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 The deal will guarantee the 25 year old $17 million, according to
NFL Media, and he will get another chance at a big contract before
he turns 30.
On the first day teams could talk with other clubs' free agents,
Cobb received six or seven offers and turned down more money
elsewhere to remain with the Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Cobb, a second-round pick of the Packers in 2011, caught a
career-high 91 passes for 1,287 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.
In four years, he has 227 catches for 3,049 yards and 25 scores over
52 games.
Prior to the signing, head coach Mike McCarthy had said, "I want him
back. We all want him back. He wants to get back. But, you've got
agents, and it's a negotiation. Let's see what happens."
Now that Cobb will be back, the most glaring void is at inside
linebacker after general manager Ted Thompson followed through on
what many anticipated by releasing veteran starters A.J. Hawk and
Brad Jones in late February.
"I think the inside-linebacker position could probably be compared
to where we were last year at the safety position," McCarthy said
before the departures of Hawk and Jones came to light. "We'll see
what this process that we go through as far as player acquisition,
how that affects it."
Sam Barrington, who started nine games last season (including both
playoff contests), is a top contender to fill one of the starting
spots. The Packers could be targeting inside linebacker in Round 1
of the draft as they did by taking Alabama safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
with their first pick last year to satisfy a big need.
The Packers were also able to re-sign right tackle Bryan Bulaga.
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NFL Team Report - Green Bay Packers - NOTES, QUOTES
--Two of the team's seven unrestricted free agents have made news
for reasons other than football early in the offseason.
Nearly a month after defensive tackle Letroy Guion was arrested in
his home state of Florida, cornerback Jarrett Bush was detained in
his Northern California hometown.
Bush was taken into custody in Vacaville in the early morning of
March 1 for disorderly conduct while under the influence amid a
disturbance outside a restaurant there.
Bush, 30, who completed his ninth season with the Packers, was later
released from police custody with no charges filed against him.
A report by ESPN.com on Wednesday indicated Guion will avoid jail
time.
Guion, 27, reportedly agreed to a deferred prosecution agreement
that will result in probation in the wake of felony drug and firearm
charges following a traffic stop near his home in Starke, Fla., on
Feb. 3.
The deferred prosecution agreement is expected to be signed in the
next couple weeks, according to the ESPN.com report.
Guion was found to have 357 grams of marijuana, more than $190,000
in cash and an unloaded gun in his truck when police pulled him
over.
Although Guion could be disciplined by the NFL for a violation of
its personal-conduct policy, the Packers seem inclined to try to
re-sign the seven-year pro after free agency starts Tuesday.
"He's accepted full responsibility (for his actions)," head coach
Mike McCarthy said of Guion during the recent NFL Scouting Combine
in Indianapolis. "I stand by what I said during the season and after
the season, he was an impactful personality and played good football
for us. I'm hopeful, if we get past this (legal situation) and the
monitoring (of it) gives us the green light to go forward, I'd love
to have Letroy back."
--It didn't take long for Shawn Slocum to move on from his ouster as
a longtime member of McCarthy's coaching staff.
Arizona State hired Slocum as an associate head coach who will
oversee its special teams and outside linebackers.
McCarthy fired Slocum on Jan. 30 as the Packers' sixth-year special
teams coordinator. The move came less than two weeks after a few
mishaps on special teams contributed to the Seattle Seahawks' big
comeback late in the game for a 28-22 overtime win over visiting
Green Bay in the NFC Championship.
Slocum, 50, returns to the college ranks for the first time in 10
years. McCarthy hired him as Green Bay's assistant special teams
coach in 2006 before promoting Slocum to the coordinator role in
2009.
-----------------------------------------------
NFL Team Report - Green Bay Packers - STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
The Packers agreed to a one-year deal with backup quarterback Scott
Tolzien, according to reports Sunday.
The deal is worth a reported $1.375 million for last season's
third-string quarterback.
Backup Matt Flynn is still unsigned as an unrestricted free agent,
so the Packers may have chosen Tolzien as the No. 2 quarterback
behind Aaron Rodgers going into the 2015 season.
Tolzien was inactive for the first 15 games of last season, but
dressed for the final game and both playoff games after Rodgers
injured his ankle.
TEAM NEEDS
1. Inside linebacker: As had been speculated right after the season
ended in disappointing fashion with the late-game collapse in the
NFC Championship at the Seattle Seahawks, general manager Ted
Thompson cleaned house at Green Bay's weakest position on defense.
Underachieving veterans A.J. Hawk and Brad Jones, the opening-night
starters last season, were released by the end of February. Hawk,
the team's first-round draft pick in 2006, was the most-tenured
player on defense. The savings of more than $7 million toward this
year's salary cap by jettisoning both players gives Thompson greater
financial leeway to consider dipping into the free-agent market to
begin the rebuilding process at inside linebacker. The draft later
in the spring also should yield a potential replacement or two. As a
last resort, the Packers know from their experimenting the second
half of last season that all-star pass rusher Clay Matthews can be
effective if they would need him to slide inside.
2. Defensive tackle: The legal predicament endured by Letroy Guion
early in the offseason adds to the dilemma facing the Packers on the
interior of their defensive line. Guion already was to be joining
former first-round pick and onetime standout B.J. Raji on the open
market in a few weeks. What had been a foregone conclusion that
Green Bay would be proactive to re-sign Guion after a productive
first season with the team has given way to a bleak forecast after
the seven-year pro was arrested back home in Florida in early
February on felony marijuana and firearm charges. Guion's case is
pending, and general manager Ted Thompson was noncommittal when
asked Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine about the lineman's
future with the team. Just the same, Thompson no doubt has
reservations about bringing back Raji, 29, after a modest one-year
investment to re-sign him as a free agent fizzled when he sustained
a season-ending torn biceps in the preseason.
3. Tight end: Green Bay seemingly has a keeper for the foreseeable
future with Richard Rodgers. Last year's third-round pick overcame
growing pains early in the season, particularly with his blocking
skills, and blossomed the last month of play as a sure-handed target
for his namesake at quarterback - Aaron Rodgers. However, as high as
the QB and head coach Mike McCarthy are on the younger Rodgers, the
Packers may be in the market for another playmaker at tight end. The
only holdovers at tight end besides Richard Rodgers are serviceable
veteran Andrew Quarless and Justin Perillo, a mostly inactive
undrafted rookie last season, after the team recently released
once-promising Brandon Bostick in the wake of his costly
special-teams blunder in the stunning NFC Championship loss to the
Seahawks.
[to top of second column] |
PERSONNEL TRACKER
FRANCHISE PLAYER: None.
TRANSITION PLAYER: None.
UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (not tendered offers)
--WR Jarrett Boykin (not tendered as RFA) quickly became a shell of
the young up-and-comer who delivered as a pass catcher in 2013. That
season, the former undrafted free agent had 49 catches for 681 yards
and three touchdowns. Last season, which included the arrival of
second-round draft pick Davante Adams, Boykin saw the field little
and finished with all of three receptions for 23 yards and zero
end-zone visits.
--RB DuJuan Harris (not tendered as ERFA) was hardly utilized as the
team's No. 3 halfback and lost his job as kickoff returner late in
the season after lackluster results.
UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
--CB Jarrett Bush's recent arrest back home in California shouldn't
have a bearing on whether one of the elder members of the team is
re-signed. No charges were filed after Bush was taken into custody
on suspicion of public intoxication. Bush, who turns 31 in May, has
been with the Packers since 2006. For his many limitations as a
defensive back, hence why he has played sparingly on defense in
recent seasons, Bush still has value as a core special-teamer.
--QB Matt Flynn has been the ideal understudy and confidant for
Aaron Rodgers the better part of the last seven seasons. Yet, Flynn,
as was proven when he fled Green Bay in 2012 to take big money and a
would-be starting opportunity with the Seattle Seahawks and then on
to the Oakland Raiders in 2013, will never be confused for a bona
fide NFL quarterback. He turns 30 in June, and his return for
another season of lending an ear on the bench to Rodgers is up in
the air, what with the team's interest in bringing back a younger
Scott Tolzien. When Tolzien re-signed over the weekend, that seemed
to close the door on Flynn's return.
--DT Letroy Guion landed himself in off-field trouble shortly after
the season end. The veteran lineman was arrested back home in
Florida on drug and firearm charges that resulted from a traffic
stop. The case against Guion is still pending, though he has been
out on bond and even returned to Green Bay. What's more, Guion
received support from head coach Mike McCarthy, who publicly said he
would like the seven-year pro back on the team after a productive
debut season with the Packers. Guion turned out to be a godsend in
the interior of the line after mainstay B.J. Raji sustained a
season-ending injury in the preseason.
--FB John Kuhn figures to have at least one more season of hearing
his name bellowed in stretched-out fashion by his legions of fans.
The nine-year pro, who turns 33 in September, parlayed his
popularity and an increased role down the stretch of last season
into a second Pro Bowl invitation. His blocking remains top-notch,
and he's generally good for grinding out short yardage on an inside
handoff.
--LB Jamari Lattimore squandered a golden opportunity when he took
over for an injured and ineffective Brad Jones as a starter at
inside linebacker early last season. Lattimore wound up giving the
job away by midseason, done in by his inability to stay on the
field. An ankle injury cost Lattimore the final six weeks of the
season and casts doubt on his return to the team even with vacancies
to be filled at inside linebacker after veteran starters A.J. Hawk
and Brad Jones were cut.
--DT B.J. Raji is likely to get a second chance to prove his worth
on a modest one-year contract after that tactic never materialized
when he sustained a season-ending torn biceps late in the preseason.
McCarthy recently expressed interest in having the 2009 first-round
draft pick and one-time Pro Bowl selection back with the team.
Depending on what the team decides with Guion in the wake of his
legal issue, Raji could quickly reclaim the starting job at nose
tackle as he turns 29 before the start of training camp.
--CB Tramon Williams made a strong case last season to continue
suiting up in green and gold for a ninth straight year but also for
retaining the starting spot he's held since the second half of the
2009 season. Williams tied for the team lead with three
interceptions and had a team-high 16 pass breakups. He turns 32 on
March 16 but warrants as much consideration as the 25-year-old House
for keeping in the fold.
RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
--OL Don Barclay (tendered at $1.542M with no compensation) went
from full-time starter at right tackle in 2013 with Bryan Bulaga
sidelined to spending all of last season rehabbing a torn ACL
sustained early in training camp. The return of a healthy Barclay
may give the Packers brain trust pause on whether to re-sign Bulaga.
At the very least, Barclay provides reliable depth at tackle and
guard.
--S Sean Richardson (tendered at $1.542M with no compensation) made
the most of his first full season in the NFL, completing his
comeback from a severe neck injury sustained as an undrafted rookie
in 2012. Richardson contributed in a situational role on defense and
further earned his keep by leading the team with a career-high 17
tackles on special teams.
EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS
--S Chris Banjo spent most of his second pro season on Green Bay's
practice squad before getting a shot to contribute on special teams
the final month of play.
PLAYERS RE-SIGNED
--T Bryan Bulaga: Potential UFA; $33.75M/5 yrs, $8M SB.
--WR Randall Cobb: Potential UFA; $40M/4 yrs, $13M SB/$17M
guaranteed.
--QB Scott Tolzien: Potential UFA: $1.375M/1 yr, $100,000 SB.
PLAYERS ACQUIRED: None.
PLAYERS LOST
--TE Brandon Bostick (released).
--WR Kevin Dorsey (released).
--LB A.J. Hawk (released/failed physical).
--CB Davon House: UFA Jaguars; $25M/4 yrs, $8M guaranteed.
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