I mean, I know they signed a receiver from the CFL recently. But I’m not going to talk about it.

Lately, though, there’s been a slight flurry of activity. And with [...]]]> It’s been a minute since we’ve given our thoughts on any actual, real news surrounding the Green Bay Packers. That’s mainly because, well, there hadn’t been much.

I mean, I know they signed a receiver from the CFL recently. But I’m not going to talk about it.

Lately, though, there’s been a slight flurry of activity. And with it being Friday and all, we figured it’d be a good time to check back in.

(Side note: We’ve been having waaaay too much fun with our Twitter and newly created Facebook pages. We’ve added some new stuff to the Facebook page – some photos of us – and we’d love it if you checked it out.)

• Cushing re-wins DROY award…Matthews re-finishes third

Wednesday, the Associated Press held its unprecedented re-vote for the 2009 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing re-won the award, despite being suspended the first four games of next season for failing a test for PEDs. Green Bay’s Clay Matthews, a good friend and collegiate teammate of Cushing’s, finished third again.

I have a few thoughts on this whole saga. First, I’m not going to lie; Cushing’s failed test does raise some significant questions, at least in my mind, about Matthews. This might be a “guilt by association” situation, yes, but facts are facts: Matthews and Cushing are close friends who spent a lot of time working out together (at least while in college). You have to think they shared secrets about their respective regimens, from time-to-time, and there were questions about both before the ‘09 draft.

I’m not saying we should expect Matthews to suffer a similar fate as Cushing or anything. And, believe me, I hope he doesn’t. But if it does happen to Matthews at any point, I am saying none of us should be surprised.

Secondly, I think Cushing’s an idiot for essentially giving us the, “I don’t know how the hCG got into my system” defense. Seriously, does that work after you turn 10 years old? Didn’t think it did. Just fess up and admit to what you did, Brian. It’ll work to your favor in the longterm. We as a society hate people who lie. We hate cheaters, too, but we ultimately forgive them if they are honest.

Finally, I think the AP is stupid for what it did. That organization has now set a dangerous precedent going forward. They’ll now have to do this every single time a player tests positive for something. Slippery slope, fellas.

• Lang out until training camp

Right tackle T.J. Lang, coming off a promising rookie season, will be out until training camp as he recovers from recent surgery on his left wrist.

This is a fairly serious setback for a player like Lang. It’s good that he won’t miss any time in camp, barring any setbacks in recovery, but he’ll miss a ton of weight room time. For a young player like Lang, that’s crucial. It’s been said over-and-over that players make the most significant leap in strength from year one to year two and I believe it.

Lang can likely still work on lower body stuff, which will help. But I doubt he can do much in terms of upper body strength now and it could take him a bit longer to fully get into game shape. Just another reason why I’m glad Mark Tauscher was re-signed.

• Packers bringing in another Harrell?

Green Bay will reportedly bring in quarterback Graham Harrell for a workout next week. Harrell was a standout at Texas Tech – what QB isn’t in that system, though – but went undrafted in ‘09.

He spent last season playing in the CFL (dammit, I was hoping to avoid any CFL talk in this post), but was released by the Saskatchewan Roughriders recently.

The Packers already have a couple of young, developmental quarterbacks on the roster, as of now. But head coach Mike McCarthy apparently has interest in adding more. I have no problem with that, really, because as I’ve said repeatedly, I truly believe the team is hoping for one more good preseason out of Matt Flynn before attempting to trade him after next season. That being the case, Green Bay needs to find its next Flynn.

Maybe it’s Harrell. Hey, he couldn’t be any worse than Justin…could he??

(Oh, and for those out there who have raised the idea of bringing in JaMarcus Russell, I think it’s a fine idea. You can never have enough depth on the offensive line.)

• Finding chinks in Jared Allen’s armor

Okay, so this last one isn’t really news or anything. But, living in Minneapolis, I’m constantly reminded of how much the people here love Jared Allen. That, of course, only serves to constantly remind me of how much I hate him.

This week, I set out to find a few chinks in his armor. I think I did:

1. Did you know that, last season, Allen only had five sacks against left tackles not named Daryn Colledge, T.J. Lang or…well…whoever plays that spot for the Chicago Bears?
2. Did you know that Allen, in 2008, only had four sacks against teams not named Detroit, Chicago, Green Bay and Houston?
3. Did you know that Allen’s a disgusting redneck – make that “pretend redneck” – with a mullet? Okay, that’s not really a chink, I just wanted to say it.

Finally, if the Packers are looking to rattle Allen this season, I think this guy just showed them a way to do it.

Have a good Friday, everyone.

-Chris Lempesis

Makes sense – this is a Packers’ blog, after all.

But there are three other teams in the NFC North, of course, and we’re going to kick off our draft week coverage – seriously, [...]]]> The last few weeks at OBOD have been dedicated entirely to discussing the upcoming draft as it pertains to the Green Bay Packers.

Makes sense – this is a Packers’ blog, after all.

But there are three other teams in the NFC North, of course, and we’re going to kick off our draft week coverage – seriously, the draft is three days away…holy crap – by taking a look at what those teams could/should do Thursday through Saturday to improve themselves.

(Quick note: I’ll be rolling out a Packers version of this on Wednesday.)

Chicago Bears

Day one: Have everyone over at head coach Lovie Smith’s house to watch game four of Blackhawks/Predators. Study the Blackhawks. Take notes on how to use the draft to build a competitive team, as the Blackhawks did. Feel free to watch game three of Bulls/Cavs during the commercial breaks. Keep Jay Cutler away from the open bar, though.

Day two: During the early part of the evening (i.e., the second round), you can go with either Cubs/Brewers or White Sox/Mariners. Again, you have no picks here and baseball is a good way to pass the time. Personally, I’d go with the Cubs/Brewers game – Adam’s right, I am a closet Brewers fan - but the choice is yours. Once the third round gets rolling later in the night, get excited – you finally get to draft someone!

But who should you draft? Well, you’re lucky in the sense that you’ve got clearly defined needs (offensive line, cornerback and wide receiver). I’d go with an offensive lineman; Cutler’s your biggest asset going forward and you need to protect him much better than you did last season. Ole Miss’ John Jerry should be on the board at pick No. 75 and he’d be a nice fit. He’s an old-school mauler type at 6-feet, 5-inches and 332 pounds. He played right tackle in college, but is likely a guard in the pros. Either way, he’d provide immediate relief to that group.

Day three: I’d hold off on a wide receiver in round four. You’ve got some young talent there (Johnny Knox, Earl Bennett and Devin Aromashodu) and you should give those guys one more year to see if any of them can turn into a true No. 1 wideout. You need to snag a safety or corner. If you go the safety route, I’d look long and hard at Florida’s Major Wright. He’s raw, but his speed, recovery time and zone skills make him a nice fit for your Cover-2 scheme. As for a corner, UCLA’s Alterraun Verner would work nicely. He’s small (5-feet, 10-inches) and a bit slow, but he’s got great ball skills and knows how to play the zone.

In the fifth round, take either a corner or safety (whichever spot you didn’t address in round four). Round out your draft by taking a wide receiver in the sixth round and a developmental quarterback in the seventh.

Detroit Lions

Day one: First, let me say that – for the first time in my life, seemingly – there appears to be a legitimate plan in place in Detroit, one that doesn’t rely on drafting wide receivers. That bodes well for the future.

I’ve had you taking Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh with the No. 2 pick in each of my mock drafts and I’ll stick with that. He’s a dual-purpose difference-maker and could be a force for the next decade. Suh, Corey Williams and Sammie Hill give you a nice three-man rotation at d-tackle. Those guys, along with Cliff Avril and Kyle Vanden Bosch, will give you a greatly improved d-line next season.

Day two: You have almost no corners. That must be fixed (and for God’s sake, stay away from Pacman!). Alabama’s Kareem Jackson was dominant in a pro-style defense. He brings a real swagger with him and he can play – and make an impact – right away. Take him in the second round. He’ll be around for a long time. 

Now it’s round three and your truly bad offensive line can no longer be ignored. Trading for Rob Sims cleaned things up at the left guard spot. But left tackle Jeff Backus has never been anything special and he turns 33 in September. Luckily for you, your future left tackle resides in-state: Hillsdale’s Jared Veldheer. He’s 6-feet, 8-inches, 312 pounds and boasts the athleticism of a tight end. He could cover Matthew Stafford for the rest of Stafford’s career once he steps in. Some say he needs a year; I think he could be ready by mid-season.

Day three: I like running back Kevin Smith, but more as a dual-option back. You need a true smash-mouth runner to compliment him. He’s a major gamble, no question about it, but Oregon’s LeGarrette Blount would fill that role perfectly. He’d bring great value as a fourth-rounder and I think Jim Schwartz can keep him in line.

Round out your draft with more corner and o-line depth and grab a safety somewhere in there, too, if you can.

Minnesota Vikings

Day one: Before we begin, I just want to reiterate that I hate you.

Okay, with that out of the way, I think you need a corner more than anything. Antoine Winfield is getting older and Cedric Griffin could miss the first six weeks (torn ACL). But I’m just not sure the value will be there. It’s a deep draft at that spot, anyways. Defensive tackle Pat Williams is still very good, but he turns 38 in October. You need to find his eventual replacement. Alabama’s Terrence Cody is a gamble because of his weight troubles, but when you put on the tape, this guy dominates. Cody, Kevin Williams and Jared Allen could be a scary threesome for the next eight-to-10 years.

Day two: We’ve reached the second round and it’s now time to take a corner. Wake Forest’s Brandon Ghee has tremendous speed and is an excellent tackler (he reminds me of Winfield in that sense). His ball skills are a work in progress, but could improve with good coaching.

In the third round, you must fill the void left by Chester Taylor’s departure and find a backup for Adrian Peterson. USC’s Joe McKnight would be a good fit. He’s not an every down runner, but that’s not a big deal – you’ve already got one of those. McKnight has great speed and vision (particularly outside the tackles) and is a very good pass catcher.

Day three: Left guard Steve Hutchinson is an elite player, obviously, but he turns 33 in November. Your other guard, Anthony Herrera, is average. In other words, you could use some depth there. One guy I love as a fourth-rounder is Arkansas’ Mitch Petrus. He’s raw (just converted to guard two years ago), but he’s got the athleticism of a fullback/tight end (the spots he played before his conversion). Plus, he tied the combine record with 45 bench press reps – simply astounding.

I’d round out my draft by looking for depth at safety, outside linebacker and wide receiver.

So there’s my two cents on what the other three NFC North teams should do in the draft.

I can’t wait until later in the week when they take me up on exactly none of it.

-Chris Lempesis

Now, with the weekend drawing to an end, it seemed like a good time to provide an updated look (and, as always, give some thoughts on it all). After all, it’s hard [...]]]> Friday morning, I provided a brief look at what the other three NFC North teams had been doing in free agency up to that point.

Now, with the weekend drawing to an end, it seemed like a good time to provide an updated look (and, as always, give some thoughts on it all). After all, it’s hard to find a division that was busier than the NFC North.

Chicago Bears - In terms of activity and dollars spent, the Bears have been the unquestioned kings of free agency thus far. On Friday alone, they dished out roughly $121 million to three players: defensive end Julius Peppers (six years, $91 million with $42 million in guaranteed money), running back Chester Taylor (four years, $12.5 million with $7 million in guaranteed money) and tight end Brandon Manumaleuna (five years, $17 million with $6 million in guaranteed money).

When you consider just how much pressure is on general manager Jerry Angelo and head coach Lovie Smith to win – and win now – the highly active approach was likely necessary (especially when you consider Chicago doesn’t pick until the third round this year).

If I’m a Bears fan (thank God I’m not), I like the Taylor and Manumaleuna signings. Taylor turns 31 in September, yes, but he’s only had season in which he carried the ball over 200 times (2006, when he ran for 1,216 yards in his first year in Minnesota). He’s got much more tread left on his tires than the average back that age. His role declined in Minnesota after 2006 due to the presence of that Peterson fella, but he’s still a crafty, tough runner who brings extra value as a pass catcher. Matt Forte is just not a No. 1 back and the Bears, as a team, were 29th in rushing yards per game last season (a paltry 93.3). Taylor will boost that number.

Manumaleuna – hate typing that name already – is a pure blocking tight end at 295 pounds. He should help in protecting Jay Cutler as he’s basically an offensive lineman. Plus, the Bears can now look into trading Greg Olson or Desmond Clark for added draft picks as new offensive coordinator Mike Martz really doesn’t use the tight end all that much.

If I’m a Bears fan (again, thank God I’m not), I’m not on board with the Peppers signing. Sure, he’s a freak of nature, physically, and can take over games. But those things only happen when HE wants them to and far too often, Peppers just doesn’t want them to. He takes plays/games/seasons off. Now that he’s paid in full, something he’s wanted for a long time, you have to wonder if “Bad Peppers” shows up even more now.

I kind of get why the Bears did it – their secondary stinks and Brian Urlacher’s body is breaking down, leaving Lance Briggs as their only real player in the final two levels of the defense. They’re hoping Peppers’ presence can cover for some of those weaknesses. I’m just not on board with it if I’m a fan. As a Packers fan, here’s how I know the Bears made a bad move: When the Vikings got Jared Allen, I thought, “Oh, no – this guy dominates week in and week out.” When Peppers signed Friday, I thought, “Eh, that guy only shows up about half the time, anyways, and they STILL gave him $42 million in guaranteed money.” See the difference?

Detroit Lions - The Lions have been almost as busy as the Bears. They’ve signed defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch (four years, $26 million) and wide receiver Nate Burleson (five years, $25 million with $11 million in guaranteed money) and also traded for defensive tackle Corey Williams and cornerback Chris Houston.

In my Friday morning post, I pretty much bashed Detroit for these moves – it just traded for Houston on Sunday afternoon – although I did like the Vanden Bosch signing. After I stood back and looked at it, though, I have to say I think the Lions, shockingly, did a decent job here.

Detroit needed to upgrade its defensive line in a major way; Cliff Avril led the team in sacks last season with just 5.5. Vanden Bosch, as I said Friday, is not the player he once was. But he’s still a hard-working player who you have to account for. Williams was a major flop in Cleveland as he was never cut out to be a 3-4 end. He’ll move back to tackle now, though, where he had seven sacks in each of his last two years in Green Bay. If Jim Schwartz can keep him motivated and get him in a rotation, he’ll provide a boost. With those two – and, say, Gerald McCoy, who we have them taking in our latest mock draft – the Lions will get to the quarterback much more this season.

Detroit clearly overpaid for Burleson, but he did have 63 catches for 812 yards for Seattle last year, so he’ll be a major upgrade over Bryant Johnson and take some heat off Calvin Johnson. Houston never lived up to his second-round pick status in Atlanta, but he still has some talent. And considering all Detroit gave up was a sixth round pick – plus swapping fifth rounders with the Falcons – Houston isn’t much of a gamble.

Minnesota Vikings – The Vikings have been very quiet thus far. A lot of that is likely due to the fact that, as one of the final four teams in the playoffs, Minnesota can’t sign any restricted free agents and can only sign unrestricted ones if it loses one of its own (plus, the first-year salaries on the two players have to match up).

Well, the Vikings have two openings now as they lost Taylor on Friday and guard/tackle Artis Hicks on Sunday (signed a three-year contract with the Washington Redskins). While they still have Peterson, Taylor’s loss leaves a big hole. He was so good as a third down back/pass catcher. Peterson can probably take over the third down role, but he is not a pass catcher. Plus, if he gets hurt, Minnesota basically now has no one behind him. The Vikings will need to address that situation soon.

Hicks, while primarily a backup, provided great depth because of his versatility. Like Taylor, his departure leaves Minnesota thin in the event something happens to a starting o-lineman. Last season, Taylor made $3.1 million and Hicks made just under $1 million, so the Vikings should be able to find decent players at those positions for those prices. But, surprisingly, there seems to be no sense of urgency coming from the organization. The Vikings don’t seem to even have any interest in anyone. Perhaps someone should tell them they were just one bad Judas pass away from a possible trip to the Super Bowl.

Wait, we’re Packers fans – nevermind. Nobody say anything.

-Chris Lempesis

For pretty much the entire afternoon today, it was sort of looking grim if you are a fan of the Green Bay Packers.

Green Bay’s starting left tackle, Chad Clifton, was visiting with the Washington Redskins. The ‘Skins need a left tackle and have an owner (Daniel Snyder) who loves to overpay for aging [...]]]> Friday, 11:50 p.m.

For pretty much the entire afternoon today, it was sort of looking grim if you are a fan of the Green Bay Packers.

Green Bay’s starting left tackle, Chad Clifton, was visiting with the Washington Redskins. The ‘Skins need a left tackle and have an owner (Daniel Snyder) who loves to overpay for aging veterans on the open market. Add to that the fact that Clifton and agent Jimmy Sexton had already balked at the Packers’ offer of $5 million a year and you had a scenario where Green Bay was surely set to lose the man who had owned the left tackle spot for more than a decade.

Plus, the Chicago Bears had just landed prized defensive end Julius Peppers (six years, $91 million with $42 million in guaranteed dough) and the Detroit Lions snagged end Kyle Vanden Bosch (four years, $26 million). Combine that with Jared Allen’s irritating presence in Minnesota and Green Bay was staring down the barrel at the following scenario: Six divisional games in 2010 against solid-to-All Pro-level pass rushers with, as of earlier today, no real left tackle to speak of.

My how quickly things change.

Clifton will indeed be returning to Green Bay, signing a three-year, $20 million contract ($7.5 million guaranteed) tonight. There are a few different layers to this story and I’ll attempt to cover them all now.

First: Did the Packers overpay for Clifton?

Yes and no. They did in the sense that three years is a lot for a soon-to-be 34 year old player who is likely breaking down physically. That $20 million overall figure is also a bit hard to swallow. They did not overpay in the sense that, well, they kind of needed him. T.J. Lang is just not a left tackle. They could draft a rookie in the first round (I still think they will, by the way), but sending a rookie out there right away against those guys – plus any other top-notch pass rushers they may face – could spell disaster. They could have handed over first-and-third round picks, plus a contract in the neighborhood of $60 million, to someone like San Diego’s Marcus McNeill. Personally, I’d have gone for this last option, but handing over picks like that just isn’t Ted Thompson’s style. Instead, Thompson saw the lay of the land brought on by the Peppers/Vanden Bosch signings and decided to go with the devil he knew. He showed some flexibility – not normally his strong suit – with this move and you have to credit him for that.

As for the money, don’t panic too much. I’m sure Thompson, as usual, front loaded the hell out of the deal, meaning it’s likely closer to a one-or-two year contract. Everyone, Clifton included, knows Clifton will not see the third year of this contract.

Secondly: What does this mean for Mark Tauscher?

As beloved as the homegrown Tauscher is by us Packers fans, this move likely brings his time in Green Bay to an end. I’ve always been of the belief that Thompson would bring back just one of the two tackles. I believe that even more now, given the amount of money paid to Clifton. I just don’t see a scenario in which Thompson pays starter money to two players in the same position group who are over the age of 32.

Yes, Tauscher was nothing short of outstanding and, as I’ve said before, you can make the case that he was the savior for the offense last season. I’m not against his return, personally. But, from Thompson’s perspective, the team already has a young player (Lang) whom they are clearly in love with and whom they feel can play that position next season. They’ve also spent a lot of time on Allen Barbre and Breno Giacomini. Barbre is likely nothing, but Giacomini could have some potential, meaning that there are at least two possible options at RT going forward. My guess is that Thompson wants to find out – much sooner rather than later – if any of these three can be the longterm option there.

That brings us to this: What kind of impact does Clifton’s re-signing have on the team’s draft plans?

It doesn’t have one - or, at least, it shouldn’t. Even with Clifton coming back, and the stability it provides, you can pretty much bank on him suffering an injury or two and missing anywhere between two and five games next season. And, as I said before, he is breaking down physically so there’s always that chance that he misses even more games than that. The team needs a suitable backup option, one who would also be ready to take over the reigns in the not-too-distant future.

The best way to find a left tackle like that? Take one in the first round. In the latest OBOD mock draft, for example, we have the Packers taking USC tackle Charles Brown. At under 300 pounds, Brown needs time to put weight on and get acclimated to the pro game. But he doesn’t need THAT much time. He’d be ready by 2011, if not sometime during this upcoming season. And if Clifton, as expected, has to miss time this season, a player like Brown would likely be able to hold down the fort for a stretch or two on pure talent alone (hey, anyone’s better than Daryn Colledge at LT, right?).

People accuse Thompson of not setting up the o-line for the long term and, for the most part, they’re right to do so. He can start amending that now. He’s got the first part right; now he just needs to finish it.

Okay, final question: What should we expect the o-line to look like next season?

The starters, from left to right, will likely be Clifton, the winner of the Jason Spitz/Colledge battle, Scott Wells, Josh Sitton and Lang. The backups are likely the loser of the Spitz/Colledge battle, Evan Dietritch-Smith, Barbre, Giacomini and (hopefully) the player Green Bay takes in the first round.

How much better is that line than the one that allowed the most sacks in the league last season? If Clifton holds up (or the rookie does well if forced into duty) and Lang is a player (like I think he will be), the line should be better overall. We won’t know the answer to that for some time, obviously.

But for now we can all breathe a little easier as Clifton’s return provides some definite insurance at a position that suddenly became a hell of a lot more important for the Packers on Friday than it was on Thursday.

-Chris Lempesis

While you were sleeping, the NFC North teams not named the Green Bay Packers were plenty busy.

Here’s a look at what the rest of the division has been up to in free agency so far (scroll down a bit for our most recent Packers update):

In other words, this particular post is going to be short.

Don’t worry, though – I’ll make it up to you later tonight. Consider this the abridged version of what the game recap will ultimately be.

There sure was a lot of stuff to come [...]]]> As I type this, the clock has just struck 1:41 a.m. Lambeau time.

In other words, this particular post is going to be short.

Don’t worry, though – I’ll make it up to you later tonight. Consider this the abridged version of what the game recap will ultimately be.

There sure was a lot of stuff to come out of the Green Bay Packers’ 27-14 home win over the Baltimore Ravens on Monday. The win was Green Bay’s fourth in a row and it improves the Pack’s record to 8-4 heading into the final quarter of the season.

Yes, I just used the word “stuff.” Yes, I’m that exhausted.

The following is a list of the good stuff and the bad stuff to come out of the contest. First, let’s get the bad stuff out of the way:

-The penalties. Good God, the penalties! Some of it was caused by some refs looking for more TV time, in my opinion (see: the pass interference calls). But a lot of it was caused by sloppy play. The offensive line penalties are completely inexcusable.

-The drops by the wide receivers. If you want to be an elite group, you can’t make mistakes like that, cold ball or not.

-Mason Crosby. The Packers WILL have a new kicker next season. Be sure of that.

-The post-touchdown kick coverage units. You’ve got to hang on to the momentum, fellas. This has to stop.

-Ryan Pickett’s hamstring injury. Apparently, it’s a pull. Hope it’s nothing too serious. Pickett has been outstanding this season.

Okay, now it’s time to focus on the positives. Because we at OBOD are all about the positives:

-The offensive line. Great job pass protecting against a defense that was bringing heat all night. We’ve ripped these guys to shreds for much of this season – and rightfully so. But even the most cynical observer has to admit this group is coming together.

-Jermichael Finley. The kid is a freak.

-Clay Matthews. Ditto.

-B.J. Raji (RAJI!! IT’S BACK!!). Double, 300-plus pound ditto.

-Aaron Rodgers. A shaky start, likely caused by the long layoff. But he pulled it together when he needed to. Once again, he just makes plays when he has to. You know who else did that? Oh yeah – YOU know who.

-Nick Barnett. Ray Rice = zero impact. That was mostly due to No. 56.

-Brad Jones. Aaron who?

-Charles Woodson. Stopping Willis McGahee for a loss near the goalline in the fourth quarter changed the entire course of this game. You can say it now: NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Screw Jared Allen.

See you all later tonight. Time to grab some zzzz.

-Chris Lempesis