A quiet mailbag this week! Only one single submission. Old reliable, Jim. The next time I’ll be writing this, though, we’ll be two days away from kickoff in Minnesota. Real Week 1 football. And before I write this next mailbag, real Week 1 football will have been played. In multiple continents! I can’t wait, but Jim, take it away.
“Hey Maggie! I was expecting little to no drama during roster cutdown. Boy I was wrong! Signings, trades, roster “exemptions”, the works! Wow! What was your overall take? Also, will you be switching to Saturday posting during the season like last year? Or sticking to Friday? Thanks!” - Jim
Hi Jim! Thanks for checking in about the schedule! I am staying on Fridays but the mailbag will post in the afternoons now instead of in the mornings. Maybe that’ll give us a little bit of time to sneak in some Thursday Night Football discussion.
I was impressed the Packers were able to trade Kyle McCord for a sixth-round pick. The writing was on the wall that he simply was not cracking Green Bay’s 53-man roster, and I didn’t think at that point he’d clear waivers given how many QB-needy teams are looking for reliable backups. So Brian Gutekunst being able to flip him for literally any compensation was impressive.
I thought the RB3 spot was going to be Pierre Strong Jr.’s job to lose, so the Kaleb Johnson trade was the most surprising to me. The Packers clearly like his upside, and as a former third-round pick only a year ago, it’s a worthwhile gamble. He certainly meets the mold of an NFL player who will benefit from a change of scenery.
The Josh Jacobs news is beyond disappointing. It was disappointing when it first came out and it continues to get worse. Especially since Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur still expect him to be part of the team later in the season. It’s hard to root for a team and a sport you love so much when the league turns a blind eye to abhorrent behavior. I’ll reiterate what I said back in May when this news first broke. There needs to be a zero tolerance policy for domestic violence, always. If you are someone experiencing domestic violence and need resources, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233. You can also text “START” to 88788 to get connected with resources immediately. Help is free, confidential, and available 24/7.
Green Bay adding two tight ends was a big surprise, but I was happy with both moves. I was a little bit worried the team was just going to start the season with Tucker Kraft…and a supporting cast of practice squad candidates. Jonnu Smith might not have an eight touchdown season, but he’ll still garner attention in 12 personnel. And Mark Redman profiles as the kind of blocking menace that LaFleur covets. Both tight ends give the roster some oomph while allowing Kraft to shine as an all-around weapon.
The Packers kept a lot of big bodies on this roster. That was probably the least expected piece for me in terms of the actual position group numbers. 10 offensive linemen and seven defensive lineman was expected. I expected nine and six, respectively.
Four edge rushers? My biggest concern. The Packers have to hope they can get creative bringing pressure with inside linebackers and the secondary. Collin Oliver being designated to return is hopeful to an extent, but he’ll return after four weeks right as Micah Parsons is getting ready to go. If any one of the four rushers goes down, depth is scarce. I thought the Packers might keep Nyjalik Kelly on the 53 for that reason. But I was glad to see he at least stuck around on the practice squad.
And special teams? Maybe something special this season? Wishful thinking, probably. But boy it would be nice to have a kicker again. Mason Crosby was so clutch for so long. I like not having to hold my breath anytime the Packers go for a field goal.
Thanks for keeping the mailbag afloat, Jim! I can’t believe next week we’ll be talking about Week 1. As always, send your questions to chtvmailbag@gmail.com. We made it! Go Pack Go!
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Maggie Loney is a writer for Cheesehead TV and podcaster for Pack's What She Said. Find her on Bluesky at @MaggieJLoney.