Michael Hawthorne received a $175,000 signing bonus and $1.425 million for the 2004 season, jsonline.com reported, which is probably far less than William Bartee, who the Packers were considering as their third cornerback, received from Kansas City when they gave Bartee a 4 year contract last week. It was probably a rude awakening for Hawthorne, because he was quoted while speaking about himself in the 3rd person on jsonline.com back on January 28th saying "Michael Hawthorne has to look out for Michael Hawthorne." Hawthorne reportedly was looking for a starting job at a starting salary in an active market for cornerbacks, and he missed badly. He should have a lot to prove in 2004.

Larry Smith was resigned at the league minimum, jsonline.com reported. Smith was picked up from Jacksonville last preseason but missed the opening game roster in favor of Curtis Fuller. He was resigned after Joe Johnson got hurt (again) and Smith was able to create some pass rush from the tackle position on 3rd downs. He was a reason why Cleditus Hunt (5 games pre Smith-0 sacks, 11 games with Smith-4 sacks) and Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila (5 games pre Smith-2 sacks, 11 games with Smith-8 sacks) both improved their sack totals. His return is welcomed.

And to make sure no stone was unturned, the Packers signed an Australian Rules Football player named Nathan Chapman to try out at punter, jsonline.com reported. Well it worked out for San Diego with Darren Bennett.

Mark Hatley is probably disappointed after being awarded only one seventh round pick as compensation for free agents lost last offseason. Jsonline.com reported that Hatley was expecting multiple picks, based on a formula that considers free agents signed and lost and how the free agents performed. The Packers' primary losses were Tyrone Williams and Tod McBride, who both played lousy for Atlanta, and Vonnie Holliday, who started strong and finished weak in Kansas City. The Packers' primary gains were starting linebacker Hannibal Navies, along with useful part time performers Nick Luchey and Chukie Nwokorie. Cincinnati received a 3rd round pick for the pro bowl linebacker Takeo Spikes, and Philadelphia received two 4th round picks for starting linebacker Shawn Barber and former pro bowl defensive lineman Hugh Douglass. Only Holliday approaches the level of those three players, although Douglass had multiple teams after him last offseason while Holliday was lucky to find a multiyear deal, and he is defintely a step below those three players. Maybe an additional 5th round selection would have been appropriate for Holliday, instead of the 7th round selection.

Michael Hawthorne was resigned for a two year deal as the 3rd cornerback after the Packers lost out on William Bartee. Bartee has not done much in his NFL career (zero interceptions in 57 career games) so the Packers were probably interested in his potential. Hawthorne outplayed Bartee in 2003 with 2 interceptions and 5 pass defenses compared to Bartee's 0 interceptions and 1 pass defense. I'm suspicious of players who have all the ability in the world, but can't perform on the field, so its probably for the best that Bartee stayed in Kansas City.

Hawthorne has great size (6'3"), but he is a little slow, which is probably why jsonline.com reported the Packers think Hawthorne could play at safety too. Jsonline.com added a little dig on Hawthorne that he had some responsiblity in the botched 4th and forever in the playoff game against Philadelphia. If Hawthorne was responsible for the underneath coverage on the slot receiver, he really blew it because there was no defensive back playing underneath on that play. Terms were not released, but I would expect Hawthorne signed for about the same amount of signing bonus as Mark Roman ($700,000) signed for last week. If Hawthorne does have some coverage responsiblity miscues and because of his fallout with his coaches in New Orleans last season, its probably for the best if Hawthorne doesn't receive too much guaranteed money.

Its possible that Antuan Edwards will be resigned, although I am not expecting him back, but if Edwards did return the Packers would have an interesting mix of veteran defensive backs (Roman, Hawthorne, Edwards, Jue, maybe Bryant Westbrook, if healthy) who all could play corner or safety. If all these players are truly capable of playing either position, then its possible to enter camp with no one in a competition for just one position, although it appears Corey Fuller and Marques Anderson are safeties only, and the Packers are able to play the two players who have the best preseason no matter their expected position. It gives the Packers a lot of flexibility in deciding who plays alongside Mike McKenzie, Al Harris and Darren Sharper next season.

The first games of the 2004 NFL season were announced, and the Packers drew the short straw of having to play at Carolina on Monday Night Football in week 1. There should be a lot of energy in the stadium that night, and the Packers had a lot of preseason rust, Brett Favre in particular, in the opening game vs. Minnesota last season. Other useless stats: the road team hasn't won in the opening MNF game of the season since Miami in 1999, Carolina whipped the Packers 31 to 14 in Carolina on MNF in 2000, however, the Packers were 2-1 last season on MNF including the first win in the new Solider Field. It would be a very good win to start the season off 1-0, but it won't be easy.

Tim Couch...I rarely catch Cleveland's games and I can't recall if I have seen a full game Couch has played in, however, he has some promising stats. For his career, Couch has completed 59.8% of his passes, and in his last two full seasons has the starter (2001 and 2002), he completed 60.7% of his passes. He is better than Donovan McNabb's 57.0% career completion percentage, and McNabb has never completed more than 58.4% of his passes in a single season.

Now that the good part is out of the way, Cleveland is unloading Couch and Butch Davis has given up on him because he is poor at making decisions and he throws too many interceptions. Brett Favre throws a lot of interceptions, but his career TD to INT ratio is 1.7 to 1, while Couch is an awful 0.95 to 1. Couch's replacement in Cleveland, Jeff Garcia, has an outstanding career 2 to 1 ratio while McNabb is Favre-like at 1.8 to 1. Couch has an unimpressive 6.49 yards per attempt for his career, far below Favre (7.06) and Garcia (6.95), but actually better than McNabb (6.16). There is enough past performance and future potential in Couch to bring him in as backup for the right price.

The Packers brought in Akili Smith in 2003, so Couch would continue the Packers' annual attempt to rehab a quarterback bust from the 1999 draft (apparently Cade McNown's turn is in 2005). Couch's agent is probably wary that the Packers gave up on Smith last preseason, but Couch has shown much more potential than Smith ever showed. Couch would probably like a starting job, or the opportunity to compete for a starting job, but there doesn't appear to be any opportunities in the NFL. Maybe after minicamp, Arizona, Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Miami, NY Giants, Oakland (if Rich Gannon isn't healthy), Pittsburgh, or San Diego may decide they need some competition at quarterback, but after Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, and Ben Roethlisberger are drafted, its likely three of those teams won't consider Couch. If the Packers are the best Couch can do in 2004 and the Packers are interested, then Couch might be well off to come to Green Bay and see if he can get some of the QB pixie dust off of Favre that gave life to the careers of Mark Brunell and Aaron Brooks.

So Eric Crouch is back in camp, and there was much rejoicing. At 6'1" 200 lbs., Crouch is taller than Bhawoh Jue but lighter than Antuan Edwards. Edwards is unlikely to resign with the Packers, so Crouch would find himself fighting for the 4th safety spot with Corey Fuller. Since Crouch has no experience with playing either safety position, it seems likely the best Crouch could expect this season is a roster spot as the 5th safety only if he is a demon on special teams. If Crouch is average or worse on special teams, then the best he could expect is the practice squad. I can't think of one successful offense to defense conversion in the NFL in the last 25 years, so this signing has to be viewed as a long shot.

Travis news alert: the Packers signed punter Travis Hale to compete with Travis Dorsch, and released wide receiver Travis Williams. Hale averaged an unremarkable 40.6 yards per punt in college and had surgery on his right knee in late 2002. Hale must have cost nothing, so it is no risk situation. Williams was hanging on in the NFL by the skin of his teeth before he was cut, because the Packers had him on their "reserve-non-football injury NFL Europe list." I had no idea such a list even existed.

Cruising the sale rack, the Packers signed safety Mark Roman to compete with Marques Anderson for the starting strong safety position. Roman played free safety last season in Cincinnati, and he is about the same size as Bhawoh Jue, so he will be one of the smaller strong safeties in the league. Roman came cheap, his signing bonus was less than $1 million compared to the $2.5 million John Lynch got on the same day from Denver. Jsonline.com reported that the Packers preferred Roman over Lynch because he can "play man-to-man coverage", while Lynch supposedly cannot, but the key is that the Packers "anticipate [Roman] providing superior tackling than either Antuan Edwards or Marques Anderson." Packers linebacker's coach Mark Duffner apparently liked Roman when the two were in Cincinnati and Duffner thinks Roman is a superior tackler. If Roman is a better tackler than Edwards and Anderson, and Roman can avoid being steamrolled by running backs in the open field, then this is a great value signing.

Rod Walker left the Packers to sign with the NFC champs in Carolina. With Walker and Gilbert Brown's departures this offseason, both of the nose tackles that started the 2003 season are now gone. Grady Jackson remains in their places, and he had a solid 2003 season with the Packers, but Walker was effective and valuable when healthy. Unfortunately Walker was rarely healthy. Either James Lee, last year's 5th round pick out of Oregon State, is ready to contribute as Jackson's backup next season, or this is an area the Packers will probably address early in the draft. Larry Smith and Kenny Peterson lined up last season at nose tackle on passing downs, but the Packers need a big body to play the spot on rushing downs if Jackson is injured.

It sounds like these last two years have not been the greatest times in the life of Joe Johnson. Season ending injuries in two consecutive years, charges of marijuana possession, and now his father has passed away. I don't know if the Packers still consider him an important part of the 2004 team, but hopefully this is his low point and everything goes better for him from here on out.

What about the Packers signing ex-Tampa Bay strong safety John Lynch? He would be a very interesting signing, but he would be very expensive and would strain the salary cap. I have not read anywhere that the Packers are interested in him, but he has the skill set as a strong safety that would help the Packers. At this stage in Lynch's career, there are probably a number of veteran secondary players who could play at the same level as Lynch if given an opportunity, but the advantage with Lynch is that you know what to expect. Hopefully Lynch is a possible addition that the Packers will consider.

It was quite surprising to find two teams, the Packers and Tampa Bay, bidding on Josh Bidwell. The signing bonus of $150,000 offered by both teams was microscopic in today's NFL free agency, but it was still interesting. I expected Bidwell to either be offered a 1 year deal by the Packers or end up in another team's camp for some competition to an incumbant punter. Bidwell wasn't a big success for the Packers considering that they actually spent a draft choice to acquire him, and he missed a season during his battle with cancer. Between the illness and the mild disappointment, Bidwell probably wanted to move on and put Green Bay behind him. Plus, Bidwell will probably not face any competition next season in Tampa Bay while with the Packers he would have to outkick Travis Dorsch because the small contract amount wouldn't guarantee Bidwell a roster spot.

More proof that I'm an idiot and Chad Clifton is a bargain for the Packers: Chicago paid $14 million in guaranteed money for starting right tackle/failed left tackle John Tait. Tait is a solid player, but his name doesn't bring images of Anthony Munoz to mind. Still, Chicago needed to improve their O-line that footballoutsiders.com ranked as 26th in run blocking and 27th in pass blocking. Chicago probably would have been better off spending that money to improve their anemic 31st defensive pass rush. Is Chicago better off spending $14 million for Tait, when they could have resigned pass rusher Rosevelt Colvin last offseason for half of that amount? Who knows if Colvin will come back from his 2003 injury in New England, so maybe Chicago did the right thing, but its always good news to see Chicago making questionable roster moves (unfortunately Chicago figured out Kordell Stewart wasn't the answer to any question).

The Drew Henson experience landed in Dallas. So now Dallas has two former baseball prospects, Chad Hutchinson and Henson, as backup quarterbacks and one starting quarterback, Quincy Carter, who might be better off playing baseball. I have no idea whether Carter can throw or hit a breaking pitch, but after watching Carter in a couple of NFL games its possible that he is better at baseball then he is at running an NFL offense. I am glad Mike Sherman gave Henson a look, considered the possiblities, and then let the Henson sideshow move on to the most appropriate NFL team to be running a sideshow.

It is good to see the team giving Marcus Wilkins another shot. He showed some promise as a situational pass rusher and special team player in 2002, before injuries derailed his 2003 season. Hopefully his healthy return can improve the special teams and finally give the Packers a good reason to dump Jamal Reynolds.

The Packers wined and dined a couple of interesting free agents.

Strong safety Mike Logan is out in Pittsburgh, making way for last year's 1st round draft choice Troy Polamalu. Apparently he would be well received by the Packers' beat writers because he won an award in Pittsburgh last year for his work with the media, for what that is worth. He tore his knee up in the 2002 playoffs, but came back to start 16 games in 2003. Pittsburgh's pass defense was 6.3% worse than average in 2003, according to footballoutsiders.com, but had one of the best run defenses (19.6% better than average) while Logan was their 3rd leading tackler. Logan sounds like Marques Anderson with more experience. No strong safety has signed this month, although strong safety Greg Wesley resigned with Kansas City for $5 million in guaranteed money several weeks ago so that might be in Logan's mind. The strong safety market has been dead the last couple of offseasons, so I would be surprised if the Packers jumped in with an offer and instead are waiting to see if Logan is still available right before the draft at a reduced price.

Mark Roman played free safety for Cincinnati last year, but he was shown the door when Cincinnati signed free agent Kim Herring. If "defensive genius" Marvin Lewis doesn't want you anymore, does that mean the Packers should be interested in him? Maybe the Packers are looking at him as a backup safety/cornerback.

William Bartee would be a project. He played in college at Oklahoma, and that makes me compare him to fellow alum Torrence Marshall, in that both players have the physical ability to play at a high level in the NFL, but neither has gotten the job done. Bartee has played 4 seasons in the NFL, partipated in 57 games, and has never once made an interception. He was bumped out of his starting cornerback spot after 2002, he was the 3rd cornerback in 2003, and Kansas City's pass defense improved from 12.5% worse than average in 2002 to 2.7% better than average in 2003 according to footballoutsiders.com, but their opponents might have avoided a good pass defense to run the ball against Kansas City's anemic 10.1% worse than average run defense in 2003. The year ended on a really bad note for Kansas City when Peyton Manning dominated their pass defense in the playoffs. Signing Bartee and counting on him to fill the 3rd cornerback position sounds like a substantial risk.

Finally, the Packers brought in backup quarterback Billy Volek. It doesn't sound like any team is looking for a starting quarterback, so now he seems to be weighing his backup offers. Volek played well when healthy in 2003 (QB rating of 101.4) and Tennessee would probably prefer to have him backup Steve McNair in 2004 but they have big cap problems. According to jsonline.com, offensive coordinator Tom Rossley said "I'm hoping [Brett Favre will] play another four or five years" which is exactly what I want to hear. Volek is the best free agent quarterback available at this point, for what that is worth, so I would expect him to find a better opportunity for playing time elsewhere behind an injury prone starting quarterback. Until Favre retires, hopefully in four or five years, the Packers should keep the backup spots occupied by low cost veterans (Doug Pederson) or low cost projects (Craig Nall) who could come in relief if Favre misses some time, but no highly paid quarterbacks of the future please.

If the Packers don't resign Michael Hawthorne or don't acquire a new third cornerback in the next month or in the draft, Atlanta is likely to release former Packer Tyrone Williams on June 1. Williams was not a great player, and blew his punt coverage responsiblities during the 2002 playoff game vs. Atlanta which led to an Eric Metcalf fumble, but he could be the third cornerback for the Packers in 2004.

Although Williams was a useful cornerback for the Packers, Atlanta gave him a $3 million signing bonus for one year of disappointing play. Now Atlanta is blowing up its entire secondary, releasing all of the players likely to stay out of jail, and took the first step by signing former San Francisco corner Jason Webster to a 6 year deal with a $7 million signing bonus. The NY Jets signed a cornerback David Barrett to a 6 year deal with a $4.5 million signing bonus plus a $1 million roster bonus probably due next March. I had never even heard of Barrett before he signed this weekend, apparently he played with Arizona for the last 4 seasons. The more I read about deals like these, the high priced signings of second tier players and their release in subsequent seasons, the more I'm convinced the big early spenders on other teams free agents are the ones unlikely to succeed in the NFL.

The NFL continues to make the Packers signing of Chad Clifton for an $11 million bonus look positively frugal. Houston gave right tackle Todd Wade a $10 million signing bonus. This would be in line with the signing bonuses for other top flight right tackles, Washington's Jon Jansen got $8 million while St. Louis's Kyle Turley got $10 million, that signed last offseason. However, is Todd Wade even a top flight right tackle? Si.com didn't even list him as a top 10 free agent offensive lineman, while si.com determined Clifton was the 2nd best available, behind only multiple Pro Bowler Orlando Pace.

On the bargain side of the free agent tackle aisle, Tampa Bay signed veteran San Francisco offensive tackle Derrick Deese. Deese can play left tackle, guard, or right tackle, and only cost a $2.5 million signing bonus. Although one player doesn't make an offensive line, it is interesting that San Francisco's offensive line was good last season while Miam's (where Wade played) was a disaster and I am curious whether Wade or Deese will be the better player next season.

There were two signings that made defensive tackle Cletidus Hunt's signing last offseason look like a bargain. Houston signed Robaire Smith with an $8 million signing bonus, after Smith had a career best 4.5 sacks in his first season as a starter. Then, Washington gave Cornelius Griffin an $8 million signing bonus after his 1.5 sack 2003 season. Both players appear very comparable to Hunt, who has 15 sacks for his career along with a career high 5.5 sacks in the 2002 season, except Hunt signed for $1.5 million less than Smith or Griffin. Aside from the financial savings, this savings might be the difference between filling out the roster with quality veterans instead of untested rookies. The Packers are well positioned to make it to the Super Bowl next season, and the fewer rookies they have to rely on next season the better.

Griffin brings up the whole matter of Washington, who have given out substantial signing bonuses for the second straight season. $15 million to Clinton Portis, $8 million to Griffin, $3 million to recently released Phillip Daniels, $7 million to Marcus Washington, and $8.6 million to Mark Brunell. Brunell might not even be the starting quarterback. Back in December, Washington gave Lavar Arrington a $20 million bonus. That is $62 million in bonuses, although some of it was deferred until later years. This is all on top of the approximately $30 million in bonuses Washington gave to players like Laveranues Coles, Chad Morton, Jon Jansen, and Randy Thomas last offseason. No other team has even approached this level of spending, because they don't have it or are unwilling to spend it, but this spending will explode Washington's salary cap in 2 or 3 years. Washington can renegotiate salary out into future years, but this team has the potential to one day have more dead weight on its salary cap then any team in the NFL had ever believed was possible.

Much to my disappointment, Chad Clifton gets his $11 million signing bonus from the Packers. That is the market rate for left tackles of Clifton's ability, but it begs the question; why is a quality left tackle so much more valuable than a quality left guard or any other position on the offensive line? Is it that much more important to have a left tackle who can handle power and speed rushers on the quarterback's blind side than a good guard or center who is adept at pulling on runs and picking up blitzes on passes? When Mike Wahle went into free agency two offseasons ago, you could hear the crickets chirping because there was so little interest in him. They are both comparable players for their positions, so I don't agree that Clifton is worth so much more than Wahle. At this price, Clifton is more valuable than the rest of the line.

The NFL has seemed to go bonus crazy this offseason, so its good to see the Packers only gave an $11 million bonus to Clifton this offseason instead of the $10 million he would have gotten, hypothetically, if he was a healthy free agent left tackle last offseason. $18 million for Champ Bailey? In 2003, Washington had the 14th ranked pass defense, so one player does not improve an entire pass defense. $17 million for Clinton Portis? If Portis is worth a $17 million bonus, how much is Ahman Green's agent asking for in an extension? Then there is the titanic $34.5 million for Peyton Manning. Is Manning worth 75% more than Donovan McNabb? Is he worth over 200% more than Brett Favre? Reading on espn.com it seemed to me like Indianapolis completely messed this up by not taking care of Manning last offseason. If Manning hadn't been signed this week for the insane bonus of $34.5 floated by Manning's agent, Indianapolis would have been forced to cut 8 players, or 15% of their roster, that they didn't want to cut. Manning shouldn't be blamed for asking for whatever contract he wants, but Indianapolis shouldn't have left themselves in this position. Then today, Philadelphia gives Jevon Kearse $16 million as a reward for not being healthy since his rookie season. All these signings make Clifton's signing appear positively frugal.

In addition, the Packers cut Gilbert Brown, who they mistakenly gave a 6 year deal last offseason. The signing bonus was minimal, so it isn't a huge cap hit, but the better policy with Brown was to keep him on a year to year basis as had been done the previous couple of seasons. Brown gave the team everything he had last season, playing the entire season with a torn muscle, but he eventually lost his starting job to Grady Jackson. Prior to Jackson, the Packers run defense was better with Brown then without, but his release this week probably marks the final appearance for Brown on the roster. I'll remember Brown for his spectacular 1996 season with the Packers, although it doesn't show up on the stat line, Brown was a terror in the NFL that season.

A couple of interesting signings by the Packers in the last week.

First was the resigning of restricted free agent safety Corey Fuller. Although he probably is not the Packers first choice to start alongside Darren Sharper, its possible he could be the starting strong safety, so he is someone to watch. However, Fuller might have to compete for his roster spot as backup safety candidate Eric Crouch (could the Packers please cut Crouch and just end this soap opera?).

Second was the hiring of Lindy Infante-era Center James Campen as an assistant offensive line coach. Campen hasn't been on the roster for over 10 years but only two other players, Frank Winters and Mike Flanagan, have been the starting center since Campen played. Not that I'd expect Campen to suit up anytime soon, but its just amazing how little turnover there was at the position and how well Winters played for so many years.

Third was the promotion of Joe Philbin as tight ends coach. The Packers made some noise after the late collapse in Philadelphia by firing the defensive coordinator and tight ends coach, only to fill both positions from internal promotion. These two men might have been the best possible candidates for the job, but they generated zero excitement for the upcoming season. Although with an approximately two millenium long season ticket waiting list, the Packers aren't too concerned with creating some offseason buzz for the season ticket holders.

Fourth is the hiring of Vince Tobin. Tobin hasn't coached in the NFL since 2001, but if that was enough to disqualify him then Washington's hiring of Joe Gibbs was the worst move of the offseason. Tobin knows what good defenses look like, not necessarily from his time with Arizona in the 1990s or with Detroit in 2001, but from his days as a member of Chicago's defensive coaching staff in the 1980s. Tobin's assistance could potentially be very important for the 2004 season and I'm really excited to see the Packers bring someone like him into the coaching team.

The Packers placed the franchise tag on Chad Clifton this week. It surprised me, because I thought it would effect the Packers salary cap immediately, but the Packers have until March 2nd to work Clifton's guaranteed franchise salary figure into the cap. Mark Tauscher restructed his contract this week for some additional room next year, and some more restructuring, along with some releases, are likely to create cap room.

It would be a shock if another team courts Clifton now, because it would cost a team two first round picks. Clifton is a solid and underappreciated player, but it will cost Brett Favre type money to resign him, which seems too steep. If the Packers have a certain amount of money allocated to sign free agents this offseason, however, it might as well be spent resigning Clifton because there are not any top free agents at the positions the Packers might consider upgrading.

Defensive End: The Packers could use a run stopping, pass rushing, every down playing defensive end, like the player they expected when they signed Joe Johnson two years ago. The only top player who fits that profile, another New Orleans defensive end Darren Howard, was given the franchise tag by his team so that effectively makes him unavailable. Miami's Adewale Ogunleye and Tennessee's Jevon Kearse are also free agents, but both are better pass rushers than run stoppers, and Kearse has had numerous injury problems. Ogunleye first got league wide notice this last season, so he might be a one year wonder.

Linebacker: If the Packers wanted to improve at either outside linebacker position, San Francisco's Julian Peterson would be an upgrade to either Nai'l Diggs or Hannibal Navies, but Peterson was tagged by San Francisco instead of Terrell Owens, so he is certainly not going anywhere.

Safety: Only one safety, Jacksonville's Donovin Darius, would be a clear upgrade over Antuan Edwards or Marques Anderson, but (reaccuring theme) Jacksonville placed the franchise tag on him for the second consecutive season. Carolina's Deon Grant is an unrestricted free agent, but he is a free safety and plays more like Darren Sharper than LeRoy Butler. Reggie Tongue is a free agent strong safety from Seattle, but it isn't clear that Tongue is any better than Anderson. Last offseason, two Butler like safeties, Lawyer Malloy and Rodney Harrison, both were free agents after their teams cut them, so maybe a player like them will be cut before March 2nd.

With the franchise tag on Clifton, the only two free agents who may get some early attention are Michael Hawthorne and Edwards. With the tight cap situation, it looks like the Packers are seeing what the market is for those two players and waiting until March to possibly resigning them. The Packers would be better off if both players returned next season, but neither one can afford to be paid starters money.

The NFL announced today that the 2004 salary cap is $80.5 million instead of $78.7 million as it was projected at the end of 2003. Any extra wiggle room under the cap is good news for the Packers. According to John Clayton on espn.com, the Packers were under the cap by $1.1 million as of Feb. 12th, so its likely the Packers are $2.9 million under the cap as of today. The bad news is Chad Clifton will have to be tagged as the franchise player by next Tuesday, and according to Len Pasquarelli of espn.com that would add slightly over $7 million to the Packers cap, unless a long term deal can be worked out. It seems highly unlikely that Clifton will have either the franchise or transition tag (its cap cost is slightly over $6 million) placed on him. Clifton is probably the best free agent offensive lineman available, if Orlando Pace and Walter Jones for the umpteenth years in a row are given the franchise tags by St. Louis and Seattle respectively, and still likely to command a $10 million signing bonus. It seems unlikely that the Packers want to give that amount of money to arguably their 5th best offensive lineman.

It was surprising to read that Mike Sherman, Mark Hatley, Reggie McKenzie, John Schneider, and Tom Rossley all went to see a private workout by Drew Henson. "This isn't necessarily a unique situation", Sherman told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal. Sure it isn't. Henson looked outstanding running the offense during his one year as a starter in Michigan, although he played with an offense loaded with future NFL players. Sherman has ran two drafts and came away with two potential stars in Javon Walker and Nick Barnett, so I would expect any trade for Henson to be a good decision. An article last month on espn.com made the argument that it would be a shock if Henson was traded, instead of drafted in the upcoming April draft, because he could only receive a small signing bonus based on Houston's rookie draft cap for last season, but the Journal-Sentinal had a quote from Houston GM Charley Casserly that made it sound like it was more important for Henson to choose his first NFL team than to receive a huge signing bonus.

It seems unlikely that Henson would choose team over money, but why else would Houston host the workout, and Casserly attend it, if it isn't possible that Henson would consent to a trade? I don't know much about Henson, but maybe his agent, Tom Condon, told Sherman that Henson would consent to a trade to play for the Packers? If it was a workout to showoff for the draft, why weren't the high drafting and quarterback starved teams like Arizona, Cleveland or Pittsburgh in attendance with their head coaches?

I haven't been anxious for Brett Favre to retire and I haven't wanted the Packers to use a high draft choice on a quarterback because then they would have two starting quarterbacks salaries on their salary cap, but a trade for Henson would allow them to have a quarterback with the talent of a high draft choice on the salary cap at a 6th round draft choice price, at least for a season. It is a unique and very interesting opportunity.

The Packers assigned 12 players to NFL Europe, but 10 of the 12 were signed just two weeks ago. Only Erwin Swiney and Derek Combs played any part on last season's team. Swiney might be part of the battle for the 3rd cornerback position, if Michael Hawthorne leaves in free agency, so it appears that Swiney is the only one of the 12 players who might make next season's roster. Certainly this is not as interesting as last season, when QB Craig Nall went to NFL Europe.

Apparently, Hawthorne thinks he is likely to get a big contract this offseason to be someone's starting cornerback. It is unlikely the Packers would sign Hawthorne to be a starter for next season since Mike McKenzie and Al Harris are both under contract for next season. Hawthorne might be right, he is tall (over 6 feet) and played well this season. Atlanta gave Tod McBride a multiyear contract last offseason, after McBride was the Packers 3rd cornerback (when healthy). However, Atlanta's pass defense was a disaster last season and it wouldn't be surprising to see McBride cut. Hawthorne has a few strikes against him because he is relatively slow for a NFL cornerback and he was released by New Orleans supposedly after clashing with coaches. Hopefully he doesn't get much interest from other teams and the Packers can resign him to a one year contract.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal had an article about Nick Barnett and how he felt guilty about his blown coverage on the 4th and 26 play vs. Philadelphia in the playoffs. Philadelphia had three receivers running routes on the play. Why would the Packers run a defense that required their middle linebacker to cover the slot wide receiver on a play 26 yards from the line of scrimmage? The more I read about that blown play, the more it sounds like that it was entirely the coaches fault.

Last offseason, left tackles Luke Pettigout and Flozell Adams each got around a $10 million signing bonus for a 7 year, $30 million contract. That is Chad Clifton's price for the Packers this offseason, although he might discount it due to his serious hip injury in 2002. Clifton should fire his agent if his agent doesn't ask the Packers for a $10 million signing bonus. I am really torn about resigning Clifton. He is a solid player on the best offensive line in the NFL and he is just a step below a Pro Bowl level, although only one season removed from a career threating injury. Generally, a team cannot let a player of his ability leave in free agency, but he doesn't play a skill position. The Packers could find a replacement for Clifton in free agency or the draft, but it is unlikely that his replacement would be as good as Clifton. If the Packers can afford it, although it would be the the Packers only significant move in free agency, then he should be resigned, but the Packers should not bust their cap just to resign him.

I expected Bob Slowik to be promoted to defensive coordinator, and it finally happened yesterday. I'm not too excited about hiring a guy who worked closely with Dave Wannstedt for 6 season in Chicago, but he wasn't working with a very talented defensive team either. Over those 6 seasons, the best players during it were probably defensive back Mark Carrier and the fumes of Richard Dent's great career. Plus, with the exception of the 1995 season, Chicago didn't provide much support on offense either. Slowik was defensive coordinator for the 1999 expansion Cleveland 2.0 but that season isn't even worth examining, because a 2-14 expansion defense should have the least amount of talent in the NFL. Slowik probably deserves another chance as defensive coordinator, to show what he can do with a more talented defense and more support from an offense.

Kurt Schottenheimer was a nice signing for defensive backs coach. He knows the NFC North since he was the defensive coordinator in Detroit last season, and the defense improved from 31st to 24th this season.

Ron Wolf took a new job as a personnel specialist for Cleveland. It sounds like Wolf will watch some film at home, give his two cents worth of advice regarding personnel, and probably get paid around $1 million per year for it. Its good work if you can get it. I'm wondering if this means Cleveland is determined to solve their quarterback problem, either through the draft or free agency, and want Wolf to help them with it.

A number of players have been signed since the last game of the season. None of the names are familiar to me, so I would consider them all minicamp depth, NFL Europe (if that will be around anymore) candidates, or practice squad possibilities. All signings will probably remain this way until Franchise and Transition players are named in mid-February and free agency begins.

2003 Packers In Review. I'm defenitely not using a letter grade system to review the Packers. That is as arbitrary as real school grades, and itdoesn't tell you all you need to know about someone. No pythagorean (if team X scores A points and allows B points, its record should be C-D) outcomes because it doesn't say much either. I will use rankings from Football Outsiders.com for some statistical analysis in this review and rank the units from best to worst, although the worst unit on the team was still league average.

Overall. The Packers were the 9th best team in the NFL, ranked according to the team's overall DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average). They were 14.9% over average, which doesn't predict anything when you realize the 18th best team in the league with a -5.8% below average team (Carolina) is going to the Super Bowl. Overall they were good enough to make the playoffs, good enough to beat any team in the playoffs (including beating the best team in the NFC, 5th ranked Seattle), but didn't make the plays when they needed it. Carolina and Philadelphia were both inferior teams overall, but both made big plays when it mattered. The Packers got few lucky bounces, it wasn't one of those magical years where everything breaks your way, and it just wasn't their year.

Run Offense. The best offensive line in the NFL was the best at opening holes for the running backs and the 3rd best at preventing negative runs with 80% of all running plays going for positive yards. Ahman Green was the main beneficiary with a 27.5 DPAR (Defense-adjusted Points Above Replacement) and the 4th back RB in the NFL. Overall the rush offense only ranks 12th because of all the fumbles, however, few if any fumbles occured over the last several games. Green, Tony Fisher and Najeh Davenport make up the best set of backs in the NFL. With the return of this entire unit in 2004, with the possible exception of possible free agent Chad Clifton, this unit could be the best run offense in the NFC in 2004 if the fumbles have stopped.

Pass defense. Only St. Louis, Tampa Bay and Dallas had better pass defenses in the NFC than the Packers. Its more impressive when you consider that the Packers pass rush recorded a sack on only 6.1% of pass plays which is only slightly above the league average of 6%. The pass blitz was rarely succesful and better execution on pass blitzes and stunts might greatly improve its success rate. Darren Sharper, Mike McKenzie, Al Harris, and Michael Hawthorne all were consistently solid, but not spectacular, in coverage. The linebackers were solid on coverage of the tight ends and running backs, with an exception in the San Diego game against Antonio Gates and LaDainian Tomlinson. Only Minnesota, St. Louis and San Francisco had more interceptions in the NFC than the Packers. Only Antuan Edwards and Hannibal Navies might leave from this unit, so it should be strong again in 2004 and they could be much improved with better pass blitzing.

Pass Offense. Brett Favre is either loved or hated. I appreciate that on 95% of plays, he is playing as well as any QB in the NFL, however, on the other 5% he takes risks that make him look like a rookie. So many NFL teams run such conservative offensive schemes, attempting perfect execution along with no turnovers, that their offenses are often anemic. Some teams look so much better in a hurry up offense that you wonder why they don't hurry up all the time. Favre is always running a hurry up offense, more often than not he is successful, but sometimes its a fiasco. Favre ended the season with his career best season completion percentage (65.4%), but he is likely to be remember this season for his jump ball interception in OT vs. Philadelphia. Favre's aggressive play created the most touchdown passes in the NFL (32) and the 3rd most interceptions (21). All those turnovers slipped his ranking to 16th among QBs and the pass offense to 11th. The offensive line was excellent in pass defense, allowing a sack only 18 times or 4.1% of their pass plays. There is room for improvement at wide receiver, Donald Driver was tops as the 25th best receiver in the NFL, while Javon Walker and Robert Ferguson were both top 40 and are likely to improve in 2004. The tight ends provided little to nothing all season, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Bubba Franks, David Martin, and Wesley Walls all return in 2004 and hopefully they can improve under a new tight ends coach. This unit should be excellent in 2004, maybe even better with improved receiver play, although Favre is unlikely to throw less than 20 interceptions.

Run defense. This unit only got better as the season went on, due in large part to the signing of Grady Jackson. The Packers were the 5th best run defense on carries under 10 yards, however, they were below average at stopping runs for negative yards (20th) and preventing runs over 10 yards (22nd). Overall they were 11th in the NFL. The Packers were poor run blitzers last year and Edwards had some trouble tackling, the game in Chicago comes to mind. Maybe improvement by Marques Anderson as a run blitzer and a full season for him in run support will improve both areas. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Packers look for a new strong safety, the Packers briefly flirted with Sammy Knight last offseason, but I would be surprised to see wholesale changes on the defensive line and at linebacker.

Special Teams. With the exception of Ryan Longwell, who is perfect from within 45 yards on field goals and perfect on extra points, this entire unit could be revamped. Overall the unit was average and the 12th best unit in the NFL. Josh Bidwell is a free agent and I wouldn't expect him back, unless at a league minimum salary. Antonio Chapman had some moments as a kick and punt returner, but was not a factor. Davenport might be an exciting kick returner in 2004, if he is given the job, after watching him as a kick returner over the last few games. The kick coverage is desperate for a gunner to make an impact.

The most important decision the Packers make this offseason is hiring the team's next defensive coordinator. Dave McGinnis is getting a lot of mention, along with assistant head coach Bob Slowik and linebackers coach Mark Duffner. McGinnis would seem preferred, because he is a former head coach, but his defenses in Arizona were never very good although there were many excuses for it. Is the roster best suited for the type of defense McGinnis perfers to play? I have no idea. It should be a 4-3 defense, because the Packers aren't deep at linebacker, but other than that the defense appears to have the size and speed (although not much speed at cornerback) to play many different defensive schemes. I wouldn't be surprised if Mike Sherman is looking for a coordinator with a past or future plan to generate an improved pass rush. As long as the players listen to and work hard for the new coordinator, he should be successful with the Packers.