It has been a very busy offseason for the Green Bay Packers. And that may be an understatement. The team dipped into the free-agent market this year more than it’s accustomed to. The additions of six-time Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans, tight ends Martellus Bennett and Lance Kendricks and defensive end Ricky Jean-Francois, as well as the return of cornerback Davon House (released by the Jacksonville Jaguars) should help in numerous regards. Meanwhile, general manager Ted Thompson orchestrated a deal with the Cleveland Browns and dealt out of the first round on April 27 in Philadelphia.
All told, the franchise wound up selecting 10 players in the 2017 NFL draft. The club put an emphasis on defense early in the proceedings, using their first four picks on this side of the football. But Thompson used his final six choices to aid prolific quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense. And the organization is wasting little time getting these rookies under Contract.
Who signed their deals?
Thanks to the fine folks at Spotrac, we can report that the defending NFC North champions have already signed half of their 10 2017 draft choices to four-year deals. The quintet includes wide receivers DeAngelo Yancey. He was a fifth-round selection from Purdue University and inked a $2.623 million deal.
Meawwhile, LSU’s Malachi Dupre was the second of the team’s two seventh-round selections and agreed to a $2.46 million contract. All told, Thompson added three running backs in the draft and now has two of those players under wraps in Aaron Jones (5b-UTEP) and Devante Mays (7-Utah State). The former signed a $2.6 million deal and the latter $2.47 million, respectively.
Once again, both were four-year contracts. Finally, the Green Bay Packers got sixth-round center Kofi Amichia (South Florida) to give the club his John Hancock, inking a four-year $2.53 million contract.
What’s left to do?
Five down and five to go for the Green Bay Packers. That means coming up with deals for second-round defensive backs Kevin King (Washington) and Josh Jones (North Carolina State).
Dom Capers’ defensive unit allowed 32 touchdown passes in 16 regular-season games this past season. And only the New Orleans Saints gave up more passing yards per game in 2016. Add in eight more scores through the air in three playoff games and King and Jones hope to have an immediate impact. The team also still needs to sign third-round defensive end Montravius Adams (Auburn) and fourth-round picks in outside linebacker Vince Biegel (Wisconsin) and running back Jamaal Williams (BYU). At least on paper, Thompson and Packers did a solid job this offseason addressing their numerous needs.
