Winners and Losers of Green Bay Packers' Offseason So Far
No football decision exists in a vacuum; it's true for the Green Bay Packers and every other team in the NFL.
Each move by the front office has ripples that affect the rest of the team, from the coaching staff down to the practice squad. Sometimes, these moves bring about positive change, such as a backup being promoted to a starting role or a coach getting a crop of young, talented players to develop.
However, there are always corresponding negative effects as well: That rookie who took a starting job may have cost another player his job.
Let's take a look at eight players and coaches who have been affected by the decisions and moves the Packers brass has made this offseason.
Winner: Aaron Rodgers
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Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was already working with one of the league's best receiving corps, but general manager Ted Thompson sweetened the pot a little more this offseason.
Thompson's first major move in keeping Green Bay's receiving corps deadly was re-signing Randall Cobb before he was allowed to reach free agency. Cobb's ability out of the slot, nose for the end zone and versatility when used out of the backfield make him a unique weapon in Green Bay's offense and a nice complement to the 6'3" Jordy Nelson.
Rodgers would have had a nice stable of weapons in Nelson, Cobb, Davante Adams, Jared Abbrederis and Jeff Janis, but in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft, Thompson added another target: Stanford receiver Ty Montgomery.
Though Montgomery's most immediate impact will come on special teams as a kick returner, an area in which he excelled at Stanford, Green Bay can also find a use for him on offense. Montgomery led Stanford in receiving with 61 receptions for 604 yards in 2014.
Built like Cobb but bigger (6'0", 221 lbs), Montgomery can be a strong pass-catching threat out of the backfield.
The Packers have so much talent at wide receiver heading into 2015 that they may need to keep six players on the depth chart. That's a win for Rodgers, who can enjoy his first and second reads being open more frequently due to the number of bodies for the defense to cover.
The Packers have the personnel, if these players develop enough by September, to return to the high-octane five-wide set of the 2010 season that helped them reach the Super Bowl.
Loser: Scott Tolzien
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For as long as Scott Tolzien has worked to earn the No. 2 spot behind Rodgers, which he has now done heading into his third season in Green Bay, he could lose it just like that.
Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said that the Packers "let him know his apprenticeship is complete" when he signed a one-year, $1.35 million deal in March.
But the one-year deal seems like a prove-it situation in nature, a challenge to Tolzien to impress with a full season taking second-team reps before signing him long term.
Furthermore, now Tolzien has young, talented and hungry competition nipping at his heels to claim that hard-earned No. 2 spot from him. When the Packers traded up to draft UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley in Round 5, the pressure on Tolzien to have a stellar training camp increased twofold.
Hundley may need a year or two—or three—to develop into a productive NFL quarterback. And if Rodgers were to suffer an injury early in the 2015 season, it's likely that the Packers would call on Tolzien, who knows the playbook and has started NFL games with this offense.
But after Hundley gets some NFL experience under his belt—and Tolzien is facing unrestricted free agency again—it may be a different story for Green Bay's No. 2.
Winner: Ron Zook
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Ron Zook was fortunate. There are two directions in which a head coach can go when he decides to fire a special teams coordinator: Let him go and promote his assistant, or let both the coordinator and the assistant go.
In Zook's case, head coach Mike McCarthy chose the former route.
Zook arrived in Green Bay as the special teams assistant in February 2014 and was present for one of the Packers' worst special teams showings in recent history in the 2014-15 season.
Green Bay ranked last in the NFL in the Dallas Morning News' annual special teams rankings. The team allowed a league-worst seven blocked kicks, and punter Tim Masthay had the worst showing of his career, netting just 37 yards per punt on average.
The return game, an asset for many teams, was a hindrance to the Packers. As a team, the Packers averaged 19.1 yards per kick return. Their opponents averaged 24.5.
All of this is Zook's problem now, but that's a win for him. McCarthy gave up play-calling in part to spend more time with special teams, which will help Zook develop as a coach as well. Thompson did his job to support Zook this offseason as well, drafting return star Montgomery out of Stanford in Round 3 as well as potential gunners Damarious Randall (Round 1) and Quinten Rollins (Round 2).
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Loser: Myles White
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Practice-squad holdover Myles White found himself fighting for a spot on the Packers 53-man roster last offseason, and he'll be in the same position this offseason.
The former undrafted free agent began his first season on the practice squad, and the team activated him in Week 7. He has nine receptions and 66 yards in NFL game action under his belt. Last year, White spent the entire season on the practice squad, but this offseason is his make-or-break moment.
The Packers continue to add talented young wide receiver prospects and may even have to keep six on the 53-man roster this season in Nelson, Cobb, Adams, Abbrederis, Janis and Montgomery.
Unfortunately for White, there may not be a place for him unless he blows coaches away during training camp this summer. The addition of Montgomery hurts White's chances significantly.
White's size (6'0", 190 lbs) is similar to Cobb's and Montgomery's, and there are only so many snaps to go around in the slot and the backfield.
If the Packers are going to keep six receivers on the depth chart in 2015, a big, physical receiver like Janis (6'3", 219 lbs) adds more to the offense than White does, especially when the Packers already have Cobb and Montgomery.
Winner: B.J. Raji
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The fans may have lost faith in B.J. Raji. But the Packers haven't.
Raji's performance slipped big time when he played defensive end in 2012 and 2013. After notching a career-high 6.5 sacks at nose tackle in 2010 and then three more in 2011, Raji didn't have a single sack in 2012 or 2013.
This, however, was partly by design, as defensive coordinator Dom Capers moved Raji into a role where he would function as a space-eater, leaving the linebackers clean to rush the passer. Raji, clearly, was not happy about this move, but because he was a better defensive end than Ryan Pickett, Pickett moved to anchor the line.
Some saw Raji's slip in play as a decline in motivation, which isn't incorrect. But the Packers realized that a move back to nose tackle to replace the aging Pickett before the 2014 season could both benefit the team and reinvigorate Raji.
However, that never happened, as Raji tore his biceps in the preseason after a promising training camp.
"B.J. Raji, he was in the best shape and having the best camp of his career," McCarthy said after the injury, per the Associated Press' Todd McMahon.
However, the Packers still believe Raji has a lot to give, as they re-signed him to a one-year deal this offseason. Raji, for his part, has been proving their faith in him right.
Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette reported on Raji's increased commitment to dieting and conditioning, including taking up yoga, to ensure that he remains in prime football shape for years to come. "I made up my mind last season after I got hurt," Raji said. "That's what jump-started this yoga and everything."
Raji will presumably still need to compete with Letroy Guion, who did an impressive job of filling in for him in 2014, for the starting nose tackle spot. But if he wins that battle—and he should be able to—Raji could earn a long-term contract with Green Bay next offseason.
Loser: John Kuhn
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John Kuhn has cheated metaphorical death for years now. He's one of the few players on Green Bay's roster over the age of 30, and he plays a position that is defunct on many NFL teams.
However, the Packers still utilize the fullback position, whether it's on short-yardage rushes on third down, in goal-line situations or, most importantly, as a lead blocker for Eddie Lacy. Kuhn's ability to catch passes out of the backfield earned him a living for years, but his ability to block for Lacy has kept him relevant.
Even though the Packers have a need for one fullback, they may not have a use (or the roster space) for two.
Kuhn has been quoted this offseason welcoming the challenge of having a young player at his position, but the truth is that even if the Packers do keep both Kuhn and rookie Aaron Ripkowski on the 53-man roster this season, it will almost surely be Kuhn's last year in Green Bay.
"We preach around here that competition breeds the best football players," Kuhn said recently, per Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "If you can't embrace that, if you don't believe it, then what's the point of saying it?"
Ripkowski can take over Kuhn's role in lead blocking; that's how the Oklahoma Sooners used him as he helped lead the way for the nation's top rushing offense.
However, Kuhn may survive another year because Ripkowski didn't often touch the ball at Oklahoma. Over his career, Ripkowski had just six carries and seven receptions for the Sooners, though he did score two touchdowns.
Kuhn may be on the way out, but he's already enjoyed a longer career than most of the league's fullbacks. And to do it with the same team for eight, potentially nine, seasons is a testament to his effectiveness.
Winner: Richard Rodgers
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The Packers could have taken a starting-caliber tight end many times throughout the NFL draft. But Day 1 and Day 2 passed, and the Packers had not addressed the position. They would not do so until Round 6 with Kennard Backman, a prospect draft analysts thought would go undrafted.
The move signifies the Packers' comfort level with their existing group in second-year player Richard Rodgers and veteran Andrew Quarless. And given his sharp rate of improvement last season in his rookie year, if Rodgers keeps it up in training camp, he could win the starting job at the position.
Rodgers played 543 snaps last season and had five starts, mostly concentrated at the start of the season. He had 20 receptions for 225 yards and two touchdowns, adding a third score in the divisional round against the Dallas Cowboys.
In the first half of the season, Rodgers struggled with blocking, which kept him from being the featured tight end. However, between Weeks 10 and 17, Rodgers improved to 48th among tight ends in run blocking and 20th in pass blocking.
Overall in 2014, Rodgers finished as the No. 5-ranked tight end in the league in pass blocking, per Pro Football Focus.
This offseason, Rodgers has had some standout moments during OTAs, including when he connected with Tolzien on a touchdown after a two-minute drill, per Jason Wilde of ESPN.com.
Without a top-drafted tight end to compete with for snaps this offseason, Rodgers' path to becoming the starter in 2015 is open now.
Loser: Nick Perry
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Nick Perry could have been looking at two more seasons to prove he deserves a spot as a starting outside linebacker for the Packers, but now, he's suddenly facing a contract year.
Green Bay made it clear that it expects more from Perry when the team declined to pick up his fifth-year option, which will make him a free agent next March.
While he has shown flashes, Perry has not lived up to his status as a first-round draft pick (No. 28 overall).
Since 2012, Perry has started 15 games and played in 32. He has not yet played a full 16-game season. His best season, 2013, saw him post 20 total tackles, four sacks, a pass defensed and three forced fumbles in just 11 games.
In 2014, however, Perry's snaps fell to 429, per Pro Football Focus, with the offseason addition of Julius Peppers being a major factor.
The Packers made it clear this offseason that if Perry wants to play a fifth year in Green Bay, he'll have to earn it.
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