Inbox: The Packers' players took it from there

Cheesehead

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Mar 19, 2019
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Reed from York, PA


This will be Brian Gutekunst's first draft with significant compensatory picks from FAs that got signed last offseason. Now that he's been active in signing FAs and drafted players attractive to other teams, I'm excited to see how that value can be used for draft-day trades or to select future stars/depth pieces. How impactful do you see those picks being this year and in the future for supporting the improvement of the roster – both the players themselves and dollars saved by their contracts for pursuing FAs?


Gutekunst has done a lot of moving and shaking during his first three years as GM and this likely will be no exception, especially now that compensatory picks can be traded. If there's a player the Packers covet – in any round – they should have the draft capital to make it happen.


Aaron from Green Bay, WI


There is a lot of talk about the drop in the salary cap this year. What does the conversation about next year's cap sound like? If the COVID situation is behind us this fall, does the cap increase by 40 million? How does this affect the contract negotiations?


Time will tell. The salary cap is tied to revenue. While welcoming back fans to stadiums would help immensely, I'm most interested in what those new TV contracts will look like. As contracts increase, so too will the salary cap.


Warren from Fond du lac, WI


What do you see happening with Aaron Jones and the running back position?


I'm (still) not sure but the franchise tag estimates OverTheCap.com put out for running backs on Monday caught my eye. I'll leave it at that.


Charles from Richfield, WI


I loved Mike's nugget on how the Bears have enacted a self-fulfilling prophesy of doom by having 14 retired jersey numbers and banning the retirement of more in the future! I think our six retired jerseys are appropriate with Aaron Rodgers soon-to-be seven. I thought the Packers would retire Curly Lambeau's No. 1 jersey during the 100-year team anniversary. Any insights why? I can't recall even one player in my lifetime who has ever worn jersey No. 1 for the green and gold.


I'll defer any questions about Lambeau's No. 1 and Paul Hornung's No. 5 to the incomparable Cliff Christl but I think the Packers have gone about handling jersey retirements the right way. This franchise easily could've retired 14 numbers by now, but that honor is reserved for the most important players, and figures, in team history.


Sawyer from Simpsonville, SC


Mike/Wes, with regards to retired numbers and them being a finite commodity, my alma mater Clemson does retire numbers, but current players can wear them. I think they have to get permission from the player/family (if the player is deceased) and they wear a special patch on their uniform to honor whoever's number it is (Deshaun Watson and C.J. Spiller both wore these). Do you think this something that could be in the NFL one day?


That's probably the direction the NFL and legacy sports leagues will have to go someday…but not in my lifetime.


Mike from Niles, IL


Mike, agree with and appreciate Mike's support of Ron Wolf as a premier general manager. The Pack was lucky to have him aboard in rebuilding a sorry franchise into the juggernaut it has become – response to Keith from Greendale. I have a handwritten note from him thanking me for thanking him for all he had done for the Pack upon his retirement. I will always treasure it.


That's awesome to hear. Wolf and Ted Thompson are the architects who made Green Bay into Titletown again. As I said last month, it's incredible what this organization has accomplished over the past 25 years compared to the previous 25.


Bill from Clive, IA


"It's one thing to know the day of the dance but who's stepping out the floor first?" As a guy who took up ballroom dancing as a way to bless my wife, I can very much relate to that analogy. To get me to be the first one on the floor, I need two things to be true: 1) a partner who I can depend on to work well with me, and 2) a type of music being played that I know I'm good at executing and at a tempo I can handle (read: terms and expectations). If one of those is missing, I wait and watch.


Right on. Again, there will be a few high-profile players who will sign as soon as they're allowed to. But I think that pool of players will be shallower than most years, while the second wave of free agency will take longer to reach shore.
 
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