Green Bay Packers: It Still Wouldn’t Hurt to Add to IDL Room
By Paul Bretl
Back when the NFL free agency period first opened, it was reported by ESPN’s Rob Demovsky that the Green Bay Packers were “active” in the interior defensive line market.
However, here we sit mid-July with training camp right around the corner, and the only “addition” that the team has made along the defensive line position was the re-signing of Tyler Lancaster. They would also draft TJ Slaton.
A team being “active” on the free-agent market can have a number of different meanings. Perhaps it was just GM Brian Gutekunst calling around to see what type of contract some players were looking to land. But regardless of how serious — or not serious — the Green Bay Packers were about addressing the position earlier this offseason, they ultimately prioritized other needs.
Looking ahead to this 2021 season, I feel better about this interior defensive line room than what I have in years past. Kenny Clark is Kenny Clark, and as I’ve discussed before, hopefully, we see him in a more advantageous role as a 4-tech defender.
I also expect Kingsley Keke to take another step forward in Year 3, and I’m a big fan of the Slaton selection and what he can add to this defensive front as a true nose tackle. And who knows, maybe we see a revitalized Dean Lowry in this new Joe Barry system.
Yet with all that said, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room to try to upgrade this position, or at a minimum, bolster the depth with some experience.
As much as I like Slaton, he’s still a fifth-round rookie, and Tyler Lancaster is a limited player who fills a specific role as a run defender. There is also Willington Previlon, a 2020 UDFA, and Jack Heflin, a 2021 UDFA—two relative unknowns.
An injury to Clark, Keke, or Lowry and the Green Bay Packers are relying on some very inexperienced players to play meaningful snaps. With only seven interior defenders on the entire 90-man roster and likely five of them being on the 53-man, there’s just not a lot of wiggle room to absorb any injuries that may occur.
This is why I believe that adding a veteran free agent should still be something that’s on the table for the Green Bay Packers.
Now, I’ll start by saying there isn’t anyone out there that is going to step in and make a huge impact on this team. Rather, the expectation should be that any signing would help bolster the depth, and hopefully, in a rotational role, that player will be able to find some success. But by no means should we think that there is a game-changer that Green Bay will add to this roster.
A few veteran names still on the market include Damon ‘Snacks’ Harrison, Jurrell Casey, Kawann Short, and Geno Atkins—although he may be out of Green Bay’s price range.
Of course, when discussing any addition, we need to discuss the salary cap. According to Over the Cap, Green Bay has $5.08 million in available cap space. They’ll need to use some of that to still sign third-round draft pick Amari Rodgers, the 52nd and 53rd players on the roster, as well as have funds available for the practice squad, but it’s also not like any signing would break the bank either.
I can’t speak for Atkins’ potential contract — I’m just not sure — but the other players that I listed will likely sign for the veteran minimum or close to it. While Green Bay has been short on money this offseason, that shouldn’t deter them from adding to the interior defensive line room if the right player is available.
If — and I stress the word if — the Green Bay Packers are going to make another signing, my guess is that it won’t take place until we get through a portion of training camp so that they can see how things unfold.
In the end, if I had to guess, I’ll say that they don’t make another addition to the interior defensive line, but I’m also not willing to completely write it off either. As I mentioned above, I believe this unit can be better than what they have been recently, but that doesn’t mean that Green Bay shouldn’t look for any players to add to the rotation, and they’re also just one injury away from being short-handed.