward this past year as was the expectation. Instead, in some respects, this unit went backwards, with dropped passes, wrong routes being ran, and players simply not winning their one-on-one matchups often enough all being more prevalent issues that the offense had to navigate.

Two examples of this, as Matt LaFleur explained, happened in Green Bay’s playoff loss to Philadelphia. On the interception by Darius Slay, LaFleur noted that the receiver needed to do a better job of stacking the defender to help create a more open throwing window. On the interception over the middle by linebacker Zach Baun, the receiver was supposed to break in at 20 yards from the line of scrimmage but instead did so at 15 yards, throwing off the entire play design.

When it comes to the dropped passes, the Packers had the third-most drops and the second-highest dropped pass rate in 2024. Then, after the Minnesota game in Week 17, LaFleur mentioned the offense’s inability to win their one-on-one matchups against the Vikings’ man coverage-heavy secondary.

Over the course of a long NFL season, these are only a handful of examples of what went wrong, but given the magnitude of those games against Minnesota in Week 17 and Philadelphia in the playoffs, these examples are likely microcosms of a bigger, season-long struggle the Packers’ receivers faced.

The issue with adding a true No. 1 target to this room is that it’s no easy job to do–especially this offseason. This year’s wide receiver draft class doesn’t have the depth nor high-end talent at the position that we’ve grown accustomed to.

As far as free agency goes, the two players who fit that No. 1 mold are Davante Adams and Tee Higgins. Acquiring them is going to require big paydays, possibly draft capital traded away, or potentially both. And those are two avenues we don’t typically see the Packers go down, particularly at the receiver position.

So, in short, options are limited–unless Gutekunst wants to take a big swing. Spending a Day 2 pick on a receiver or signing a middle-tier free agent at that position I don’t believe accomplishes what the Packers need. They already have a lot of depth. They already have a variety of skill sets in that room. Another No. 2 or No. 3 target only adds to what Green Bay already has an abundance of in an already crowded room.

Given the circumstances and current receiver market, both in free agency and in the draft, the Packers again might have to bank on the internal development of those already on the roster.

“You’d like to have somebody move into that space,” Gutekunst said of having a No. 1 receiver, “but, at the same time, I’d like multiple guys to be able to move into that space. What I’m looking for is guys that, when they’re called upon, can perform at a high level. I think we have a lot of guys that have done that.”

Now, what the Packers do need to add this offseason at the receiver position is a vertical presence in Christian Watson’s absence. He is expected to miss some time next year and not having that element on the field can have a negative trickle-down effect to the rest of the unit.

When defenses don’t respect the deep ball, they play closer to the line of scrimmage, which shrinks the field and creates less space over the middle and on those short and intermediate routes. Even the run game can be affected with more defenders near the line of scrimmage. Acquiring this skill set also shouldn’t require a big free-agent contract or using a premium pick either.

“I think that’s going to create opportunities for some guys that we have on the roster now that I’m excited for,” Gutekunst said. “So, we’ll see how that shakes out, but we’ve got a long way to go. I mean, we’ve got free agency, the draft, everything coming up.”

Gutekunst has acknowledged that the Packers do need someone to step into that top wide receiver role. He’s also said that he believes already on the roster are a few players who have the ability to do that. An addition at this position can be justified given how last season played out and where the Packers are at in their competitive window; the external environment also has to be receptive to that.

So while there are options out there, there aren’t many that fill a very specific and high-end need that the Packers have.

Packers reportedly had trade conversations around CB Jaire Alexander

Paul Bretl | 2/26/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Packers have reportedly had trade conversations centered around cornerback Jaire Alexander, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Rapoport would add that the Packers are open to moving the former All-Pro cornerback for the right price.

For a few months now, things seemed to be trending in this direction, and the update on this situation provided by GM Brian Gutekunst at the NFL Combine on Tuesday didn’t quiet that speculation.

“We’ll see,” Gutekunst said when asked if Alexander will be on the team next season. “We’re working through that. He certainly could be, but I think we’ll work through that as we go.”

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Alexander suffered a torn posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) in his right knee late in the Packers’ Week 8 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, on a play in the end zone where he attempted to make a play on the football but came down awkwardly and injured his knee in the process.

Following Green Bay’s Week 10 bye, Alexander made an attempt to return to the field against Chicago in Week 11. However, he would reinjure his knee in that game and played only 10 snaps before exiting.

For several weeks, it seemed like Alexander was trending in the right direction. Prior to the Detroit game in Week 14, he returned to practice in a limited capacity for two days before missing the third day. The following week against Seattle, Alexander was a full participant for two days of practice before missing the third day, with LaFleur saying that he was not hitting the needed speeds in practice to play effectively that week.

A week later against New Orleans, Alexander returned to practice as a full participant all three days and was listed as questionable for that game. All of that seemed to be positive news up to this point, with Alexander’s workload in practice increasing each week.

However, when the inactives were announced prior to kickoff of that Saints’ game, Alexander was on that list. Then in the week leading up to the Minnesota game, Alexander went from being a full participant to a limited participant to not practicing at all on that Friday, with an apparent setback taking place.

“He had a little bit of a setback in the game, but it was one of those things where, at some point, you have to go out there and see if you can go,” Gutekunst said. “He gave us 10, 15 plays.

“Again, it was frustrating because it was one of those things where every time he kind of got to the point where we thought he was going to be able to get over the hump, he wasn’t able to. Give him a lot of credit for trying, trying to get out there and help us. But yeah, it was disappointing.”

Alexander would undergo surgery on December 31st, prior to the Packers’ regular-season finale against Chicago, ending his 2024 season. Of course, the big question, with hindsight always being 20/20, is, should the Packers and Alexander have orchestrated surgery right away when the injury occurred with the hope of him being able to return late in the season?

When players were cleaning out their lockers following the season-ending loss to Philadelphia, Alexander was asked by local media members to speak, but he declined, adding that he doesn’t know if he will be in Green Bay next season and that he doesn’t have anything good to say.

Gutekunst would mention that the Packers don’t typically let players and their agents talk to teams, but based on Rapoport’s report, it is Green Bay who is leading that charge.

“We’ve never really allowed agents to go out and talk to teams,” Gutekunst said. “I think that’s kind of (one of the) ones that probably happens, anyway. And Jaire’s got a great agent. If we ever went down that route, I think it would be very easy to work with him and his team. I think it’s something that if we were going to trade a player, we would do that and it would be the conversation between me and the other team.”

When on the field, Alexander continues to operate at a high level. This includes this past season allowing a completion rate of just 56% on 25 targets with a pick-six and three pass breakups. Unfortunately, due to injuries, Alexander often hasn’t been available.

Since the 2021 season, he has appeared in only 34 out of a possible 68 games. This includes playing only four games in 2021, and seven games in 2023 and 2024. During the 2022 season, when he made 16 starts, Alexander was a second-team All-Pro.

“I think obviously, we’ve talked about (how) there’s been a lot of frustration on his part,” added Gutekunst. “He wants to be out there badly and not being able to be out there at his best has frustrated him and that has frustrated our football team, too, because we’re better with him. But we’ll see.”

Alexander still has two years remaining on his contract. In 2025, he has a base salary of $16.15 million and a cap hit just shy of $25 million, according to Over the Cap. If the team were to trade him, a dead cap hit–or money still on the 2025 salary cap–of $18.11 million would be left behind, but it would free up $6.83 million in cap space for the 2025 season.

Versatility over scheme for Packers as they evaluate 2025 NFL draft prospects

Paul Bretl | 2/26/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — As the Packers go about their pre-draft evaluation process when it comes to prospects who fit what GM Brian Gutekunst is looking for, it’s more so about being versatile rather than being an ideal scheme fit in Green Bay.

“We know what our scheme is, we know the subtleties in that,” said Gutekunst at the NFL combine on Tuesday. “I think we’ve always tried to–our process has been about getting the kind of players that can play in any scheme.”

We’ve known that at certain positions, such as the offensive line for example, the Packers covet versatility. A prime example of this was the selection of Jordan Morgan in the first round last year. Morgan spent his college career at tackle but was viewed by the Packers as someone who could play guard as well. Along the offensive line, there are countless examples like this.

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We can even look at the safety position last offseason as well. Throughout that offseason, we continually heard Gutekunst use the word “interchangeable” when describing what he was looking for at that position. Or, in other words, he wanted players who could play deep, down in the box, and line up in the slot.

This philosophy and roster-building approach centered around versatility expands beyond just those two position groups, however. Gutekunst wants that ability throughout his team, helping to create added adaptability, whether it be adjusting to injuries that take place or altering game-plans to better attack opponents.

Two examples of this scheme flexibility from last season include, on offense, the Packers shifting from an outside zone heavy running team to more of a gap scheme–between the tackles–rushing offense to better suit Josh Jacobs’ skill-set. This comes with quite a big change for the offensive line specifically.

Then on the other side of the ball, Matt LaFleur said after the season that Jeff Hafley’s defense didn’t look like what he expected when the hire was made. That, of course, is a credit to Hafley and his ability to adjust and adapt as the year progressed, but also part of that equation is the versatility of the defenders who were able to handle a variety of roles.

“I think you’ve got to be really careful about when you’re selecting players that are one scheme fits because that stuff can change,” Gutekunst said. “It can change with our staff. What we started out doing at the beginning of the year last year as Haf got familiar with what we could and couldn’t do, and injuries play a part in that, and we adjust.”

Throughout his tenure as GM, without directly saying, Gutekunst has often dropped little nuggets here and there about what the Packers’ offseason might look like. So, as everyone tries to parse through all of the tape and information that is out there during the pre-draft process, remember, versatility at every position is at a premium for Green Bay.

Along the offensive line, this means being capable of playing both guard and tackle. At wide receiver, it’s being able to line up across the formation and having a fairly deep route tree. At cornerback, it’s the ability to play both man and zone coverages. Along the defensive line, it’s being able to line up in multiple gaps, setting an edge or taking on a double-team while still being able to rush the passer.

There’s obviously more to it than what was just mentioned, but be on the lookout this offseason for those do-it-all type of players within each position group.

“You’ve got to have versatile players,” added Gutekunst. “You’ve got to have guys that can do everything. Our process has been in place almost thirty-some years now. We’re aware of our schematic differences from other teams but it doesn’t play a huge role in how we go about it.”

Pass rush ‘gotta be better’ if Packers are going to accomplish goals

Paul Bretl 2/25/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis — As GM Brian Gutekunst said after the season, the time to compete for championships is now for the Packers. There’s obviously a lot that goes into accomplishing that, but a key part of the equation will be a much more consistent pass rush from the four-man front.

“That’s gotta get better if we’re going to accomplish our goals that we want to accomplish this season,” said Gutekunst at the NFL combine.

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The Packers pass rush during the 2024 season was very all-or-nothing. On paper, the Packers’ defense as a whole finished top 10 in sacks and they were in the middle of the pack in terms of pressure rate. But when it comes to the play of the defensive front specifically, those figures don’t tell the whole story.

This was a Packers front that put together some big performances against lesser opponents, but against the top teams in the NFC, the pass rush went quiet. In Green Bay’s final three games of the season against Detroit, Minnesota, and Philadelphia, the trio of Jared Goff, Sam Darnold, and Jalen Hurts were pressured on a combined 30.6% of their dropbacks.

For some context around that figure, over the course of the NFL season, Dallas’ Dak Prescott was pressured on 30.9% of his dropbacks, which compared to the rest of the NFL, ranked 34th out of 43 eligible quarterbacks, according to PFF.

So instead, a more accurate portrayal of the Packers’ pass rush success–or lack thereof–from the four-man front is ESPN’s pass rush win rate metric, which measures how often a defender beats their blocker within 2.5 seconds. As a defensive front, Green Bay ranked 26th.

“I think the biggest thing and we talked a little about it earlier is just the fact we need to affect the quarterback with four,” Gutekunst said. “How we do that kind of remains to be seen. We had good moments last year, but it just needs to be more consistent. It needs to be able to control the game when we need to control the game and finish games off.”

Also contributing to the Packers’ sack and pressure numbers were the blitzes and simulated pressures orchestrated by defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley in order to provide his defensive front with some help. The trickle-down effect of Hafley having to dial up more designed pressures is that, as Matt LaFleur said after the season, we didn’t truly see the Hafley scheme in full effect this past season.

“I envisioned rushing four and playing three deep/four under a heck of a lot more and we ended up doing a lot of simulated blitzes and different pressures and playing a bunch of cover-2,” said LaFleur. “But I think, again, you always evolve throughout the course of the season, through the offseason, but that was the foundation, I would say, of the defense. But I thought our guys did a great job of adjusting. I thought we were playing some pretty good football at the end.”

As we saw in the Super Bowl matchup between Philadelphia and Kansas City, a dominant defensive front can take over and control a game, even against an elite quarterback. A quick push throws off the timing and rhythm of the play, forces the quarterback off his spot, and muddies up the pocket.

However, when there isn’t steady pressure or push from the defensive front, the opposite happens, and it’s the defense that is at a major disadvantage, specifically the secondary. Particularly against top-tier opponents, asking the defensive backs to have to routinely defend for three or four seconds is a very tall task and is a big reason why the aforementioned quarterbacks above would put a string together some high-production outings against Green Bay.

The good news for the Packers is that this year’s defensive line class, both at tackle and end, is absolutely loaded with talent. One of the best in the draft business, Daniel Jeremiah, recently released version 2.0 of his top 50 big board, and included were 14 defensive linemen.

In Year 1 under Hafley, the Packers’ defense did make strides, even if the pass rush sputtered. However, as we look ahead to what’s next for the defense, ultimately, the ceiling for this unit–how good they can be–is going to be determined by how much the pass rush can improve this offseason.

“Again, I’m excited about the guys we have in the room,” added Gutekunst. “We’ll see if we add to it.”

2025 NFL combine: One draft-specific question for each Packers position on offense

Paul Bretl | 2/25/2024

GREEN BAY, Wis. — With the 2025 NFL Combine beginning this week, let’s take a look ahead to the NFL draft in April with one big draft-specific question that faces each Packers’ position group on the offensive side of the football.

The Packers will enter the 2025 NFL draft with eight selections–seven plus an additional compensatory draft pick. As GM Brian Gutekunst said after the season, it’s time for the Packers to start competing for championships, and with that, needs to come a heightened sense of urgency throughout the team.

Of course, the draft-specific questions being asked right now could change depending on how free agency plays out for the Packers. But these are the big unknowns, given where things currently stand.

Quarterback: Will Gutekunst take a late-round swing at this position?

Quarterback certainly isn’t a need for the Packers. The team, of course, has Jordan Love, along with Malik Willis still under contract for the 2025 season, and Sean Clifford back as well. But with stability at this position, Gutekunst said during last year’s NFL combine that he wants to get back to “drafting multiple quarterbacks.”

A late-round addition could create competition for that third quarterback role with Clifford–something we’ve seen Gutekunst cultivate for several seasons now, constantly churning that final spot on the depth chart. In 2021, it was Kurt Benkert. In 2022, it was Danny Etling, followed by Alex McGough in 2023, and then Clifford last year.

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Also, as we look ahead to 2026–which the draft is about–Willis is a free agent and, I would guess, playing elsewhere, leaving the backup quarterback job at that point potentially up for grabs. If the Packers want to get a jump start on having an answer there, then bringing in competition for Clifford and providing the time to continue to develop into that role may be the prudent move.

The trickle-down from an addition here is that then puts four quarterbacks on the offseason roster, and as Matt LaFleur has pointed out previously, getting that many quarterbacks the required reps over the summer can become difficult. So, do the Packers attempt to push Clifford with competition or continue to invest into him and give him another year to develop on the practice squad?

Running back: Will the depth be too good to ignore?

With Josh Jacobs, MarShawn Lloyd, Emanuel Wilson, and Chris Brooks all returning for the 2025 season, running back certainly isn’t a big need for the Packers. However, will the depth of this year’s draft class be too much for Gutekunst to ignore?

ESPN draft analyst Jordan Reid recently mentioned that he had a whopping 33 running backs with draftable grades. And with that much talent comes a variety of skill sets to choose from, giving Green Bay the ability to find what they exactly need for their offense.

The addition of a running back to the current room would create a logjam with three players–Brooks, Wilson, and the incoming rookie–competing for one roster spot come cutdown time. With that said, competition has been a catalyst in recent years for this Packers team, and while Brooks and Wilson proved to be quality contributors last season, neither has solidified themselves as a long-term option quite yet.

Particularly as the draft goes deeper into Day 3, you can never rule out a team taking the best player on the board, which very well could be a running back, given the depth of this year’s class. However, if there’s one position the Packers don’t need to add to, it’s this one.

“Luckily for us, we do have confidence in those other two backs,” LaFleur said of Brooks and Wilson after the Packers win over San Francisco last season.

Wide receiver: How aggressive do the Packers get here?

One of the difficult aspects of the Packers potentially searching for a true No. 1 target at receiver is that there just aren’t a lot of those players out there. And this year’s wide receiver class does not have the depth nor high-end talent of past years. SI’s Albert Breer recently wrote that the receiver group is “not what we’ve become accustomed to over the past decade.”

While there are certainly starters and solid contributors that can be found, but that isn’t exactly what the Packers need either. They have a depth chart full of those players, so adding another player of that caliber to the mix doesn’t necessarily move the needle for Green Bay like many hope an addition would.

“I think we’re certainly looking for these guys that we have currently to take a step into that role where they are more consistent on the down-down basis,” said Gutekunst after the season. “Certainly if there’s somebody outside of our building, whether it’s the draft, free agency, that makes some sense for us, we’ll certainly look to do that, but we’re also looking for these guys to continue to grow and hopefully grow into that space.”

Now, what the Packers do need is a vertical presence in Christian Watson’s absence. If defenses don’t respect the deep ball, they play closer to the line of scrimmage, which limits the amount of space to attack on short to intermediate routes and over the middle. With more players near the ball, that can also impact the run game as well.

That element, however, can often be found in the middle or even latter portions of the draft, again, potentially reducing the likelihood that we see the Packers spend a premium pick on this position.

Tight end: Is this a sneaky position the Packers add to?

Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave are still on their rookie deals for two more seasons. Green Bay also has Ben Sims under contract and I would anticipate that John FitzPatrick is brought back as a restricted free agent. So tight end isn’t exactly a pressing need.

However, I could see it being a sneaky, under-the-radar type of addition that Gutekunst makes, especially with this year’s tight end draft class being one of the deeper position groups.

The primary reason I mention this is that while I wouldn’t expect an early-round draft pick on a tight end, by any means, Sims’ and FitzPatrick’s blocking-heavy roles are upgradeable. I don’t consider it a given that they are roster locks if there is someone who could push them for playing time.

While PFF’s grading system is far from the be-all-end-all in terms of evaluation, for what it’s worth, Sims ranked 59th out of 84 tight ends in run-blocking grade and FitzPatrick often played just a few snaps per game. When it comes to featuring Tucker Kraft more prominently within the offense, the Packers need a stronger blocking presence on the roster to handle those duties if Kraft is going to have more pass-catching opportunities.

“For a lot of reasons,” said Matt LaFleur after the season when asked why Kraft wasn’t featured more in 2024. “It just depends, going back to who you’re playing. A lot of times, especially in known passing situations, we were trying to help certain spots and typically I would say it’s usually the tight ends and the backs who get a bunch of that (blocking) responsibility. That’s part of the reason.”

Offensive line: Not if, but rather, how many draft picks will Gutekunst invest into this group?

The need here is two-fold for the Packers. For one, continuing to add competition on the back-end of the depth chart should be a priority. While I’m sure the hope internally is that Jacob Monk, Kadeem Telfort, and Travis Glover all take big steps in 2025, there’s no guarantee that will happen either. And while, as Gutekunst said, you don’t want to overreact to one performance–particularly against a defensive front as good as the Eagles have–the Packers’ depth was exposed in the playoffs.

But in addition to that, there’s a lot of uncertainty around this unit in the near future. Not only this offseason is Josh Myers heading to free agency, potentially providing a shake-up along the Packers starting offensive line, but just one year from now, Sean Rhyan, Zach Tom, and Rasheed Walker are all set to be free agents as well.

I think we can agree Tom will get a new deal at some point, but other than that, three starters from the 2024 season could all be elsewhere by 2026.

Adding heavily to the offensive line has been in Gutekunst’s DNA already. In three of the last four drafts, he’s selected at least three offensive linemen, so doing so again wouldn’t be outside the norm for him. But while much of the attention is on the defensive line, I believe that the recipe is again there for the Packers to add somewhat heavily to the offensive line as well.

“We’re going to continue to lean on versatility,” said Gutekunst of the offensive line. “We’ve got three or four guys on our line that could probably play five spots, and that’s, I believe in that. I think every coach that I’ve been around believes in that and I think that’s an asset that we have that not all teams have.”

Packers free agency predictions: Will K Brandon McManus return?

Paul Bretl | 2/24/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — In the coming weeks, I will take a closer look at the Packers pending free agents in my ‘Re-sign or Let Go and Prediction’ series.

For each free agent I will make a case as to why the Packers should re-sign them and I’ll also discuss why the Packers would let them walk and play elsewhere. Then at the end, I’ll make my prediction.

This will be my third offseason doing this series and through the first two, I’ve gotten 24 of the 27 predictions correct.

Up next, let’s take a closer look at whether or not kicker Brandon McManus will return for the 2025 season. If you missed our other previews, you can find them below:

Eric Wilson
Isaiah McDuffie
Robert Rochell
TJ Slaton
Tyler Davis
Eric Stokes

Why the Packers will re-sign Brandon McManus

The addition of McManus to the Packers’ roster in late-October last season provided them with what had been a missing element at the kicker position: stability. Up until that point, the Packers had six different kickers on their roster at various points between January of 2024 and October when McManus was signed.

McManus finished the season making all 31 of his extra point attempts, and he was 21-for-23 on field goal attempts, including going 6-for-7 from 40-plus yards. Among qualified kickers this season who had at least nine field goal attempts, McManus’ 91.3% hit-rate was the eighth-best mark in football. He was also 1-of-14 kickers to make all of his extra point attempts.

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“Obviously he’s a veteran guy,” GM Brian Gutekunst said after the season. “I think the thing that was so neat about being around him is not only his confidence but his ability to adjust no matter where we were. Really our specialists group with Matt (Orzech) and Daniel (Whelan) and if we were able to get Brandon back, I think certainly that would make me feel very, very, very good about that group.”

McManus joined the Packers having been in the NFL since 2014. He came to Green Bay with big game experience, having gone 10-for-10 on field goal attempts in the playoffs during Denver’s 2015 Super Bowl run. McManus has also been extremely steady on the kicks you expect a kicker to make under 50-yards. For his career, he’s made 91.1% of those attempts.

So there’s a long track record of success with McManus.

Beyond McManus’ results on the field, the other reason to re-sign him is because if the Packers don’t, who’s the alternative? In this instance, Green Bay could find themselves right back in the same position they were a year ago, trotting in kicker after kicker in search of consistency.

With a Packers team that is ready to compete for championships now, they do not have the luxury to go through the growing pains that often come with relying on a young kicker. Green Bay needs results now, which McManus can provide.

While at the end of the day, the makes and misses on field goal attempts is what matters most, the rapport that McManus has built within the field goal operation with long-snapper Matt Orzech and punter Daniel Whelan that should only grow as the trio gets more experience together.

“I think he’s become a part of our culture, to be honest with you,” said Rich Bisaccia late in the season. “But I think what he’s brought is 12 years of experience of playing at an extremely high level, especially inside of 50 yards. He has a great sense of confidence, I think we’ve said it in this room multiple times is that he’s very particular, knows what he wants. It’s made it extremely easy for Daniel to get better and improve at holding the football.”

Why the Packers won’t re-sign Brandon McManus

As I go through this exercise with each free agent, some arguments are stronger than others when it comes to describing why the Packers will or won’t re-sign someone, but in most instances, we can reach a plausible conclusion for each option.

However, I don’t know that I can conjure up a strong reason or two that the Packers won’t re-sign McManus. Green Bay bringing him back seems like the one certainty this offseason.

For the reasons mentioned above, with Green Bay in win-now mode, they cannot let contract value or another team potentially offering a larger deal stop them from bringing McManus back. Although the Packers aren’t ones to get into bidding wars, without McManus, they are back to step No. 1 when it comes to finding a kicker.

With that said, I also don’t think McManus is going to receive a top of market deal either. For some context, McManus’ deal with Washington last offseason was for $3.6 million. By average annual value, that would rank right around the middle of the NFL compared to other kickers. If I had to guess, he will be in the price-range again.

Prediction: The Packers re-sign Brandon McManus

This is a no-brainer. McManus is a proven veteran kicker who immediately changed the outlook of the Packers’ field goal unit last season. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, the Packers can’t afford to go into a season–as they did last year–with unknown at this position.

And not that we need anymore convincing that McManus will be back with the Packers, but when Brian Gutekunst was asked after the season about him being a free agent, he was very direct in saying that Green Bay wants him back.

“We would,” said Gutekunst when asked if the Packers would like McManus back. “Had a good conversation with him before he left and obviously, and you guys know this, how he solidified that journey we were going on.”

2025 NFL Combine: Packers and significance of Relative Athletic Scores

Paul Bretl | 2/23/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The 2025 NFL Combine begins this week and that means we will be inundated with prospect measurements, times, and Relative Athletic Scores (RAS), which are noteworthy when it comes to the Green Bay Packers.

But before we dive in to the significance of this metric and the Packers, what is RAS?

RAS was created by Kent Lee Platte and allows us to easily see how players within their respective position groups compare athletically to one another based on their measurements and testing numbers from the combine and Pro Days.

If two linebackers have different heights and weights, with one running a fast 40-yard dash, but the other testing better in the agility drills, how do we know who the more athletic prospect is?

That’s where RAS comes into play. With Platte’s formula, he takes all of that information and quantifies it into a digestible figure that falls on the 0-10 scale. Or in short, the higher the RAS, the better the athlete. On Platte’s scale, 5.0 is considered average and a score of 8.0 or higher puts that player within the top 20 percentile of his position group.

Also of note, the RAS scale factors in historical results as well and is not only based on the current year’s draft class. It’s also position-specific, so even though a receiver and a center will test quite differently, both could post an RAS of 9.0 because it’s relative to their specific position groups.

To learn more about RAS and how it works, click here.

When it comes to Brian Gutekunst and the Packers’ picks during his tenure, there is a strong connection between those selections and their RAS score.

Now, do I believe that Gutekunst and the Packers’ scouting department is scouring X and Platte’s site looking at RAS cards as part of their decision-making process? No, I don’t. But having said that, however the Packers do take into account this information has some overlap with RAS, so from our outside perspective, that can help us gain some insights into who may or may not be on the Packers’ radar.

It’s also not indicative of a player’s ability to be successful at the NFL level. Both Jayden Reed and Karl Brooks have a RAS below 7.0 and both have been key contributors for the Packers the last two seasons–although, the better the athlete can increase the chances of that player having a long and successful NFL career, even if incrementally so.

“It’s all important,” said Gutekunst last offseason of the pre-draft process. “First and foremost, it’s all important, the medical, everything’s important. At the end of the day, and this goes back for as long as I’ve done this, you go back to the tape and how they play the game. I think whenever there’s discrepancies, whenever you’re not sure, you go back to the tape, and that’s going to be your best predictor of future success is what they’ve done on tape, and that’s kind of what we live by.”

Since the 2018 NFL draft, Gutekunst’s first as the general manager, he has made 72 selections and 65 of them have registered a RAS. Of those 65 prospects, 48 have a RAS of at least 8.0 and 28 scored above 9.0.

Only 10 of those picks have scored below a 7.0, and of those 10 players, only two were top-100 selections by the Packers–wide receivers Amari Rodgers and Jayden Reed.

When it comes to some of the bigger positional needs this offseason for the Packers, only three of Gutekunst’s seven draft picks along the interior defensive line scored a RAS of 8.0 or higher. At defensive end, however, four of his five picks scored above 8.90.

In the secondary at cornerback, five of Gutekunst’s seven picks scored 9.20 or higher. Along the offensive line, eight of the 11 prospects registered a RAS of 8.0 or more. Lastly, at wide receiver, six of the nine draft picks scored 8.0-plus.

Below you can find the individual results for each of the 65 draft picks that registered a RAS score.

Quarterback
Sean Clifford: 9.04
Jordan Love: 8.43
Michael Pratt: 8.27

Running back
AJ Dillon: 9.15
MarShawn Lloyd: 8.62
Dexter Williams: 8.13
Lew Nichols III: 7.83
Kylin Hill: 7.28

Wide Receiver
Christian Watson: 9.96
Equanimeous St. Brown: 9.85
Marquez Valdes-Scantling: 9.26
Dontayvion Wicks: 9.17
Grant DuBose: 8.79
J’Mon Moore: 8.43
Jayden Reed: 6.74
Samori Toure: 6.14
Amari Rodgers: 5.35

Offensive Line
Jacob Monk: 9.73
Zach Tom: 9.59
Elgton Jenkins: 9.33
Jordan Morgan: 9.25
Royce Newman: 8.72
Cole Van Lanen: 8.46
Jon Runyan: 8.47
Sean Rhyan: 8.16
Travis Glover: 4.72
Cole Madison: 4.57
Jake Hanson: 3.72

Tight End
Luke Musgrave: 9.78
Tucker Kraft: 9.68
Josiah Deguara: 8.49
Jace Sternberger: 5.17

Interior Defensive Line
James Looney: 9.75
Devonte Wyatt: 9.59
Colby Wooden: 9.24
Kingsley Keke: 7.98
TJ Slaton: 7.96
Karl Brooks: 5.87
Jonathan Ford: 3.54

Edge Rusher
Rashan Gary: 9.95
Kendell Donnerson: 9.89
Lukas Van Ness: 9.39
Jonathan Garvin: 8.97
JJ Enagbare: 6.25

Linebacker
Oren Burks: 9.72
Ty Summers: 9.71
Quay Walker: 9.63
Edgerrin Cooper: 9.13
Ty’Ron Hopper: 7.42
Isaiah McDuffie: 7.32

Cornerback
Jaire Alexander: 9.53
Eric Stokes: 9.37
Carrington Valentine: 9.30
Josh Jackson: 9.26
Ka’Dar Hollman: 9.22
Kalen King: 6.68
Shemar Jean-Charles: 4.24

Safety
Tariq Carpenter: 8.93
Darnell Savage: 8.37
Javon Bullard: 8.25
Evan Williams: 8.20
Kitan Oladapo: 8.18
Anthony Johnson Jr.: 8.13

Special Teams
Hunter Bradley: 9.03
JK Scott: 8.37

As is always the case when it comes to the pre-draft process, it’s important to remember that RAS is one out of many tools that are out there when it comes to player evaluation and should be treated as such. It is not the be-all-end-all.

However, when it comes to the NFL Combine, keep tabs on where players are registering on this scale because there has often been a connection to who Green Bay may or may not have on their radar, with 74% of Gutekunst’s picks scoring 8.0 or higher and nearly half of his selections scoring above 9.0.

“Again, it’s all important,” Gutekunst said. “It all factors in, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to be able to play this game. Not play it at a high level in college, but be able translate to our league and play it at a high level here.”

Packers free agency predictions: Will CB Eric Stokes return?

Paul Bretl | 2/21/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — In the coming weeks, I will take a closer look at the Packers pending free agents in my ‘Re-sign or Let Go and Prediction’ series.

For each free agent I will make a case as to why the Packers should re-sign them and I’ll also discuss why the Packers would let them walk and play elsewhere. Then at the end, I’ll make my prediction.

This will be my third offseason doing this series and through the first two, I’ve gotten 24 of the 27 predictions correct.

Up next, let’s take a closer look at whether or not cornerback Eric Stokes will return for the 2025 season. If you missed our other previews, you can find them below:

Eric Wilson
Isaiah McDuffie
Robert Rochell
TJ Slaton
Tyler Davis

Why the Packers will re-sign Eric Stokes?

Why would the Packers bring back Stokes? I think one of the biggest reasons is the general uncertainty right now at the cornerback position and the lack of experience on the roster.

Jaire Alexander might have played his final snap in a Packers uniform, and if that ends up being the case, the Packers are currently left with Keisean Nixon, Carrington Valentine, Kamal Hadden, Kalen King, Kaleb Hayes, and Isaiah Dunn at cornerback. Beyond Nixon and Valentine, Dunn’s 116 career defensive snaps over four seasons is the most among the rest.

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So Stokes’ experience alone is quite valuable given the current outlook of the Packers cornerback position. And his potential return shouldn’t stop Brian Gutekunst from continuing to add to this position, but his return does provide Green Bay with some insurance and added stability at the position.

While it was a bit of a rocky start to the 2024 season for Stokes, as he got more comfortable in Jeff Hafley’s scheme his play really started to pick up in the latter half of the year. From Weeks 12-17, Stokes surrendered only seven completions on 15 targets over his last six games. During that span, out of 74 eligible cornerbacks, Stokes’ completion rate of 46.6% is the second-lowest, according to PFF.

“It’s been good,” said Stokes of his play at that time. “Finally getting more comfortable and more comfortable as the weeks go on with the scheme, technique and little stuff and just getting more comfortable as the weeks go on.”

Even when Stokes surrendered a reception in 2024, he’d been able to limit the damage, allowing just 10.0 yards per catch this season. A big difference for him, in what had been a tale of two seasons after allowing a completion rate of 68% through the first nine games, was the confidence he was playing with as he adjusted to his role within the scheme.

“It was just a lot of little things — just getting used to the technique, getting used to some of the other little things all over, and some of the routes and some of the things that we’re getting,” said Stokes on adjusting to Hafley’s defense. “I just had to get used to it, and now I pretty much know what type of defense we run, everybody knows, so we pretty much get hit with the same things over and over, so then you start picking up on it.”

For a position group that currently has its share of question marks, Stokes gives you starting potential, added competition and, at worst, experience off the bench. The floor of the cornerback room is raised with Stokes back on the team, and there’s value in that, given the unknowns at such a key position right now.

“He’s a really good talent, he’s getting better, he’s worked his butt off, he comes in the building (and is) the same guy every day, and he’s been a guy that’s just punching the clock and trying to get better at his craft,” said pass game coordinator Derrick Ansley. “And he’s done that. He practices the right way—runs to the ball, works on his technique, and he’s playing a little bit better going forward.”

Why the Packers won’t re-sign Eric Stokes

For the reasons mentioned, I do think there is a path where the Packers would like to have Stokes back. However, I wouldn’t expect that to be on a lucrative or long-term deal either.

Stokes’ trip to UW-Madison last offseason did pay-off for him as he was able to remain healthy for the 2024 season. However, the two years prior, he did play in just 12 combined games, which is something to be mindful of.

In addition to that, Valentine really took control of the second starting boundary cornerback job late last season, with Stokes playing just six total defensive snaps in the final two games of the season. And while Stokes’ play improved over the course of the season, the lack of ball production does make one wonder how sustainable that is. According to PFF, Stokes hasn’t had an interception or even a pass breakup since his rookie season in 2021.

Put all of that together, and I think Stokes will get more money and contract years on the open market elsewhere. Although his play on his rookie deal in Green Bay didn’t pan out as hoped, we’ve seen over and over throughout the NFL, that high draft pedigree players, which Stokes is as a former first-round pick, with elite traits, which Stokes possesses, running a sub-4.3 second 40-yard dash, get additional opportunities.

Prediction: The Packers won’t re-sign Eric Stokes

The biggest reason for me with this prediction is that I think Stokes, as a former first-round pick, who overall, did have good numbers last season, gets a bigger deal elsewhere.

Perhaps not to the extent that we saw at the safety position in 2024, since Nixon and Valentine are returning, but it feels like at cornerback this offseason, the Packers are at a fork in the road, so to speak, and have to hit the reset button to a degree.

So I would not be surprised if we see the Packers make an addition at cornerback in free agency and then we see Brian Gutekunst spend at least one and maybe even two draft picks on the position as well. This strategy then reduces the need to re-sign Stokes, and that coupled with the reasons mentioned above, results in what I’m guessing would be more team-friendly contract if the Packers were to make Stokes an offer.

Packers salary cap overview: Where do things stand heading into free agency

Paul Bretl | 2/20/2025

GREEN BAY, Wis. — With the news that the NFL’s salary cap will be taking another big jump in 2025, how does that impact the Packers’ plans and where they stand relative to the rest of the NFL?

On Wednesday, Dan Graziano of ESPN reported that this year’s salary cap will fall between $277.5 million and $281.5 this season. With last year’s salary cap being at $255.4 million, that’s a year-to-year increase between $22.1 million and $26.1 million depending on where the final figure falls.

Over the Cap has since adjusted its figures to account for where this new salary cap range lies. Choosing the middle of that aforementioned range above, the Packers are currently projected to have $49.14 million in available cap space this offseason. Compared to the rest of the NFL, this ranks as the 13th most.

“I feel really good,” said Brian Gutekunst about the Packers’ salary cap situation after the season. “Russ (Ball) does a fantastic job with our cap and all the decisions we’ve made over the past few years has put us in the situation where we’re in pretty good shape right now. Again, we’ve got to keep making good decisions, and it’s never a one-year thing. You’re looking at two, three years down the road as far as how these things impact things.

“We have a lot of good players that are under rookie contracts right now, and we’ve got to make sure we’re able to extend those guys when that time comes, but I feel really good our ability to go do what we need to do to field a championship-level team.”

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Now, that $49.14 million in cap space isn’t what the Packers have to spend this offseason. There are other cap costs coming down the pipeline that will require space. This includes signing the incoming draft class, which by OTC’s projections, will cost roughly $3.1 million in additional cap space.

Green Bay will also have to construct their practice squad, leave cap space for any in-season spending, and account for the contracts of the 52nd and 53rd players on the roster (the offseason cap figure only takes into account the top 51 contracts), among other items.

Ken Ingalls, who independently tracks the Packers’ cap situation, projects that those additional costs will account for another $12.9 million in cap space. So, we put that $12.9 million figure with the $3.1 million needed to sign the draft class, and what the Packers have available to spend this offseason isn’t $49.14 million, it’s closer to $33.1 million instead.

Like every other team, the Packers have the ability to create more room if needed. This is done primarily via three different avenues: a veteran cut, a contract restructure, or in some instances, an extension.

When a player’s cap hit is larger than their dead cap hit, the team can benefit from salary cap savings by moving on from that player. The cap hit is the player’s salary cap impact if on the team, and the dead cap hit is the player’s salary cap impact even if they are playing elsewhere. Dead cap is essentially dollars that have already been paid to the player, but have not yet counted towards the salary cap.

An example of this for the Packers this offseason would be Jaire Alexander, whose future with the team is up in the air. If Alexander is a Packer in 2025, his cap hit is $24.95 million. But if released, his dead cap hit is $18.11 million. So that’s still a large chunk of cap space being devoted to Alexander even if he’s on a new team, but compared to the cap hit, the Packers actually create an additional $6.8 million in space by moving on from him.

An added wrinkle to this is a player can be designated as a post-June 1st release. In Alexander’s instance, if the Packers went that route, their cap savings in 2025 would be $17.07 million. The downside is that in the above scenario, Alexander is completely off the salary cap books in 2026. In this instance, the dead cap hit is spread out, so while it’s less in 2025, creating more cap savings now, Alexander would still count towards the 2026 salary cap at $7.87 million.

For the Packers, given that they have a number of cap hits in 2026 taking big jumps, I would guess that if they move on from Alexander, they’ll want to take on all the dead cap this year and get that deal off the books.

Another path for creating cap space is with a contract restructure–something we saw the Packers do often during the 2021 and 2022 offseasons. This is the ‘kicking the can down the road’ method, where a team takes cap charges from the current year and pushes them to future years.

Ideally, this is done when a player has multiple years left on his deal. There is obviously a ton of nuance to this, but in short, one way to accomplish this is by taking a portion of a player’s base salary, where 100% of that amount counts towards the current year’s cap, and converting some of it to a signing bonus, which can be pro-rated over the remaining life of the deal.

A very rudimentary example would be if a player has a $10 million base salary with three years left on his deal. The team could take $6 million of that and convert it to a signing bonus, allowing them to push $2 million to 2026 and $2 million to 2027, with $2 million staying behind in the current 2025 year.

The benefit to the team is that they just decreased that player’s cap hit in 2025 by $4 million. The downside, however, is that those cap charges pushed to future years don’t just disappear either. Now, the player’s cap impact in 2026 and 2027 has increased.

There are also void years that can be utilized in contract restructures, and again, was a tool Brian Gutekunst used during those 2021 and 2022 offseasons. In short, void years are dummy years added to a contract for salary cap purposes. These years are not a contract extension with the player’s deal still coming to an end at the original agreed upon time.

Instead, this is a book-keeping measure that, on paper, adds more years to a contract for cap charges in a restructure to be pushed to, thus further lowering the cap hit in the current year. But, as always, where there is give, there is take. When the player’s contract expires, the cap charges that were pushed to the void years accelerate and come due on the current year’s books, leaving behind a dead cap hit. 

Gutekunst said after the season that he likes where the Packers are at cap-wise currently. Over the last two years, the team has finally gotten out from those past restructures and the dead cap from other contracts. So restructuring deals is not something that the Packers will do just for the sake of it because, as described, there are then cap ramifications down the road to deal with that reduces future flexibility. But, for the right player, if available to the Packers in free agency, Gutekunst is always willing to make the necessary back-end moves to facilitate the acquisition.

“Certainly we’d love to be in that situation every year where you have a lot of flexibility to do what you need to do,” Gutekunst said. “I think depending on the opportunities that are out there and your football team or where you’re at can dictate some of that. Again, I think whenever there are players like X or Josh that are out there, which isn’t very often, I think even if you don’t have great flexibility, you have to really consider adding those kind of players because there’s just not that many of ’em.

“So again, I feel really good where we’re at right now, would love to stay in that kind of flexibility year to year. We’ll certainly try to do that, but at the same time if we kinda have to do some different things because we have an opportunity to acquire a player that can impact our team like these two guys did, we’ll do it.”

However, something to keep in mind when it comes to restructures, and what could reduce the Packers’ willingness to utilize this avenue this offseason is that in 2026, OTC has the Packers with the eighth-lowest available cap space. As SI’s Bill Huber points out, the cap hits for several high profile players, including Jordan Love, Rashan Gary, Kenny Clark, Xavier McKinney, Elgton Jenkins, and Josh Jacobs, all take relatively big jumps next offseason and account for a fairly big slice of the Packers’ salary cap pie.

The last path for creating can space can come via an extension. In a somewhat similar fashion to a restructure, with new years and new dollars added on to a current contract, teams can use this as an opportunity to package some of the current year’s cap charges and push them into the future years now that there is a longer contract runway.

One example here would be Jenkins, who has two years left on his deal, although we know that the Packers aren’t ones to just hand out third contracts. Zach Tom could be an extension candidate as well, but the 2025 cap savings potential is fairly low, given that he’s a fourth-round pick still playing on his rookie deal.

Really, any time between now and when free agency begins, we could see the Packers and Gutekunst begin making any of these cap moves, if that is in fact something they intend to do. Green Bay’s willingness to go down one or several of these described paths depends on how aggressive they want to be in free agency. Given that they are in fairly good salary cap standing, unlike in past years, I wouldn’t say that creating more cap space is a must this offseason.

“I think I view every offseason that we have to attack it aggressively,” said Gutekunst. “The opportunities that present themselves, whether that be free agency or trade, are different every year. Every year there’s not going to be a Josh Jacobs or an Xavier McKinney out there to go get.

“So we’ll see kinda what transpires through the free agency class – who gets re-signed, who doesn’t, if there’s salary cap casualties, if there’s trade opportunities, all those. But I think we always operate under the aggressive mindset, but we have a process that we go through and we’ll see what’s available. If it’s right for us, then we’re going to attack it. If they’re not there, it’s not there.”

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