Free Agency Breakdown: Green Bay’s top two acquisitions are slam dunks
Green Bay opened up the free agency period by doing three huge things. All of which will drastically impact the season. They started out by inking former New York Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson to a 1-year, $5M deal. A move which ends up bolstering a weak pass rush, something the Packers desperately need. Joining a defensive line with a slew of capable interior defenders, Wilkerson may have landed in the best possible spot for him to return to his formerly dominant self in 2018.
Packers interior defenders Mike Daniels and Kenny Clark bullied their opposition as a duo this past season, both earning 87.0-plus overall grades and 88.0-plus run-defense grades, according to Pro Football Focus. As such, Wilkerson should see much more 1-on-1 matchups as a cog in Green Bay’s defense which should give him more opportunities to make plays and re-earn the reputation of being a fierce defensive lineman.
What it means for Green Bay:
Fitting Wilkerson into the rotation at the interior of the defensive line with Clark and Daniels, two high-end rush defenders, gives defensive coordinator Mike Pettine a surplus firepower in the trenches to effectively stuff opposing ball carriers at the line of scrimmage. If Wilkerson can tap into his previous pass-rush successes, Pettine will have quite the interior pass-rush as well.
In 2015, easily the best season of his career, Wilkerson recorded 78 total pressures (including 12 sacks) across 575 pass-rush snaps, ranking fourth among all NFL interior defenders, according to Pro Football Focus. Of the 78 total pressures, 32 (41 percent) were recorded when Wilkerson was rushing outside of opposing right tackle. That alignment has still been successful for him despite decreased usage over the years.
Wilkerson’s 10.7 pressure percentage over the past three years (2015-17) rushing outside of the right tackle is far and away his best compared to any other alignment along the defensive line. However, after playing 42.98 percent of his snaps at said position in 2015, he played just 34.2 percent and 13.7 percent of his snaps rushing outside of the right tackle in 2016 & ‘17, respectively.
With Daniels and Clark at his disposal, Pettine will have the luxury of moving Wilkerson up and down the defensive line while the aforementioned duo handle the interior. If Pettine wanted to maximize his new defensive lineman’s skills, giving Wilkerson ample opportunities outside of the right tackle might be his best bet.
Bottom Line:
Signing Wilkerson to a one-year, “prove-it” deal limits the risk for Green Bay and gives him an opportunity to showcase himself before inking a much more lucrative, long-term contract in the future. Both parties should come out of this deal on top. I give this signing an A-.
Tight End Jimmy Graham:
They then signed tight end Jimmy Graham to a 3 year deal. Signing with the Green Bay Packers gives Graham an opportunity to return to a role that he finds more comfortable, which is as a perimeter passing weapon who spends a large amount of snaps out wide or in the slot rather than as a true in-line tight end. All three seasons Graham spent with the Seahawks were spent with more time lined up as a true tight end than he had during his last year with the Saints in 2014.
Graham’s final year as a Saint also saw him lined up at wide receiver on 197 snaps while Seattle didn’t line him up at wide receiver for 100 snaps in a season until his third and final season with the team, according to Pro Football Focus. Additionally, Graham lined up in the slot on 304 snaps his final year in New Orleans but didn’t line up in the slot for 200 snaps until 2017. The pairing of Graham with Aaron Rodgers and head coach Mike McCarthy will see Graham in a role in which he enjoys and thrives.
What it means for Green Bay:
Graham is 31 years old now, so he isn’t the dominant presence he once was and is on the heels of his worst season as a pro. He can still be a highly effective mismatch player in the pass game however, and Graham has always been at his best when he can be moved around to take advantage of mismatches in coverage. In 2014, Graham caught 44 passes when he was lined up in the slot, which ranked No. 2 among all tight ends. That same season, his four touchdowns from the slot tied him for first among tight ends. Graham is likely not as fast as he once but he can still be a viable mismatch weapon from the slot for the Packers’ offense. Additionally, Graham still has the freaky size and very large catching radius to be a red zone weapon in Green Bay.
Bottom Line:
Aaron Rodgers is probably giddy with anticipation to have a pass-catching weapon with the track record of Jimmy Graham on his team. Rodgers’ pinpoint accuracy can also take advantage of his size and catch radius, especially in the end zone, however, he is not getting any younger. The Packers have given him a substantial amount of money on a team that had to shed the cap hit of longtime WR Jordy Nelson to make move this offseason. A move that gives them an additional $10.2M to be able to afford his contract (3 years, $30M). I give this signing a C+.
Overall, I give these two moves a combined B+. They address two glaring problems on both sides of the ball for them and also got them very good players to hopefully fix the problems. Green Bay rarely dips its hands into the free agency pool and for them to do that while also addressing the issues at hand for both the offense and defense speaks volumes about the direction the organization is going. Even though they had to do one of the moves at the expense of fan-favorite Jordy Nelson. He ended up signing a 2 year, $15M deal with the Oakland Raiders with $13M guaranteed, as first reported by NFL Insider Adam Schefter via Twitter at around 3:15 PM local time Thursday. These signings were much needed and addressed key issues with Green Bay, let’s hope they end up panning out.
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