No-Brainer on Jordy Nelson's New Contract

Green Bay Packers General Manager Ted Thompson almost exclusively builds his roster through the draft. Green Bay is always one of the youngest teams in the National Football League because they will let veterans go and replace them with younger talent which they hope will be better in a couple years. Some of their drafted talent reaches blue-chip potential though meaning they need to be kept as a Green Bay Packer. Jordy Nelson is up for a contract this off-season, but he would like an extension done before the season even starts for Green Bay. This seems like a slam dunk decision if I have ever seen one despite all of the young receiver talent around the Packers roster.

Packers might have the best bargain in the game with Nelson. He gets paid 4.2 million a year as a base salary with obvious bonuses.  He ended up turning around two great seasons for the Packers with having over 1,300 yards in 2013 with eight touchdowns. In 2011, he had over 1,200 yards with 15 touchdowns during this contract. Nelson has became the number one receiver for the Packers as he is truly versatile wideout where he can be used as an underneath or vertical receiver. It is hard to argue with Nelson being a top 10, top 20 receiver at worst in the entire NFL getting paid only four million dollars a year.

Nelson will get paid in a major way with this upcoming extension or contract. Nelson is probably not owed Calvin Johnson or Larry Fitzgerald money where they are making over 16 million dollars a year. But he is definitely owed what Mike Wallace, Dwayne Bowe and Percy Harvin are making which comes in around 12 million dollars a year. The problem that comes in here is Green Bay has 12 million dollars of cap space right now meaning Thompson will have to maneuver around some things around to reach the goal of likely eight to eleven million dollars. Nelson hasn't pointed out what the desired price is for his new contract, but the assumption is he wants to be paid like a top notch wide receiver.

The best guess I would have for Nelson and his contract would be 36 to 39 million dollars over three years or 48 million to 52 million dollars over four years. Likely the Packers would want a four-year deal to spread out the money versus the three-year deal where there is more immediacy.  Nelson would rather have the three year deal given he would be 32 years old when he has to do free agency again. It's likely Green Bay wouldn't sign him in 2017, but there were would be a boatload of teams willing to pay for an older talented receiver. Nelson should be paid this level, and Green Bay would be wise to give him his money because 31 teams in the NFL would give him this payday.

There is no reason to believe Green Bay will not pay Nelson, but some might think with the addition of Davante Adams, Jared Abbrederis and Jeff Janis, they would be fine with a new receiving core including giving Randall Cobb a new contract (Another blog post for another time). That's foolish to think that way and very pessimistic to think Thompson will not take care of his own. Additionally, there is no guarantee any of these guys will be good NFL players. Just because there are alluring things about Adams, Abbrederis and Janis doesn't equate to them being vital players for the Packers. It is hard to think of a situation where the Packers wouldn't re-sign Nelson.

It is not if but when Nelson gets his new deal. It would be ideal if the Packers got it done before Training Camp gets underway in July. Because after Nelson, comes Cobb likely to start building the pillars for the Packers offense in the next three to five years.

Charlie.

Quick Tap Podcast Episode Seven

Quick Tap Podcast is back again. We are still struggling on questions so if you ever have questions... Ask me. I will favorite it and talk about on this podcast. You could be wondering something dumb at 3 AM on a Wednesday night when you are drunk after striking out at the bar. First couple questions are about Green Bay Packers draft picks specifically the receivers and who could be some of the young players without jobs in Green Bay next year. The next question moves with reflecting on the most embarrassing places I have had to hold in a fart. Whose the better NFL pro, Jordan Lynch or Tom Savage?  The three people I would take to The Masters. Then TV time when I talk about 24, Mad Men and Game of Thrones.

Charlie.

Recapping Packers NFL Draft Weekend

After Green Bay drafted Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, or Ha'Shon Clinton-Dix if you are a business professional, they went on the offensive for the greater part drafting four playmakers, an offensive lineman and a couple defensive players. Let's do a recap.

Second Round
WR Davante Adams (Fresno State) - Everyone is assuming he will be taking the role of James Jones on the Green Bay team. That's probably a fair assumption with him being 6'2, 215 which includes a massive vertical.  He only played two years of college with a bloated stat line given Fresno State's up-tempo offense so don't look too much into it. One thing I will be interested to see is how much Green Bay will use Adams in the screen game. He did a lot of damage in the slip screen game.

Third Round
DT Khyri Thornton (Southern Miss) - Some thought this was a reach in the third round, but it is worth the risk for Green Bay.  He will likely play the 3-4 defensive end position at 300 pounds, and I doubt he will be asked to bulk up to play nose tackle. One of the things that might have pushed Ted Thompson to draft Thornton was Jamie Collins, New England's 2013 draft pick from Southern Miss. He played well especially late in the season. Remember both Thornton and Collins played on a team without a win in two years, the gems can be forgotten.

TE Richard Rodgers (California) - Many people were unsure with the pick here. Once again, a program whose been struggling in the last couple of years, but Rodgers will likely be asked to play right away. There are some worries about his blocking, but honestly, when has Green Bay had a great blocking tight end?  Rodgers is one of those guys where I don't think the expectations should be too high.

Fourth Round
OLB Carl Bradford (Arizona State) - Here is a guy to keep an eye on this Fall. A lot of people thought he could go in the second or third round. I don't know if he will be a specialty player where he only comes in on third downs because he is the true definition of a pass rusher. Bradford seems like an aggressive player whom let's the emotions get the best of him at times. He got benched for a half with a fighting a teammate. That's okay with me. Green Bay needs to have more of an edge, and if they are adding more players with a little more of a badass nature, I am perfectly okay with it.

Fifth Round
C Corey Linsley (Ohio State) - It is completely awesome he is a huge Packer fan. I think there is something cool about that whenever it happens no matter the team.  He is in a weird spot as a center. Linsley only weighs 295 pounds, but he benched 225 pounds 36 times at the combine meaning his strength could make up for his lesser weight. He also seems to be a guy Green Bay could move around the line which is a good thing to have available as Packers have been known to shift around their offensive time from time to time.

WR Jared Abbrederis (Wisconsin) - Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated had Abbrederis in his early second round at one point of the college football season. There were some legit concerns about his concussions, but Green Bay adding him gives them a vertical home run hitter plus a true return man to keep the likes of Randall Cobb and  Micah Hyde away from it all. I also wonder if we didn't see Abbrederis' full potential at Wisconsin with some of the quarterback play there.

Sixth Round
CB Demetri Goodson (Baylor) - Real interesting kid because he played three years at Gonzaga for their basketball team, and then moved to football at Baylor. He had 16 pass deflections last season with three interceptions. It really seems like he wants to tackle and put a body on somebody. If Goodson can replace Davon House in the dime position, that would be ideal. One worry is Goodson has battled through some injuries with his ankle and arm.

Seventh Round
WR Jeff Janis (Saginaw Valley State) - This is the guy to keep an eye on. He was a complete workout warrior with some silly comparisons including... Julio Jones. Who knows whether Janis is that good of a player, or he is some freak athlete whom can catch the football every now and again. There is a chance here Green Bay got the steal of the draft. In general, they add four new tools to their already potent offense. If two out of four pan out, it is probably a good thing.

I don't really get into draft grades, but I am pretty satisfied with Green Bay's draft. It is unfortunate they couldn't get a better tight end in the draft, but sometimes, that's how it goes in the draft.

Charlie.