The Green Bay Packers let John FitzPatrick walk in free agency, and that has proven to be the right move. Even with the uncertainty surrounding Tucker Kraft's injury recovery and with Luke Musgrave not doing much to step up in his absence, FitzPatrick could barely get on the field.
Now, with three weeks of free agency almost in the record books, there has been little to no buzz around him. And, judging by the current picture in the tight end market, it doesn't look like he's got a ton of options.
The Walls Might be Closing in on John FitzPatrick
FitzPatrick played 335 snaps last season, suiting up in all but the final three games of the year. He only saw more than 22 snaps in a single game six times last season, and five of those instances came after Kraft's injury. He was there mostly for blocking purposes, as his seven receptions for 48 total yards during that stretch would indicate, and a season-ending injury ultimately made him lose snaps to Josh Whyle and even Drake Dabney.
Most of the top-ranked tight ends have already found new homes. Dallas Goedert, Chig Okonkwo, Isaiah Likely, Travis Kelce, Austin Hooper, Cade Otton, Tyler Conklin, and Noah Fant have all signed deals. That leaves just a handful of teams looking for tight ends, and with the likes of David Njoku, Zach Ertz, Taysom Hill, and Jonnu Smith still available, teams are unlikely to look FitzPatrick's way.
FitzPatrick is a three-year veteran, and he's spent the past couple of seasons in Wisconsin. The tight end has made 24 appearances in Green Bay, with four starts (all last season). In that time, he's logged just 13 receptions on 16 targets for 74 yards and one score as a Packer. Per Pro Football Focus, he drew a solid 73.6 pass-blocking grade and a 66.0 run-blocking grade, so it's not like he's unplayable. That said, modern tight ends are also required to be playmakers in the passing game, and he may not have that in him.
To make things even worse for him, his gruesome season-ending leg injury only raised more doubts about him. Teams are unlikely to roll the dice on a non-pass-catching tight end coming off a major injury, not even with Spotrac projecting his market value to be just $1.2 million.
As things stand, his best shot at making another roster will be to get back to full strength and hope to get a training camp invite. From there, he can be a solid practice squad addition and ultimately fight his way back to a 53-man roster. For now, though, his phone isn't likely to ring very often.