Details On RB Corey Grant's Contract
- Running back Corey Grant‘s one-year deal with the Packers is worth $895K, tweets ESPN’s Rob Demovsky and Jim Owczarski of the Journal Sentinel. The only guaranteed money comes via a $60K signing bonus, while Grant will have to earn an $805K base salary and ~$30K per-game roster bonuses. His cap charge is around $714K.
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Packers Waive OL Jason Spriggs
The Packers’ second-round investment in Jason Spriggs has not ended up producing much value, and the team may be set to conclude the offensive lineman’s run in Green Bay.
In submitting a successful waiver claim for running back Keith Ford, the Packers waived Spriggs with an injury designation, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The Colts waived Ford on Monday to make room for D’Onta Foreman.
Envisioning a future starting role for the Indiana product, the Packers traded up to land Spriggs at No. 48 in the 2016 draft. He has not been able to crack Green Bay’s starting lineup with consistency, working as a first-stringer in only nine games. Spriggs has been dealing with a trap muscle injury during camp, and given that Spriggs’ contract is up after 2019, this situation will likely be headed toward an injury settlement.
Spriggs suited up as primarily a backup in 29 combined games between the 2016 and ’18 seasons, but in 2017, the Packers placed him on IR twice. He joined Aaron Rodgers in being one of the team’s late-season IR-boomerang players but, like Rodgers, also ended that season back on IR.
The Bills made Ford, a Texas A&M alum, one of their top UDFAs in 2018 but waived him after last year’s preseason run. He caught on with the Colts this offseason. Ford will join a Green Bay backfield housing Aaron Jones, Jamaal Williams and sixth-round rookie Dexter Williams, along with some fellow UDFAs.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/31/19
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: LB Nicholas Grigsby
Buffalo Bills
- Released from injured reserve: OL Jeremiah Sirles
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: LB Justin Phillips
- Waived: G Larry Allen Jr.
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed off waivers: DE Markus Jones
- Waived/injured: CB Javien Hamilton
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: RB Devante Mays
- Waived/injured: RB Taj McGowan
Miami Dolphins
- Waived: P Stone Wilson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Claimed off waivers: WR Brandon Reilly
- Waived/non-football injury: CB Alexander Myres
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived: WR Daniel Williams
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Claimed off waivers: T William Poehls
- Signed: WR Matt Eaton, TE Scott Orndoff
- Waived: TE Donnie Ernsberger, T Riley Mayfield
- Waived/injured: S Orion Stewart
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: WR Tanner McEvoy, WR Papi White
- Waived: WR Joe Parker
- Placed on injured reserve: WR Cameron Batson
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/27/19
Today’s minor transactions:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: RB A.J. Ouellette
- Waived: OT Ka’John Armstrong
Denver Broncos
- Signed: TE Moral Stephens
- Waived: P Justin Vogel
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed off waivers from Bengals: RB Darrin Hall
- Waived: OG Larry Williams
Houston Texans
- Waived: S A.J. Hendy
- Waived/injured: WR Isaac Whitney
New York Giants
- Signed: WR Amba Etta-Tawo
Philadelphia Eagles:
- Waived: DT Anthony Rush
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DL Jordan Thompson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: LB Jawuan Johnson
Tennesse Titans
- Signed: DB Jonathan Crawford
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/26/19
A batch of minor transactions on a busy day across the league:
Atlanta Falcons:
- Signed: LB Richie Brown
- Waived: OT Lanard Bonner
- Placed on IR: DL Michael Bennett
Denver Broncos
- Signed: WR Nick Williams
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: RB Corey Grant
Houston Texans
- Claimed off waivers from Saints: WR Chad Hansen
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: LB Drew Lewis
- Waived: LB Tre Thomas
Minnesota Vikings
- Placed on IR: DE Tashawn Bower (Achilles)
New England Patriots
- Signed: OL J.J. Dielman
Philadelphia Eagles
- Claimed off waivers from 49ers: CB Alex Brown
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: OL Dillon Day
- Released: DL Cedric Thornton
More On Mike Daniels' Release; Packers Looking To Extend Kenny Clark?
The Packers made the surprising decision to cut Mike Daniels earlier today, and GM Brian Gutekunst confirmed that the club did try to trade Daniels first (via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com). It sounds as if Green Bay made some headway in trade talks, but the talks broke down over the last couple of weeks. Gutekunst also mentioned Daniels’ foot injury as a factor in the decision.
- The decision to cut Daniels has opened the door for the Packers to sign NT Kenny Clark to a lucrative extension, as Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets. Silverstein suggests (via Twitter) that such a deal could happen at the end of the season.
Packers Release Mike Daniels
The Packers have released Mike Daniels, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Given his Pro Bowl resume, the move comes as a total surprise. 
Daniels was due $8.1MM this season in base salary and roster bonuses, which was apparently too rich for Green Bay’s blood. By cutting Daniels, the Packers will save $8.3MM versus $2.4MM in dead money.
The Packers explored a Daniels trade, but couldn’t find a suitable deal, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears. Garafolo suggests that the Browns, with all their former Packers connections, are likely to take a look at Daniels after trying, and failing, to sign Gerald McCoy earlier this year.
The Packers extended Daniels via four-year, $41MM contract during the 2015 season. For the most part, the deal has paid off. Daniels earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2017, though he was less productive in 2018 before ultimately landing on IR in December with a foot injury.
In his Pro Bowl campaign, Daniels notched five sacks and 49 tackles across 14 games. Last year, he had two sacks and 18 tackles in ten contests.
Daniels is now free to sign with any club. His preference is to sign with a Super Bowl contender, Schefter hears (on Twitter).
Packers, Dean Lowry Agree To Extension
The Packers have agreed to a contract extension with DE Dean Lowry, according to a team announcement. Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports that it will be a three-year, $20.325MM extension (Twitter link).
Lowry, a fourth-round pick out of Northwestern in 2016, was heading into the last year of his rookie deal and was scheduled to earn $2.025MM this year. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that the $20.325MM (which includes a $6MM signing bonus) will be new money on top of that $2.025MM.
Lowry has quietly put together a very strong start to his professional career, and 2018 was his best season to date, as he recorded 57 tackles (seven for loss), three sacks, three passes defensed, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, two QB hits, and 14 QB pressures in 16 games (eight starts).
He is, at the very least, a solid piece of the club’s D-line, and now that he is in the fold for the foreseeable future, Green Bay may turn its attention to fellow DE Mike Daniels, who is also entering the last year of his current contract.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/19/19
Today’s minor moves will be posted here:
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: WR Malik Taylor
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed off waivers from Raiders: WR Saeed Blacknall
Taylor is an undrafted rookie who played his college ball at D-II Ferris State. He originally signed as an UDFA with the Buccaneers after the draft, but didn’t last long in Tampa Bay. The Packers already have a bunch of young receivers on the roster, so he’ll be facing an uphill climb to even make the practice squad.
Blacknall is a speedster who went undrafted out of Penn State last year. He signed with the Raiders and after some impressive moments during the preseason he made the practice squad. He was briefly signed to the active roster in November, so he does have one NFL game under his belt. Blacknall could have a legit shot of making the team since the Dolphins are entering a full-blown rebuild and will be looking for as much young talent as possible.
Packers Wanted Khalil Mack
In September, the Bears landed Khalil Mack in a trade that sent shockwaves throughout the football world. In an alternate universe, Mack could have ended up with their divisional rivals. In an interview with 105.7 The Fan Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy says he tried his best to land the All-Pro superstar. 
“Well the whole Khalil Mack thing. It’s not that we didn’t try,” Murphy said. “We were aggressive. We wanted to sign him. I think, ironically, the Raiders took the Bears offer because they thought they would be a better [2019 first round] draft pick.”
Ultimately, that was not the case – the Packers finished out with the No. 12 overall pick while the Raiders secured the Bears’ No. 24 overall choice in the deal. Still, hindsight is 20/20 and it’s possible that things could have played out differently if Mack was in Green Bay.
It’s an interesting what-if scenario, but Murphy isn’t necessarily losing sleep over it. After all, if the Packers landed Mack and gave him a monster extension in addition to Aaron Rodgers‘ huge contract, there wouldn’t have been much left for the other players on the roster.
“I don’t know if it is good to have the highest paid offensive player in the league, and the highest paid defensive player in the league,” Murphy said. “Is that a good way to build a team?”
After the Packers missed out on Mack, the edge rusher inked a six-year, $141MM extension with Chicago that includes $90MM guaranteed and $60MM at signing.