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Latest On Extension Talks Between Packers, Jordan Love

June 14th, 2024 at 10:36pm CST by Adam La Rose

Trevor Lawrence became the latest quarterback in the $50MM-per-year club by agreeing to his monster Jaguars extension. Jordan Love may be the next ascending signal-caller to join him in that regard.

The latter is well past the 12-month mark since his bridge deal was signed last offseason. That one-year extension took the place of his fifth-year option as Love took over for Green Bay on a full-time basis. The 2020 first-rounder helped guide the Packers to the divisional round of the playoffs, and a lucrative long-term investment is now the expected outcome of negotiations this offseason.

General manager Brian Gutekunst recently confirmed the team’s preference to work out a deal before training camp opens next month. It is clear that feeling is mutual based on Love’s remarks on the subject. When asked about his looming deal, the 25-year-old said he is optimistic an agreement will be reached in time for camp. He added he expects contract talks to pick up in the coming days with minicamp having taken place (h/t ESPN’s Rob Demovsky).

Lawrence’s deal matches Joe Burrow‘s in terms of average annual value ($55MM). Love has been named as another candidate to approach that figure, but at a minimum he should manage to become the seventh quarterback to reach the $50MM plateau. The Utah State product had only one start to his name before the 2023 campaign, one in which he endured expected growing pains. The close of the regular season and the playoffs eliminated doubt on the team’s part that a mega-pact would be worthwhile, though.

Love finished second in the NFL in touchdown passes (32) and seventh in yards (4,159) last season, providing reason to believe he can guide a young Packers offense to similar success moving forward. He is due $11MM for 2024 as things stand, but that will change dramatically if a deal is worked out in short order. Given the public stances of both team and player in this case, it would not come as a surprise if Love opened training camp with a new deal in hand.

Packers Sign Round 1 OL Jordan Morgan, Finalize Draft Class

June 13th, 2024 at 3:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

After David Bakhtiari‘s knee trouble led to another near-full-season absence, the Packers moved on via release and soon deviated from a defense-based strategy atop the draft. Jordan Morgan is now in place as an heir apparent.

The Packers, who had chosen one offensive player in the first round from 2012-23 (Jordan Love), went with Morgan at No. 25 this year. The team now has a deal in place with the former Arizona tackle, who will be tied to fully guaranteed money through 2027. Assuming Morgan remains on Green Bay’s roster come 2027, Green Bay will eventually have a fifth-year option decision to make.

Bakhtiari’s ACL tear during a New Year’s Eve 2020 practice created considerable trouble for the Packers, who spent most of the next three seasons without their All-Pro left tackle. Morgan also has an ACL tear in his recent past, suffering the injury in November 2022. The Pac-12 standout bounced back this past season, solidifying his value as a first-round-caliber prospect. The Commanders had attempted to trade back into Round 1 for Morgan, but the Packers pounced with their top pick.

Morgan shook off the major injury to become a first-round pick despite this draft oozing tackle options for teams. A three-year starter at Arizona, Morgan started 37 games at left tackle. His post-ACL journey included a first-team All-Pac-12 nod last season. Morgan played in parts of five seasons with the Wildcats, working almost exclusively at left tackle.

Former seventh-round pick Rasheed Walker replaced Bakhtiari at left tackle last season, while Zach Tom worked at RT. Tom is currently rehabbing a torn pectoral muscle, but the young blocker is expected to return before training camp or at some point before the regular season. The Pack view Morgan as a left tackle, which would point Walker to an eventual swing role once the rookie is ready to take over. Walker and Tom are each signed for two more seasons. The Packers, who played 42 regular-season games without Bakhtiari since 2020, also added Andre Dillard as potential depth this offseason.

As the Packers head toward training camp, here is how their draft class breaks down:

Kenny Clark, Packers Have Discussed Extension

June 11th, 2024 at 8:36pm CST by Ben Levine

Kenny Clark is set to hit free agency following the 2024 campaign, and the Packers have naturally engaged in conversations with one of their defensive leader. The veteran defensive tackle told reporters today that there have been “ongoing” talks between the two sides (via Ashley Washburn of TMJ4 News in Milwaukee).

The former first-round pick inked a four-year, $70MM deal in 2020 that’s set to expire at the end of the season. Clark has earned two of his three career Pro Bowl appearances while playing on that extension, with the defensive tackle collecting 15.5 sacks while only missing one game over that three-year span.

Pro Football Focus was generally higher on the player earlier in his career, although they’ve still ranked him as an above-average interior defender in recent years. After finishing 2023 with career-highs in sacks (7.5), tackles for loss (nine), and QB hits (16), he was graded 32nd among 130 qualifying interior defenders.

Clark ranks top-10 in Packers history in TFLs and QB hits, and he’s top-20 in sacks and forced fumbles. Considering his track record with the organization, the 28-year-old is focused on finishing his career in Green Bay.

“Oh yeah, 100 percent,” Clark said (h/t CBS Sports’ Garrett Podell). “I love it here. I love my teammates. I love the organization. Hopefully everything will work out.”

When Clark inked his extension in 2020, he was the 12th-highest paid defensive player in the NFL. Now, his AAV is ranked only 17th at his own position. If Clark wants to be paid as a top-10 interior defender, he’ll be eyeing an average annual salary of $22.5MM. OverTheCap is currently projecting that the DT franchise tag will be valued at $22.1MM next offseason.

Clark will be 29 at the end of his contract, making him relatively young for a second-time free agent. That might help garner him the extra years and the extra money on his next pact. If Clark gets his way, that next contract will come from Green Bay.

Commanders, Lions, Packers, Ravens Interested In K Jake Bates

June 11th, 2024 at 1:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

As expected, Jake Bates‘ UFL season has generated NFL interest. A number of teams are in on the recent spring/summer league specialist, whose previous NFL path did not include any game action.

The Michigan Panthers kicker has received interest from the Commanders, Lions, Packers and Ravens, according to KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. All four teams have requested meetings with Bates, per Wilson, and ESPN.com’s John Keim notes the Commanders will be the first team to host the young specialist. That meeting is set for today.

Washington’s kicker need formed recently, after the team released offseason pickup Brandon McManus after a lawsuit alleging sexual assault emerged. The Commanders have already signed kicker Ramiz Ahmed, but the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala notes the team is looking to hold a competition between the recent signee and another option. The team also auditioned Andre Szmyt on Tuesday, per Jhabvala. Szmyt kicked for the UFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks this season.

With the UFL’s regular season ending, NFL teams are free to hold workouts. UFLers can be added next week, after the league’s weekend championship game. Considering the success the Cowboys have enjoyed with USFL players in recent years — including All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey, a summer 2023 addition — several of the new UFL’s top players will land opportunities to attend NFL training camps. Bates will almost definitely be one.

Bates, whom the Texans cut after barely a week during training camp last year, caught attention for making multiple 60-plus-yard field goals early this season. This included a 64-yarder. The long-range makes placed the Michigan kicker back on the NFL radar, and his second chance figures to feature a more thorough look. That said, Bates proved shakier down the stretch of the UFL season. He missed field goals five field goals over the Panthers’ final four games; that followed a two-miss performance in an April Michigan-Memphis matchup. Overall, Bates went 21-for-28 on field goals this season.

The Lions were connected to the in-state UFL team’s kicker early during the season, and the team used multiple kickers (Riley Patterson, Michael Badgley) in 2023. Detroit re-signed Badgley this offseason and added UDFA James Turner. But the team has been looking into adding another piece here, and Bates’ leg strength certainly caught attention.

Anders Carlson remains the frontrunner to kick for the Packers, but special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia mentioned a potential spring league addition (via The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman) before training camp. Green Bay’s roster already houses two other kickers — Greg Joseph, Jack Podlesny — so a Bates addition would certainly be interesting from a roster-allocation standpoint ahead of training camp. Carlson went 27-for-33 last year but missed four extra points and then missed a kick in the Packers’ narrow divisional-round loss to the 49ers.

It would obviously surprise if Bates ended up in Baltimore, given that the Ravens employ arguably the best to ever do it. Justin Tucker is going into his 13th NFL season. Bates, 24, stands to land somewhere soon. His Houston work last summer does not make it a lock he will be one of the 32 kickers in Week 1, but the UFL work will give him a shot.

Packers, Jordan Love Hoping To Complete Extension Before Training Camp

June 4th, 2024 at 6:36pm CST by Ben Levine

Jordan Love‘s first season as a starter couldn’t have gone much better, but the former first-round pick only has a year remaining on his contract. Predictably, both Love and the Packers are interested in a long-term arrangement, and it sounds like both sides are motivated to complete a deal sooner than later.

[RELATED: Packers Begin Jordan Love Extension Talks]

During an appearance on 97.3 The Game in Milwaukee, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst acknowledged that the two sides are aiming for speedy negotiations.

“We’re in those conversations right now,” Gutekunst said. “I think the nice part about this is none of these things are easy or fast, but both parties want the same thing. We’d like to get this thing done before training camp, for sure, and both parties want to get a contract extension done. I think that stability at that position really allows you to have some security with the way we build our team. We’re looking forward to getting that done, but it never goes fast.”

The Packers and Love have just under two months to complete a deal before their first scheduled training camp practice on July 22. Of course, there’s no technical deadline and no real urgency to get a deal done that soon. On the flip side, even if training camp is an artificial deadline, the two sides surely don’t want the impending free agent QB to enter the regular season with lame-duck status.

While Love doesn’t have an extended track record, his 2023 campaign may be enough to rocket him towards the top of the QB market. We heard last month that Love’s next contract could end up “in [Joe] Burrow territory,” which comes in at a league-leading $55MM average annual value. Four quarterbacks reset the market last offseason (Burrow, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts), and Jared Goff recently joined them in the $50MM AAV club. Once the likes of Trevor Lawrence, Tua Tagovailoa, and Dak Prescott ink their next deals, Love’s expected contract will look a bit more natural.

Last offseason, the Packers ripped up Love’s fifth-year option and replaced it with a one-year contract that offers a higher ceiling (and lower floor). If the QB continues his play from 2023, that arrangement should work out in his favor. Love finished his first season as a starter with 32 touchdowns vs. 11 interceptions, and he helped guide the Packers to their first playoff win since 2020.

Packers Sign Second-Round S Javon Bullard

June 3rd, 2024 at 6:59pm CST by Ely Allen

The Packers continued to make progress on signing their rookie class today. They’ve now narrowed their list of unsigned draft picks to one after announcing that second-round safety Javon Bullard has inked his rookie deal.

Playing his high school football at Baldwin HS (GA), Bullard chose to stay relatively close to home for college, committing to Georgia about two hours up the road. As a three-star recruit, Bullard played more of a reserve/special teams role as a true freshman. As a sophomore, Bullard earned a starting spot on the Bulldogs defense before a DUI arrest would lead to a short suspension. He would return to help lead the team to its second consecutive national title, earning Defensive MVP honors in the 2022 season finale after recording two interceptions and a fumble recovery before exiting the game with injury.

While he didn’t improve his resume too much in his junior season, Bullard showed enough in his two years as a starter at Georgia to forego his senior year of eligibility and declare early for the 2024 NFL Draft. Ranking in the top five of most prospect lists, Bullard was the second safety off the board in the draft, following Minnesota safety Tyler Nubin, who was drafted by the Giants 11 picks earlier.

In Green Bay, the Packers will likely ask Bullard to start next to free agent addition Xavier McKinney as they attempt to fill the roles left vacant by the departures of both starters, Darnell Savage and Jonathan Owens, from last year. If either Bullard or McKinney don’t quite fit in a starting role, the Packers bolstered their depth at the position by drafting two other safeties in the fourth (Evan Williams) and fifth round (Kitan Oladapo).

With Bullard under contract, first-round offensive tackle Jordan Morgan out of Arizona remains the only remaining draft pick to sign. Here’s a look at the rest of the class:

11 Teams Gain Cap Space From Post-June 1 Cuts

June 2nd, 2024 at 9:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Early June no longer means a mid-offseason update to the free agent market, as teams can designate players as post-June 1 cuts months in advance of that date. But June 2 does bring an annually important date in terms of finances. This year, 11 teams will see their cap-space figures expand thanks to post-June 1 release designations. One other club — the Broncos — used a post-June 1 designation, but they will not save any money from the historic Russell Wilson release.

Teams are permitted to designate two players as post-June 1 cuts ahead of that date. This designation spreads a player’s dead money hit over two years as opposed to a 2024-only blow. Courtesy of Spotrac, here are the savings this year’s teams to make post-June 1 designations will receive:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Broncos’ overall Wilson cap hit, even with the quarterback’s $1.21MM Steelers salary factoring into the equation, will more than double any other single-player dead money number in NFL history. The now-Sean Payton-led Broncos, after a failed effort to move Wilson’s guarantee vesting date beyond 2024, will take their medicine for bailing 18 months after authorizing a five-year, $245MM extension. Denver will absorb the lion’s share of the dead money this year, taking on $53MM. The team will not receive the cap credit from Wilson’s Steelers deal until 2025, per Spotrac.

Annually making exhaustive efforts to move under the cap, the Saints will be hit with more than $30MM in total dead cap from the Thomas and Winston contracts. Redesigning both in 2023, the Saints will take on $8.9MM in 2024 dead money on Thomas and $3.4MM on the Winston pact. Mickey Loomis‘ operation is once again at the bottom of the NFL in future cap space, being projected to come in more than $84MM over the 2025 cap.

Baltimore structured Beckham’s one-year, $15MM contract to void, and the team will take on more than $10MM in total dead money on it. The bulk of that will come in 2025; the post-June 1 cut will produce $2.8MM in 2024 dead cap this year.

Latest On Josh Jacobs’ Role With Packers

June 1st, 2024 at 11:43am CST by Ben Levine

While the Packers are set to have plenty of continuity on offense next season, the team will be welcoming in a new starting running back in Josh Jacobs. As Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journals writes, Jacobs was limited through the first few weeks of team workouts thanks to a hamstring injury. However, the veteran was able to recently participate in his first 11-on-11 drills of the offseason, and Jacobs believes he’s just about back to 100 percent health.

After spending the first five seasons of his career with the Raiders, Jacobs is trying to quickly get acclimated to his new environment in Green Bay. There’s the added pressure of replacing long-time RB Aaron Jones atop the depth chart, so the newest acquisition is hoping to hit the ground running.

“The guys on the team make it real easy from that standpoint. They’re like, ‘Man, we’ve played against you, we’ve watched you, we know what you can do, we know who you are,’” Jacobs said. “(But) for me, it’s big to be able to show and prove myself to the team. I think that’s important no matter what you’ve done in the past. I think it’s important for the guys to see that so they can respect it.

“That’s the only thing where I’m like, ‘I’m ready to go!’”

Jacobs established himself as one of the NFL’s prolific rushers during his time with the Raiders, but he saw an inconsistent role in the passing game. During his most productive seasons, Jacobs topped 50 receptions per season, but he’s coming off a 2023 campaign where he was limited to 37 catches. Pro Football Focus didn’t put that entirely on the Raiders’ QB play, as they graded Jacobs as a bottom-10 pass catcher at his position.

Still, as Wilde notes, Packer head coach Matt LaFleur, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich, and running backs coach Ben Sirmans are hoping to get Jacobs more involved in the passing game than he was in Las Vegas.

“I think the biggest thing with him is he’s an explosive player,” Sirmans said. “Obviously, he’s big, he’s physical, he’ll be able to break tackles. He’ll be able to give us a lot of production in different ways than Aaron did.”

Packers’ Eric Stokes Addresses Injury Trouble; Zach Tom, Tucker Kraft Rehabbing Pec Tears

May 31st, 2024 at 11:59am CST by Sam Robinson

Injuries have largely defined Eric Stokes‘ NFL career thus far. The Packers have seen their 2021 first-round pick miss 21 games over the past two seasons; the Lisfranc injury the cornerback sustained in 2022 is at the root of the availability issues.

Once Stokes recovered from his foot issue, hamstring trouble hindered him for most of last season. Stokes began the season late thanks to multiple hamstring setbacks during the summer. The Packers ended up placing the three-year veteran on IR twice — both times due to hamstring trouble. The team predictably declined the former No. 29 overall pick’s fifth-year option earlier this month.

Now in a contract year, the oft-injured starter will aim to shake the lingering injury trouble and attempt to boost his value ahead of free agency — or a potential Packers extension. Stokes, who underwent knee and foot surgeries following his midseason 2022 setback, views the 2022 foot setback as the catalyst for his ensuing health issues.

“It was dealing with everything from the foot injury that I had,” Stokes said, via the Green Bay Press-Gazette’s Ryan Wood. “It was bouncing back from that. It’s crazy how everything is connected in your body to where if one area is weak, the other parts of your body will try to take control, or put more workload on it. So that’s what pretty much was going on. My hamstring was taking on so much workload that it pretty much kept messing up.”

Stokes, who blazed to a 4.25-second 40-yard dash clocking as a prospect in 2021, displaying starter-level form would certainly boost the Packers’ cause. Matt LaFleur said Stokes looks in his best form as a Packer. The team traded Rasul Douglas to the Bills at last year’s deadline and turned to former seventh-rounder Carrington Valentine opposite Jaire Alexander. Of course, Alexander also missed much of last season due to injury. Former Giants sixth-rounder Corey Ballentine ended up starting six games. Both former Day 3 picks are still on Green Bay’s roster.

The Packers re-signed slot corner Keisean Nixon in March but did not make a notable addition on the outside (beyond seventh-rounder Kalen King), keeping the door ajar for Stokes, who started 23 games over his first two seasons. Stokes’ health figures to be a key variable for the Packers, who have Alexander signed to the current top cornerback deal (four years, $84MM).

Elsewhere on the injury front in Green Bay, right tackle Zach Tom and tight end Tucker Kraft are rehabbing pectoral tears. Neither regular is participating in the team’s OTA sessions, but training camp returns are in play.

Tom has a better chance of being available, having suffered his tear in April. Kraft, however, sustained his pec injury less than three weeks ago. That would put the second-year pass catcher as a clear candidate to start camp on the active/PUP list. Adding to an interesting spring of chest injuries, LaFleur — per SI.com’s Bill Huber — is also rehabbing a pec tear sustained while lifting weights.

It might still be optimistic for either player to be ready in time for camp. Tom said his surgery calls for an eight- to 12-week recovery timetable. Undergoing the operation in late April, the third-year tackle said he hopes to return by “at least” mid-August. Tom showed promise last season, starting 19 games at right tackle and grading as Pro Football Focus’ No. 15 overall tackle.

The Packers moved Stokes from the active/PUP list to the reserve/PUP, which sidelines players for at least four games, last year. Tom has a clear path to keeping his RT job, even with the team’s additions of Andre Dillard and first-rounder Jordan Morgan. Kraft operated as a complementary option to Luke Musgrave during the duo’s rookie season.

Packers’ Jordan Love Expected To Approach Top Of QB Market?

May 27th, 2024 at 10:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

Jordan Love entered the 2023 season having been handed the reins of the Packers’ offense despite his inexperience. With a bridge deal in hand, he delivered a strong second half of the campaign in particular, earning the team’s trust as a long-term solution under center.

The 2020 first-rounder posted a 96.1 passer rating in 2023, finishing second in the NFL with 32 touchdown passes. That production helped lead the team to the divisional round of the postseason, and it certainly helped his leverage at the bargaining table. Talks on a Love extension are ongoing, and an agreement can be finalized at any time.

Four quarterbacks reset the market last offseason, each signing monster second contracts. That quartet (Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts) were recently joined by Jared Goff on his new Lions pact. Any new deals for ascending or established franchise passers therefore come with the expectation they will carry an annual average value at or above $50MM. Despite Love’s relative inexperience, he too could be positioned to reach that plateau.

In a recent installment of The Insiders, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that it is a matter of “when” not “if” Love becomes one of the league’s highest-paid quarterbacks on his next contract. Colleague Mike Garafolo adds the Utah State alum is expected to wind up “in Burrow territory” regarding compensation (video link). The Bengals Pro Bowler sits atop the market with a $55MM-per-year deal, and it would certainly be noteworthy if Love were to sign a similar one.

The latter started only one game during his first three seasons in the league. Green Bay’s decision to move on from Aaron Rodgers paved the way for Love to take over, and his one-year extension took the place of his fifth-year option. That agreement could not be extended until May 4, but with that date having come and gone the parties are free to hammer out a long-term accord. If the Packers view 2024 as a preview of Love’s prime, a deal near the (current) top of the market could prove to be a sound investment.

This offseason is expected to see a fresh wave of mega-deals at the QB spot. Any or all of Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence and Tua Tagovailoa could ink deals whose value is based on the contracts signed last summer and the historic jump in the salary cap witnessed in 2024. Waiting until after that has taken place could put Love in position to secure more on a deal (this offseason or later) than what the Packers could offer now.

On the other hand, the fact the 25-year-old has made only 20 combined regular and postseason starts (throwing 16 interceptions in that span) could give the team pause. Love endured growing pains early in the 2023 campaign, and his decision-making in certain playoff situations showed there is room for improvement in that regard. He is currently set to receive $11MM in 2024, but that figure will rise considerably once his next contract is in place even if the Packers manage a more modest agreement.

Green Bay has Sean Clifford in place as a backup quarterback, and the team selected Michael Pratt in the seventh round of this year’s draft. They will provide developmental options for years to come, but the Packers have already publicly endorsed a lucrative Love deal. When that is worked out – and the figures it includes – will be a key storyline to follow.

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