Green Bay Packers Cut ’em or Keep ’em & Prediction: Devin Funchess
By Paul Bretl
With the Green Bay Packers roughly $20 million over the salary cap at the moment, as GM Brian Gutekunst said not long ago, they’re going to have to make some “tough decision.” And that means making cuts.
As the Packers try to get under the shrunken salary cap, there are a handful of players that they could move on from in lieu of some additional cap savings. So I’ll be taking a look at each one of these players in my “Cut ’em or Keep ’em & Predictions” series, whereas the title suggests, I’ll highlight why Green Bay should cut them, keep them, and I’ll make a final prediction.
If you missed my first piece on Dean Lowry, you can find that here. Now, I’ll be taking a look at wide receiver Devin Funchess, who opted-out of the 2020 season.
Related Story. Cut 'em or Keep 'em & Prediction: Dean Lowry. light
Why the Green Bay Packers could keep Devin Funchess
2021 Cap Hit: $2,365,625
If anything, keeping Devin Funchess for the 2021 season gives the Green Bay Packers another option at wide receiver, who has had success at the NFL level. His best season during his time in Carolina came with 63 receptions for 840 yards and eight touchdowns–those kinds of seasons just don’t happen by accident.
At 6’4″ – 225 pounds, Funchess is another big-bodied target for Aaron Rodgers, who knows how to used that size to create space and haul in catches. Not to mention that he and Rodgers have the potential of forming a nice one-two punch in the red zone. Funchess has also shown that he can lineup both out wide and in the slot–a must in the Matt LaFleur offense.
If brought back, expectations shouldn’t be that he is going to step in and be the team’s No. 2 receiver, but he can provide some experienced depth on an inexpensive contract. So if, or when, an injury occurs, Green Bay isn’t relying on back-end of the roster players.
Why the Green Bay Packers could cut Devin Funchess
2021 Cap Savings: $1,365,625
When Funchess takes the field in 2021, it’s going to be about two full seasons since he has played in an NFL game. He spent 2019 with the Indianapolis Colts but was injured in Week 1 and missed the rest of the season. Then there was the 2020 season that he opted-out of. That 840-yard season that I referenced above was almost four years ago, which is a long time in the NFL.
Truthfully, the Green Bay Packers don’t really know what they have in Funchess at this point, and there’s no guarantee that he’s an upgrade over Equanimeous St. Brown, who was the team’s fourth receiver at the end of the season.
By cutting Funchess, there isn’t a ton of money to be saved, but if the Green Bay Packers spend a draft pick on the position, I’m not sure that there will be room for him on the 53-man roster if they do decide to bring him in for training camp–especially when you consider how well this LaFleur offense spreads the ball around to tight ends and running backs in the passing game. Realistically, Funchess could end up being the fifth or sixth option at receiver.
Final Prediction
Again, like Dean Lowry, this is a tough decision to make, especially with the cap savings being so small. However, my guess is that the Green Bay Packers do decide to move on from Funchess, under the assumption that they do address the receiver position in the draft.
Next. Mock Draft Roundup & Takeaways 7.0. dark
If that’s the case, then the likely best-case scenario for Funchess, if he were to be brought back, is that he will be battling St. Brown and the rookie for the WR4 and WR5 roles–behind Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. And at that point, unless Funchess is playing really well, it makes sense to go with youth and upside.