It wasn’t a New England Patriot cannonball but the Green Bay Packers still made a splash as the 2021 Free Agency shopping spree began. In Foxboro, the Pats wooed more than a half dozen free agents on opening day with a tab climbing above 200 million dollars. Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst made a single, pre-emptive strike on the eve of free agency by keeping Aaron Jones in the fold on a four year, 48 million dollar contract. Even with restructuring a couple of veteran deals, the Packers were still on the north side of the 2021 salary cap figure of 182.5 million so the GB GM stayed on the sidelines on day two of the “legal tampering” period. Players can’t officially sign with new teams until Wednesday.
The Pack’s off-season priority was clearly keeping the offensive trifecta in place with Jones, Davante Adams and Aaron Rodgers but it came at the expense of their All-Pro center. The team knew Corey Linsley was going to be too expensive on the open market and the Los Angeles Chargers proved it.
On Monday, Linsley agreed to terms on a five year, 62.5 million dollar deal with the Bolts, 26 million will be guaranteed in the first two years of the deal, the most lucrative ever for an NFL snapper. Linsley parlayed his contract year into his best year, earning first team All Pro honors despite missing three games with a sprained knee. Corey told SiriusXM NFL Radio that his longtime teammate, Bryan Bulaga played a role in luring him to the west coast. Bulaga joined the Chargers last year after a decade as Green Bay’s right tackle.
Linsley’s departure will likely have the offensive line without both All Pro’s to start the 2021 campaign as left tackle David Bakhtiari continues to mend after tearing his ACL in late December. Possibilities to fill those holes could include but won’t be limited to having Elgton Jenkins handle the snaps with Jon Runyan getting snaps at guard. Another 2020 rookie, Jake Hanson from Oregon could enter into the mix as well. Look for Gutekunst to bolster line depth with a veteran free agent and a draft choice or two next month.
Roster decisions were made on a couple of restricted and exclusive rights free agents. The most significant involved tight end Robert Tonyan following his breakout, 11 touchdown season. The Packers have tendered a 3.38 million dollar offer for Tonyan, equal to a second round draft choice next year. Gutekunst will have the right to match any offer that come’s Tonyan’s way and if they decline, they would get a second round pick. It’s an expensive gamble for the rest of the NFL and the Packers. If a team believes they can assume that contract and give up a pick for an ascending player, it would force Gute’s hand to keep him.
Two wide receivers are coming back. Both Allen Lazard and Malik Taylor were given tender offers as exclusive rights free agents, keeping them tied to the Packers through another NFL calendar year.
Veteran safety Raven Greene on the other hand, a favorite of former defensive coordinator Mike Pettine, was tendered a restricted free agent offer, making him an unrestricted free agent. Greene played that hybrid safety in the box role in Pettine’s defense and at times played it well. He had 40 tackles, a sack and a half, a forced fumble and an interception last season. But he played in only 10 games, finishing the year on injured reserve, the second year in a row he spent time on IR.
Finally, Tramon Williams called it a career, retiring on his 38th birthday. A fantastic story, Williams went undrafted out of Louisiana Tech, signing with Houston but he was cut as a rookie. The Packers picked him up in 2006 and he worked his way into the secondary as a nickel back and eventually, a starting corner. In the Pack’s Super Bowl XLV run, Williams made huge plays, an end of game end zone interception against the Eagles and his huge pick six before the half against the Atlanta Falcons the following week. Following the 2014 season, Williams wasn’t re-signed but continued to play with Cleveland and Arizona before coming back to the Pack in 2018. Tramon helped tutor young defensive backs Jaire Alexander and Kevin King for a couple of seasons but became a free agent. Late last year he signed with Baltimore for the final month and their playoff game. When they were eliminated, the Packers called one more time. Williams was signed before the NFC Championship game and could have made NFL history by playing for two different teams in the same playoff year but he never got into that game. Williams was one of the most accommodating players with the media that I’ve covered. Always gracious, ever thoughtful and helpful during interviews, he was honored as the Tom Mulhern “Good Guy” award given by the Packer chapter of Pro Football Writers in each of his two tenures with the team.
Jason Wilde hands Tramon Williams his good guy award in 2019.
It was a very symmetrical exit to a fantastic career, Tramon Williams pilfered quarterbacks 38 times during his 15 year run, wearing number 38 in green and gold and he hung up the cleats on his 38th birthday.
