For anyone who has experienced F.O.M.O (Fear of missing out), it's become a regularly recurring theme in Green Bay Packer fans' households come every free agency period.
Like clockwork, the free agency bell tolls, teams sprint to sign the best names on the market, and more times than not, the Packers sit idly by as good teams get better.
That's not to say General Manager Brian Gutekunst hasn't been aggressive in past offseasons, and sometimes he is, instead, very passive, but the Packers have always tried to strike a balance in their approach to free agency or roster building in general.
Not signing players right away or strapping the cap space for a player who eats up a large percentage of the cap doesn't mean the front office is doing wrong by the team. The Packers, in particular, are a team that cares as much about the long-term as they do the short-term.
Free agency is a time for general managers to choose their battles and weigh more decisions around acquiring a player than fans really care to acknowledge as they're screaming from the sidelines who is best for their team - the theatre of it all is the beauty of fandom.
In this free agency, the Packers took to the dotted line with Left Guard Aaron Banks and Cornerback Nate Hobbs. Neither are by any means "splash" signings, but as the Packers moved off Josh Myers, Eric Stokes, and likely Jaire Alexander soon, both players keep the Packers at least at baseline for both cornerback and offensive line rooms. Hobbs packs a bit more upside coming in as one of the better slot corners in football, who the Packers likely see as help on the perimeter while adding versatility to their scheme.
For a free agency class that wasn't particularly suited to fulfill the Packers' most pressing needs, there were a few takeaways on both sides of the aisle.
The Good
Not Selling The Soul For DK
DK Metcalf was arguably the biggest name that became available for the Packers to go after to upgrade the offense. However, from the jump, the Seattle Seahawks maintained a high asking price and DK maintained an ever higher one for his new contract.
Metcalf would have undoubtedly provided a huge jolt to the Packers' offense, but coughing up a second-round pick and $33 million per season instantly diminishes the move. For a $33 million wide receiver, there better be no doubt about it: That player is in the top three at his position; DK is not.
Simply put, there's a reason 31 other teams were not chomping at the bit to offload assets and an absurdly large pile of cash for him.
Not Prioritizing Veteran Rentals To Fill DT Needs
While the Packers have room for improvement and a need to upgrade at a spot like defensive tackle, this free agency class was not really fit to provide that player, and no player became available via trade that would put that unit over the top.
Unfortunately, the rest of the NFC North decided to dip their toes in the market, with veterans Javon Hargrave, Grady Jarrett, and Jonathan Allen joining the division.
While those are three quality players, all are over 30, and the Packers already have their own 30-year-old defensive tackle at home with Kenny Clark, who still offers as much upside as any of those players. Each of them joins their new team as a short-term help.
As Clark is likely on his final season or two in Green Bay, the Packers now shift their attention to adding young talent to eventually pair with a still-ascending Devonte Wyatt, who the Packers gave a vote of confidence in by not acquiring a veteran to eat at his snaps, despite parting with Slaton.
In the short term, that allows the Packers to attack with a still valuable Clark, Wyatt, a more complete and high-upside defensive tackle taking Slaton's snaps, and Karl Brooks. In the long term, the Packers are ideally set up for years with a very strong pairing of Wyatt and, ideally, the rookie they turn their attention to early in the draft.
Russ Ball Did Russ Ball Things
The Packers signing Banks was certainly surprising, given that offensive line is not a need for them right now. That said, being set in the trenches is never an issue, and the Packers were torched by the Eagles in the playoffs without the contributions of Elgton Jenkins.
Banks' contract, however, is a bit steep for his modest yet inconsistent production over his career.
But the light at the end of the tunnel is how, in classic Packers fashion, they were very non-commital and made sure they protected themselves financially despite the large dollar signs attached to the Banks deal. Ultimately, Banks will consume under $10 million of the 2025 cap space and less than half of his base value is guaranteed. In short, it's a very cheap one-year deal for an offensive line market that has increasinlg ybecome more expensive.
At the end of the day, the Packers really only signed him to a one-year deal with three team options attached.
Similarly, the Packers can move off of Hobbs after one season, only incurring a small dead cap hit. Even so, the deal is set up more as a two-year contract with team options to fill out the remainder.
The Bad
There Were Options...
While the free agency class wasn't overly strong and there weren't many realistic options available for the Packers to close in on, there were still a few players who could have provided a big boost to the Packers.
Players like DJ Reed signing a 3-year, $48 million contract with the Detroit Lions arguably stings the most. Not only did the Packers lose out on a high-end talent at a position they need to upgrade, but they lost him to the current best team in the division at a more than affordable price tag.
EDGE Josh Sweat signing with the Arizona Cardinals is another player who would have been a defining move to fix the Packers' underwhelming edge rush production. While he didn't also sign in the division, he signed for roughly the same contract the Packers signed Banks to despite edge rush being a far greater need.
While players like Myles Garrett or Maxx Crosby were never actually available for trade, and nor were they realistic for the Packers to pursue financially or from the perspective of what it'd cost to acquire them, the Packers can still redeem these two misses by bringing in All-Pro Trey Hendrickson, who the Cincinnati Bengals allowed to seek a trade.
Should a move for Hendrickson not pan out, there are still some options to add instant value to the pass rush, but nothing that really puts the Packers over the top unless things were to go perfectly. Anyone left at this point either has maybes attached to their name or just isn't as sure of a bet to be what Green Bay needs to ascend the team to the next tier of dominance. Hendrickson is currently the only available "sure bet" who does that, which is exactly what Green Bay needs more than a player who maybe will be good for them.
Hinging Success On More Young Players
The Packers are no strangers to winning with a young roster over the past two seasons, making back-to-back playoff trips with the youngest team in football.
However, as they look to overcome a playoff hurdle en route to at least a championship game appearance, this offseason was an appropriate time, with the available capital, to bring in a big-ticket free agent signing to help put the team over the top in at least one spot of need.
Instead, should Green Bay forgo adding a top edge rusher via trade, after not signing a top corner like Reed, plus this not being a strong wide receiver group, the Packers will need another draft class to pull serious weight right off the bat.
That's not to say they won't be able to piece together a strong draft class to provide immediate upgrades. There's just inherently more risk involved, and Gutekunst hasn't necessarily been smashing home runs with his first-round picks.
With Christian Watson sidelined for most of 2025, Kenny Clark aging, uncertainty in the rotation ordeal still going on across from Gary, and no elite-tier cornerback on the roster, the Packers will need to lean on the current group of young players to further progress in their development.
No matter, the Packers have not brought in premier talent via free agency or trade so far. To help this team's immediate ascent, they will need to also target rookies at wide receiver, defensive tackle, defensive end, and even cornerback.
It's not an impossible mission; it's just more improbable that it will help as much in the immediate term as it might two or three years down the road. This is obviously not exactly the strategy fans were hoping for coming into the offseason, especially after Gutekunst uttered the word "urgency."
At this point, the best case is they still execute a trade for a player like Hendrickson and then focus their draft around more NFL-ready talents who are best suited to step into an important role on day one. As opposed to a developmental player like Van Ness was drafted as.
Risk was one area the Packers would have ideally been able to avoid a bit more this offseason as they enter an important season in terms of the currently open window to win. However, as it stands now, adding players who assume more risk than someone like Reed, Sweat or Hendrickson (for now) is very much front and center of the Packers' blueprint for improving the roster for next season.
PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHEESEHEAD NATION WEEKLY NEWSLETTER HERE.
__________________________
Based in Seattle, Austin's roots are in Wisconsin and he bleeds Green & Gold. He also currently writes for Lombardi Ave and has been featured on various Packers podcasts. Follow him on Twitter at @AustinKrueger_.
__________________________
NFL Categories:
Green Bay Packers