Green Bay Packers: 3 Cost Effective Free Agent IDLs Still Worth Targeting

Jurrell Casey

Jurrell Casey is another player similar to Harrison and Short in that he may not be as dominant as he once was, but in a reduced role with the Green Bay Packers, he could still make an impact.

Casey spent the 2020 season with Denver but would only appear in three games before suffering a bicep injury which ended his season. Prior to that, he spent his entire career with Tennessee, where he made an impact against both the run and the pass.

The five-time Pro Bowler logged at least 42 pressures, including a career-high of 64 in 2017, and five sacks every season between 2013 and 2019. Meanwhile, against the run, Casey ranked in the top-15 among interior defensive linemen in PFF’s run-stop percentage from 2014 to 2018.

Again, expectations shouldn’t be that 2015 Jurrell Casey is the type of player that Green Bay would be adding, but Casey could still certainly leave his mark in a rotational role.

Bonus: Geno Atkins

Admittedly, I’m not sure what kind of contract Geno Atkins will land, and there is the possibility that he could be out of Green Bay’s price range. Chances are that he is the most expensive player on this list, and that is why I have him listed as a bonus option–I see the other three players being more realistic candidates, financially speaking, but I wanted to mention him since I know he is on the radar of fans.

A former fourth-round pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010, Atkins has had a highly productive career. He is a two-time first-team All-Pro totaling 100 tackles for loss, 75.5 sacks, and 596 pressures during his career. More recently, from 2017 to 2019, Atkins averaged 62 pressures and eight sacks each of those seasons. For some context, Za’Darius Smith totaled 59 pressures and 14 sacks in 2020 as an edge rusher.

And while still a good run defender, Atkins has made his mark over his career getting after the quarterback and doing so primarily from the B-gap, where he has lined up most of his career.

At 33-years old and coming off a 2020 season where he played just 119 snaps over eight games, it’s fair to wonder how much Atkins has left in the tank. But when it comes to the Green Bay Packers, for the right price, I wouldn’t mind finding out.