5 Positions Green Bay Packers Must Still Address Before 2015 Season
You can't win 'em all, and even though the Green Bay Packers had a successful draft overall, addressing multiple positions on both sides of the ball, there's always room for more bodies competing in training camp.
At the conclusion of the draft, the Packers had 72 players on their roster, including all eight selections. That gives them room to add 18 unrestricted free agents to the roster to hit the offseason maximum of 90.
Per a list Acme Packing Company has been keeping of undrafted free-agent signings, Green Bay has reportedly signed 21 players. But of course it will only be able to bring on 18, so some reports can be treated as unconfirmed.
Some of the positions the Packers still need to address before the 2015 season have been targeted by reported free-agent signings. Let's take a look at the areas Green Bay should continue to focus on throughout the offseason.
Inside Linebacker
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Many were surprised when general manager Ted Thompson didn't select an inside linebacker early in the draft, but he clearly has a plan in place to supplement the roster at the position.
The current unit includes Sam Barrington, who will likely start at middle linebacker. Behind him, outside linebacker Carl Bradford will continue his transition to the inside this year in camp and try to earn some snaps. Nate Palmer is also in the same boat.
Of course, there's also 2015 rookie Jake Ryan, selected by Thompson in the fourth round of the draft. He showed in his career at Michigan that he can come down to defend the run as well as cover in space, so he has a chance to develop into a three-down linebacker in the NFL.
Head coach Mike McCarthy takes that a step further. "I think he has the ability to play on all four downs," he said, per Rob Reischel of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "I think that's the highest compliment you can give to a player."
The Packers have also used undrafted free agency to add to the position, including Bethune-Cookman's Tavarus Dantzler, as his agent reported. They signed undrafted free agent Joe Thomas last year.
The Packers will have to bring in more players than are currently on the 53-man roster at inside linebacker, and while Ryan seems to be a given to survive final cuts, another player could emerge in training camp as a contender.
Nose Tackle
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Yes, the Packers just spent $6.25 million this offseason to re-sign both B.J. Raji and Letroy Guion, who together make up an intimidating lineup at nose tackle.
However, both Raji and Guion were re-signed for one-year deals. Raji is coming off a torn bicep that saw him miss the entire 2014 season on top of making the transition back to nose tackle after spending time at defensive end.
Guion will be 28 by the time training camp starts and is coming off an offseason arrest for possession of marijuana and a firearm.
The Packers re-signed Raji and Guion so that they didn't have to use a draft pick on a defensive tackle, even though they had the opportunity to draft Texas' Malcom Brown at No. 30 overall. However, the Packers never look at things one year at a time, and thus Thompson already knows it's time to get a young, promising prospect on the roster to eventually take over for these two veterans.
Mike Pennel is an option, but the majority of snaps he saw in 2014 were at defensive end, per Pro Football Focus, so it's unclear how promising he is.
Green Bay has signed Ole Miss defensive tackle Lavon Hooks, Riley Blevins of The Clarion-Ledger reported.
Tight End
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2014 rookie Richard Rodgers could easily become Green Bay's No. 1 tight end heading into the 2015 season.
He earned 543 snaps and four starts in 2014, per Pro Football Focus, compared to 715 snaps and 11 starts for Andrew Quarless. However, if Rodgers can improve in run blocking, he could win the starting job from Quarless in training camp, as he's demonstrated that he has better hands and can be more of a weapon in the receiving game.
Green Bay drafted Kennard Backman out of Alabama-Birmingham in the sixth round. He provides much-needed depth at the position after the Packers cut Brandon Bostick in the offseason, but if either Rodgers or Quarless got injured, the position would be in trouble.
Per NFL.com's Lance Zierlein's scouting report on Backman, he needs to have tackle help in pass protection and isn't an effective run-blocker. So though he has good hands and can make catches in traffic, Green Bay will likely use him as an H-back.
The Packers also signed undrafted free-agent tight end Mitchell Henry out of Western Kentucky, as Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Offensive Line
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The 2015 NFL draft marked the first time in Ted Thompson's tenure as general manager of the Packers that he did not select an offensive lineman.
Offensive line is far from a need for Green Bay—in fact, it's one of the team's best units. However, not having enough depth behind their starting five has burned the Packers in the past, and they need to strengthen the position before final roster cuts.
Behind left tackle David Bakhtiari, left guard Josh Sitton, center Corey Linsley, right guard T.J. Lang and right tackle Bryan Bulaga, Green Bay's primary backups are veteran Don Barclay and JC Tretter. Barclay has filled in at multiple spots along the line for Green Bay, including at right tackle when Bulaga was injured in 2013, while Tretter is primarily a center and can also fill in at guard.
On May 4, the Packers released center Joe Madsen, whom they signed to the practice squad in January. They still have Garth Gerhart there and Lane Taylor at guard. Adding another lineman to compete in camp wouldn't be a bad move, though. They have signed a few unrestricted free agents, including Matt Rotheram of Pittsburgh, which he confirmed.
Outside Linebacker
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Green Bay's outside linebacker group was so strong in 2014 that defensive coordinator Dom Capers frequently featured the NASCAR, or four-outside linebacker, pass-rushing package.
All of the same players who comprised the NASCAR last season return in 2015: Clay Matthews, Julius Peppers, Nick Perry and Mike Neal.
However, indications point to the Packers using Matthews on the inside again in 2015, as there is no clear starter next to Sam Barrington presently on the roster.
Peppers' contract expires in 2017, per Spotrac.com, but he's set to count $12 million against the salary cap in 2015 and $10.5 million in 2016. The Packers had until last Sunday to exercise Perry's fifth-year option but declined, making 2015 effectively a contract year for him. And though it feels like Neal was just re-signed, he will become a free agent in 2016.
Green Bay's pass rush has been one of the cornerstones of success on its defense, and Thompson has to work to make sure it stays strong. Jayrone Elliott, 23, is a promising young talent on the roster, but two players who signed as outside linebackers—Carl Bradford and Nate Palmer—have converted to inside.
The Packers have added two outside linebackers via undrafted free agency: Stanford's James Vaughters, per Packer Report, and LSU's Jermauria Rasco, per Bob McGinn of the Journal Sentinel.
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