Week 15: Other Games

[APB]

That 49er defense is a different animal with Bosa, Greenlaw, and Hufanga back playing. We got over playing them with all those guys out.

[APB]

Another win for Gute.

Got out from in front of this train wreck before it did any damage.

[LombardiTime]

Another win for Gute.

Got out from in front of this train wreck before it did any damage.

Cutting Campbell after he publicly and repeatedly expressed his displeasure last season was most certainly a win for Gute and the Packers.

So was signing Campbell for peanuts in 2021 when he played very well.

However, re-signing Campbell after the 2021 season was a big loss for the Packers.

In addition to paying Campbell plenty for not very good play in 2022 and 2023, the Packers still have a not insignificant dead cap hit due to the second Campbell contract.

Coming into the 2024 offseason, Campbell still had three years left on his deal with the Packers and came with a $14.23 million cap hit. Had the Packers released Campbell without a post-June 1st designation, they would have had to absorb his entire $11-plus million dead cap hit on the 2024 salary cap.

However, by releasing Campbell with that designation, the Packers are able to spread the dead cap hit out over the next two seasons. So on the 2024 books, Campbell leaves behind a dead cap hit of only $3.65 million, which frees up almost $10.6 million for the Packers in cap space.

The benefit of using this designation is obvious: the significant amount of additional cap relief that the Packers receive. But the downside, is that in 2025, even though that will be Campbell’s second season playing elsewhere, he will still count towards the Packers’ salary cap as a $7.97 million dead cap hit.

https://packerswire.usatoday.com/2024/0 ... -official/

In my view, re-signing Campbell did considerable damage on the field, in the locker room, and to the cap.

[texas]

Weird that he is a headcase. Was a legit All Pro for us out of nowhere and then this.

[williewasgreat]

Another win for Gute.

Got out from in front of this train wreck before it did any damage.

Cutting Campbell after he publicly and repeatedly expressed his displeasure last season was most certainly a win for Gute and the Packers.

So was signing Campbell for peanuts in 2021 when he played very well.

However, re-signing Campbell after the 2021 season was a big loss for the Packers.

In addition to paying Campbell plenty for not very good play in 2022 and 2023, the Packers still have a not insignificant dead cap hit due to the second Campbell contract.

Coming into the 2024 offseason, Campbell still had three years left on his deal with the Packers and came with a $14.23 million cap hit. Had the Packers released Campbell without a post-June 1st designation, they would have had to absorb his entire $11-plus million dead cap hit on the 2024 salary cap.

However, by releasing Campbell with that designation, the Packers are able to spread the dead cap hit out over the next two seasons. So on the 2024 books, Campbell leaves behind a dead cap hit of only $3.65 million, which frees up almost $10.6 million for the Packers in cap space.

The benefit of using this designation is obvious: the significant amount of additional cap relief that the Packers receive. But the downside, is that in 2025, even though that will be Campbell’s second season playing elsewhere, he will still count towards the Packers’ salary cap as a $7.97 million dead cap hit.

https://packerswire.usatoday.com/2024/0 ... -official/

In my view, re-signing Campbell did considerable damage on the field, in the locker room, and to the cap.

After the year he had in 2021, it seemed like a good idea to sign him. I can't fault Gute for that signing. It made considerable sense at the time.

[APB]

In my view, re-signing Campbell did considerable damage on the field, in the locker room, and to the cap.

With the aid of hindsight, I don't think anybody would disagree with your (now clear) view.

However, after being named first team All-Pro, the first Packer ILB since Nitschke to do it, as a 1 yr rental FA player, you can hardly blame Gute or anybody else for doing it.

[BF004]

I hated the signing.

We resigned Aaron Jones and Campbell, two least important positions in football. Their money would have been enough to resign Davante. We also resigned Rasul that offseason, also highly questioned that, but that was a great signing.

I actually like the Davante trade we did given his age and where we were and the value we got, and Aaron Jones definitely worked out, but I never like the Campbell signing.

[Yoop]

but how do you not resign a all pro? and lber has become a key position in today's game with run increases , to bad he didn't have I'am a quitter tattooed to his forehead when we gave him that contract, because that seemed what he did after getting it, and now the same at SF, win some, lose some.

he came here, played great, and we drafted Walker, he went to SF, played OK, and they drafted his replacement, Campbell can't handle having teams replace him

[BF004]

Because we had more pressing positions to resign, which directly lead to the loss of Davante Adams.

Resign a one-year wonder with a history of mediocrity at a unvaluable positions (as defined by GM actions), or resign someone on a HOF trajectory at the league's 2nd most valuable position (as defined by GM actions).

LB would have been the position to draft a coupla guys and sign a Sammy Watson-esqu guy and just pray for the best, not WR. Turns out we drafted Quay anyways (with the Raiders pick via Davante), but whatevs.

That team was soo backloaded on a bubble, nothing they could have done that offseason, and Erin being a $%&# certainly didn't help.

[NCF]

LB would have been the position to draft a coupla guys and sign a Sammy Watson-esqu guy and just pray for the best, not WR. Turns out we drafted Quay anyways (with the Raiders pick via Davante), but whatevs.

I disagree with the whole positional value thing. Always have. LB's and RB's are important. Every good defense shows it and most good offenses show it, as well.

Anyway, back to the LB thing, it isn't like the Packers didn't try that. Antonio Morrison, BJ Goodson, Christian Kirksey, Curtis Bolton, Krys Barnes, Blake Martinez, Jake Ryan, Campbell, & Oren Burks. They threw plenty at that wall and nothing stuck. It is impossible to look at that list and be surprised that our defenses have sucked over, pretty much, the past decade.

[NCF]

he came here, played great, and we drafted Walker, he went to SF, played OK, and they drafted his replacement, Campbell can't handle having teams replace him

Who did SF draft as his replacement? Dig a little deeper, he has not played OK in SF, he has been miserable.

[BF004]

When I indicate value, it is off GM actions, which is factual, not my opinion. WR 2nd most important in football. LB quite far down the last, as is RB.

[NCF]

After the year he had in 2021, it seemed like a good idea to sign him. I can't fault Gute for that signing. It made considerable sense at the time.

Yes and no. For as solid as he was, I never really saw first team All-Pro play that year from him. He was a God-send as far as just being a dependable player in the middle of the defense, but really was not a playmaker. I totally agree the pressure was on the Packers to re-sign him, but even in hindsight, I think they should have come to the conclusion that he leveraged himself out of a deal here with us. Ideally, we would have signed a shorter deal with an easier out, but that's not the market rate for an "All-Pro".

[Yoop]

he came here, played great, and we drafted Walker, he went to SF, played OK, and they drafted his replacement, Campbell can't handle having teams replace him

Who did SF draft as his replacement? Dig a little deeper, he has not played OK in SF, he has been miserable.

I thought they drafted another this year or last and he went to IR early, I imagine I'am confusing players and it was Greenwald, whatever.

Campbell was a stud his first season with us. He played the run well and was decent in coverage. He handled setting up the front 7 as well as anyone since Barnett. Then, he seemed to shut it down once we drafted Walker. Is that better NCF? I'll drop any mention of his play at SF because I don't watch them play.

the NFL offenses have evolved into more run, and more short and mid depth passing, that increases the need for better ILB, I think it's the main reason we took Cooper, these offensive changes increase the demand for at least 2 that can cover very well, wasn't just that we went to a 4-3

[NCF]

Is that better NCF?

Yes. No argument he was very solid early on for us. As I stated in another post, I'm not sure I ever really saw first team All-Pro production, but definitely the best we had a very long time.

[lupedafiasco]

I didnt get the Campbell signing much. He was great that one year but also an aging vet who never produced anything close to that in his career. I thought what made the most sense was to find a way to franchise tag him and make him prove that he could do it again. It would have been a 1 year investment instead of going crazy and giving him 5 years.

I feel like we did the same damn thing with Nick Perry. The guy never did anything until he was due for a contract and we just paid the man instead of tagging him and making him reproduce. Low and behold he went back to being the same injury prone and unproductive player and it costed us deadcap in the long run.

[LombardiTime]

I didnt get the Campbell signing much. He was great that one year but also an aging vet who never produced anything close to that in his career. I thought what made the most sense was to find a way to franchise tag him and make him prove that he could do it again. It would have been a 1 year investment instead of going crazy and giving him 5 years.

I feel like we did the same damn thing with Nick Perry. The guy never did anything until he was due for a contract and we just paid the man instead of tagging him and making him reproduce. Low and behold he went back to being the same injury prone and unproductive player and it costed us deadcap in the long run.

Campbell's 2021 excellent performance shocked me both because he'd been a journeyman that Atlanta and Arizona let walk for peanuts and because Green Bay's inside linebacker play had been so bad for so long I was unused to seeing play like that on our team.

I remember hearing that MLF had some connection with Campbell going back to their days in Atlanta together. I also, stupidly in hindsight, thought maybe Joe Barry did know something about how to get the most out of inside linebackers, so I thought maybe they found a diamond in the rough.

For all the reasons above, I was not really that shocked by his re-signing.

However, what is most disappointing to me now is that MLF, Gute, and the rest of those in control and closest to the situation did not seem to recognize that Campbell was a one-year wonder, much like Nick Perry and his one-year of productivity back in the day, and gave him the bag. I also wonder if Campbell being an asshole may have adversely affected Quay Walker's development.

This is especially concerning because I seriously doubt a locker room cancer like Campbell just started acting this way in 2023. (Jason Wilde on Wilde and Tausch made his distaste for Campbell known early and often).

Not the worst re-signing in the world, but in hindsight one that I really wish had not occurred.

[Acrobat]

What an idiot. He could have just gone in, half assed a couple of snaps and decided to retire after the game. Would have been a small blurb today but forgotten about quickly. Now, this is his legacy.

[lake shark]

he came here, played great, and we drafted Walker, he went to SF, played OK, and they drafted his replacement, Campbell can't handle having teams replace him

Who did SF draft as his replacement? Dig a little deeper, he has not played OK in SF, he has been miserable.

I thought they drafted another this year or last and he went to IR early, I imagine I'am confusing players and it was Greenwald, whatever.

Campbell was a stud his first season with us. He played the run well and was decent in coverage. He handled setting up the front 7 as well as anyone since Barnett. Then, he seemed to shut it down once we drafted Walker. Is that better NCF? I'll drop any mention of his play at SF because I don't watch them play.

the NFL offenses have evolved into more run, and more short and mid depth passing, that increases the need for better ILB, I think it's the main reason we took Cooper, these offensive changes increase the demand for at least 2 that can cover very well, wasn't just that we went to a 4-3

They drafted Dee Winters out of TCU, who was a player I liked a lot after watching him wreck Michigan in the college playoffs. That was a sixth round pick though so more of a flyer than a targeted replacement.

[texas]

When I indicate value, it is off GM actions, which is factual, not my opinion. WR 2nd most important in football. LB quite far down the last, as is RB.

Was going to question your definition of value until you posted this, which makes sense.

That being said, I still disagree with the GMs. ILB I think is a very underrated position.