With training camp beginning Wednesday, the NFL off-season is officially in the books. The Green Bay Packers had a busy off-season, not only strengthening the roster but also replacing valuable players who moved on to greener pastures. Compiled below for your reading pleasure is a complete guide to the Packers 2022 off-season.
Notable players lost:
WR Davante Adams (traded)
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (free agency)
Za’darius Smith (released)
Billy Turner (released)
P Corey Bojorquez (free agency)
CB Chandon Sullivan (free agency)
OL Lucas Patrick (free agency)
DE Tyler Lancaster (free agency)
OL Dennis Kelly (free agency)
Notable players added:
WR Sammy Watkins (1 year 1.85 mill free agent signing)
DT Jarran Reed (1 year 4.5 mill free agent signing)
Notable unsigned outgoing free agents:
CB Kevin King
DL Jack Heflin
LB Chauncey Rivers
Perhaps the biggest news of the Packers off-season was the trade of star WR Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders. Flying a little under the radar was the loss of perceived #2 WR Valdes-Scantling to the Kansas City Chiefs in free agency. The Packers have a lot of production to replace at the WR spot and will look to fill the void with veterans Allen Lazard, Sammy Watkins, Randall Cobb, and Amari Rodgers, as well as draft picks Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs and Samori Toure. On the defensive side of the ball, the Packers made headlines by releasing star pass rusher Za’darius Smith. However, with the emergence of former first round pick Rashan Gary, Smith should be much easier to replace than the aforementioned wide receivers.
Notable players re-signed/extended:
LB De’vondre Campbell (5 year 50 mill re-signing)
LB Preston Smith (4 year 52.5 mill extension)
CB Rasul Douglas (3 year 21 mill re-signing)
TE Robert Tonyan (1 year 3.75 mill re-signing)
CB Jaire Alexander (4 year 84 mill extension)
QB Aaron Rodgers (3 year 150.185 mill extension)
Former first round picks 5th year option:
S Darnell Savage (picked up)
LB Rashan Gary (picked up)
To the relief of Packers fans everywhere, the Aaron Rodgers saga that began in April of 2021 finally came to an end on March 10th when it was reported that Rodgers would be signing a 3 year extension to stay with Green Bay. In giving Rodgers that large amount of cash however, the Packers severely limited their own ability to improve their roster through free agency. Less than three days later, Green Bay solved the problem by shipping off Davante Adams.
Not long after Adams and his hefty contract were dealt to the Raiders, the Packers made use of their new-found cap space by awarding new contracts to several pivotal members of the 2021 Packers defense. De’vondre Campbell, Rasul Douglas, Preston Smith, and superstar Jaire Alexander will all be staples of the Packers defense for the next few years.
Draft:
Round 1:
LB Quay Walker
DT Devonte Wyatt
Round 2:
WR Christian Watson
Round 3:
OL Sean Ryhan
Round 4:
WR Romeo Doubs
OL Zach Tom
Round 5:
LB Kingsley Enagbare
Round 7:
S Tariq Carpenter
DT Johnathan Ford
OT Rasheed Walker
WR Samori Toure
Undrafted Free Agents:
RBs B.J. Baylor and Tyler Goodson
LBs Caliph Brice and Ellis Brooks
DL Akial Byers
WR Danny Davis
T Caleb Jones
G George Moore
DL Hauati Pututau
C Cole Schneider
S Tre Sterling
CB Raleigh Texada
Armed with two extra top draft picks from the Davante Adams trade (which pretty much permeated the entire Packers offseason in some form or another) GM Brian Gutekunst set to work on his 5th draft with the Packers. Gutekunst managed to not only strengthen a rising defense with his two first round picks but he also acquired a top receiver in Christian Watson by combining his two second round picks together in a draft day trade with the Minnesota Vikings. Gutekunst went on to add O-line depth, developmental WRs and projected special teams contributors in what was a fantastic draft on paper. While the success of a draft cannot effectively be gauged until about 3 years later, it certainly feels like a major victory.
Minor players added:
CB Keisan Nixon (free agent)
S Dallin Leavitt (free agent)
TE Sal Cannella (free agent)
DL Chris Slayton (waiver claim)
K Gabe Brkic (waiver claim)
Minor players lost:
QB Kurt Benkert (waived)
K JJ Molson (waived)
K Dominick Eberle (waived)
TE Eli Wolf (released)
WR Equanimeous St Brown (free agency)
LB Oren Burks (free agency)
S Henry Black (free agency)
CB Isaac Yiadom (free agency)
Several special teams players were added from new special teams coach Rich Bisaccia’s former team in Keisean Nixon and Dallin Leavitt. Following a disaster of a year in which the Packers special teams played abysmally under former coordinator Maurice Drayton, there is significant hope in Titletown that Bisaccia can come in and turn around the unit.
The Packers had quite the off-season but the real test will come in September. Only real football games can determine the success or failure of off-season moves. As training camp begins all Packers fans eagerly await the second Sunday in September when they can see their heroes in green and gold take the field once again.
