Not much to agree with in this article for me.

I disagree with your take that the Packers don't like any of the RB's in the draft. Signing Dillon to a cheap 1 year deal screams to me that they are targeting Jonathan Brooks. They will have Dillon as a place holder if Brooks has to start the season on the PUP.

Would someone please tell me. Do the Packers have something in Brenton Cox, jr. or not? Seems to me, on paper, he is the real deal. On occasion I read snip-its about him but nothing about where he is in his development after one year.

I don't want to hear about his college shenanigans, I'd just like to know if he is on the verge?

At some point, hopefully soon, we won't have any more Aaron Jones stories. I'm not too worried about Jones. He will likely be hurt and on IR during the season. Better the Vikings are paying him for that.

Nixon: how many times has he turned around games? Plus he does TWO things for the Packers. The team could have let him go, but then they would need to find a slot corner AND a Pro Bowl level returner. If AJ Dillon also played linebacker would you pay him more?

I do want to talk about the Justin Fields story. Of course I hate the Bears but the treatment Fields received from the team and the fans is shameful. The front office largely gave him a horsecrap offensive line and mediocre players elsewhere with just a couple of exceptions. He handled the adversity with grace. He is not a bad quarterback. I thought if he was with the Eagles and their offensive line you would see the talent he has. Being in Pittsburgh gives him a chance to reestablish himself with a solid organization and good, not great, offense. Russell Wilson looks to be a one year rental then Fields will have a chance to show his ability.
The Steelers got much better at quarterback and it won't cost them $50 million a year like it will with Jordan Love and the Packers.

Some good points made. However, the criticism of Nixon was a bit harsh. He did an admirable job as the slot CB. Particularly in light of him never having played the position before. Moreover, he made the pro bowl as a kick returner. I think he earned a raise.

"The lesson to be learned here is always take what a head coach or general manager says in a news conference with a grain of salt."

OMG...An NFL General Manager wasn't truthful... He said one thing and then did another... Drew Rosenhaus got the better of Gute... Gimmie a fucking break!!!

Maybe I'm not as big of an Aaron Jones fans as I thought. Don't get me wrong, I was as bummed out as the next Packers fan when Jones was released, but it's been a week now and I've read more than one article about how WRONG Brian Gutekunst was in this whole thing...Get OVER it!

The last thing I want the GM of the Green Bay Packers doing is being 100% honest when he's talking to the media or anyone else for that matter. The TRUTH is Brian Gutekunst does his job WELL. He's able to make those tough decisions, the ones NO ONE will like or even want to do but he does them anyways because it's BEST for the Packers.

The Green Bay Packers are BETTER than they were a week ago this time before the tampering period started, AND their getting Salary Cap healthy. Instead of snivelling over a player a week later, get PUMPED as hell at the roster Gute has put together. Now only did they get better, the youngest team in the NFL got even younger after last week and they haven't even had the draft.

Life is GOOD as a Packers fan...Thanks Gutey!

-- Speaking of popular players, bringing back AJ Dillon makes little sense to me.

I was surprised that they resigned Dillon. I like Dillon, I really do. But he has not really been the guy we thought we would get in the draft. I'm hoping he comes in a bit lighter. What I like about having Dillon though is knows the system, he is good in pass pro and he can be the bruising type of RB.
What his signing tells me though is that they will be looking for a speedier type of RB in the draft. I don't know exactly how his contract works though so perhaps, they signed him for insurance incase they can't get a RB they want. And if they get a RB they want, maybe they let him go.

-- Six million per year for Keisean Nixon? The Packers need to upgrade the slot corner position, but at that salary level, Nixon is being paid like a starter.

Question. Are we sure Hafley is going to view Nixon as a CB? Or will he consider trying him at Safety? Maybe there is a reason why they haven't signed another Safety yet? Perhaps Hafley views him as a Safety?
If not, I don't think Nixon is a bad CB. He didn't rate too far off from the really good slot CB's.

-- Former Green Bay linebacker De’Vondre Campbell said that the Packers’ defense played better at the end of the season because he was meeting personally with head coach Matt LaFleur and urging him to make the defense more aggressive.

I'm curious to when players started going to LaFleur.

-- I knew the market for Bears quarterback Justin Fields was weak, but wow. They couldn’t do better than a sixth round conditional pick from the Steelers?

Not that I want to see the Bears succeed but if all they were going to get was a 6th round picks, why wouldn't they just keep him? They could still draft their favorite QB at 1. But by keeping Fields they could have started him as the starter until Williams or whoever was ready to take over. But also that may have helped Fields turn the corner. If Fields picked it up they could have gotten a good haul of draft picks. Sure its a gamble, but they definitely could have gotten something better out of him. And it allowed their QB time to develop. And even if Fields was a backup, they could have found ways to use his speed in the offense.
I get they were ready to move on, but from the outside looking in, it makes no sense to me to just give a player away when they could be an asset.

Why is it so hard to believe that we all love and appreciate Aaron Jones, but to give him big $ at this point would be a mistake? And since when does ANY GM just put all his cards on the table?

I know it’s the dead season, but the endless debate about a negotiation we know nothing about the details is tired beyond belief. We don’t know how it went down, so it’s just arguing about our own conjectures. Pointless.

Ken, is this a "tongue-in-cheek" article? Is this just you trying to be contrary, that you are trying to write something that is opposite to what you want to say/convey? 😜😜😜

Not some of your best work Ken.

You know what Gutey was thinking, and have determined he was insincere in his negotiations. Right...that's the take in the NFL...Brian Gutekuenst is not to be trusted or believed...certainly not a much as some agent on commission working for millionaire players.

$6 M for a player that AVERAGES 12 touches a game. $353,000 per game...$29,000 per touch was "insincere". And the fear in your heart having to face Jones and a Vikings twice a year! You really believe, for the first time his career, Jones is going to be a work horse RB in Ugly Purple with 25 carries a game...on turf, nearing age 30. OK!

Meanwhile, Nixon also was offered $6 M/year also doesn't make sense to you. He not only showed he can play slot, he improved during the season doing so for the first time. And you gloss over that the NFL is planning to bring back KO returns in a big way in 2024. Nixon's value went straight up.

Dillon makes no sense being back on a near vet's minimum, virtually no risk K? And just because he's a bigger back like Jacobs? Maybe his lower yards/rush while the oft injured Jones was on the bench was due to chronic OL run blocking issues every fan saw? As the run blocking greatly improved during the push to the playoffs, Dillon was more productive as a result. I think Dillon's return on this K is amazingly good.

I agree with your take the reputation of Jordan Love is growing in the NFL and players want to play with him. But not Jones, however. Gutey knowingly "forced" him refuse a $6 M deal to play with the up and coming star QB.

I just hope players will continue to want to play in Green Bay with such deceitful, manipulative GM of Player Personnel.

On Dillon:
"The move tells me the Packers don’t really like any of the running backs in the upcoming draft. "

Or, you as a fan, are getting played again by a GM that says one thing in public, but has other designs for the team long term. Who saw the signing of Jacobs coming? No one. If Gute had publicly announced they are moving on from Jones and showed an interest in Jacobs, what a very different outcome might have happened. It's smart business. Publicly say one thing for insurance, while behind the scenes, make other plans.

So now he resigns Dillon. Possible public show of not only insurance, but create doubt for the need for a RB in the draft. Do you think Gute is more interested in what the fans might believe, or what other GM's might believe? Doubt created. Works for me if it allows him to get what the team needs.

The Godfather comes to mind. Vito Corleone - "Never tell anyone outside the Family what you are thinking again"

Ken Lass is usually a bit more fair minded than this swipe at Gutekunst. Yes, Gute may have engaged in "media speak" regarding Jones, but Lass ignored Jones' hiring of Drew Rosenhaus as well as the plethora of free agent running backs available this year. The market for aging running backs appears to be in significant decline in the NFL which was the backdrop for a confrontation between Jones/Rosenhaus and the Packers. This was a negotiation which had failure written all over it right from the start. I was sad but not surprised to see Jones leave and it was a departure engineered by both sides.

I hope this is the last CHTV article on Jones departure. We have beaten this horse to death.

Insincerity abounds in the NFL, as do less-than-truthful GMs. Gute did his job.

Who knows what those rascally Vikings are up to. Will they solve their QB dilemma this century? Will they assign Aaron Jones Herschel Walker's old number? Don't care. Moving on. It's a bright football future for Packers fans and I'm looking forward.

Why do people keep saying Dillon and Jacobs are the same kind of back? The tape says otherwise. Emphatically. Yeah, they are both punishing runners, but Jacobs plays like he's Dillon's size with a game speed similar to Jones. I'm excited to see it play out. 4 quarters of tackling those guys is gonna suck for defenses.

Hoping they can add Jaylen Wright in the draft so we have some serious wheels in there, too. That would be an extra nasty combo.

I don’t care about GM words about what’s going to happen you have to deal with the market reality always! AJ had a contract that wasn’t ever going to stand so deal with the reality of the market regardless of what happened in history. Today the market is X, your agent thinks it’s low so try to get a bit more than X MN did…oh well.

Just got a new 2023 Aviator and thought it was worth $10k under msrp. Tried two local dealers and they scoffed at my offer. I had to drive to Minneapolis Friday to get my deal so that’s a long day and sacrifice I had make if I believed in my deal. Why did I believe in my offer? There were Aviators in MD,PA and GA that were advertising $10k+ discounts just none in WI. It’s still the market reality and for shame on AJ/agent for thinking $6 million was outrageous offer. They took their ball and went elsewhere…oh well.

I dont think this is a very fair assessment of Gute. If Gute's plan all along was to release Jones then why did he wait till they signed Jacobs to release Jones? Because they didnt want to release him. They wanted him back. Unfortunately the business side of things didnt line up. There was no malice here. If anything, the malice belongs to the guy who signed with the damn Vikings just to get revenge.

Welcome to planet of the apes Ken.
Where money can buy anything.
(If you don't have it ) Steal it.-
You take from one and give it to another.
The Packer way is dead.
All hail Ceasar.

The Bears moved up one spot to get Mitch Trubisky. They gave SF their third (for SF's second); a second and third that same draft, and a third rounder the following year. Then again, SF gave up three first rounders so they could draft Trey Lance. Then again, the Packers swapped first and threw in a third to get Jordan Love. And we all know the story of Brock Purdy. The draft is a crap shoot, and you lose a lot more than you win.

Ken's article is reasonable conclusion at this time and place. A second paycut, and very significant one would have been humiliating and demotivating, so wasn't really tenable. It was not likely to be accepted. Evidence is that the market value for Jones was at least 7 million for his production and versatility. Rosenhaus curated the market, so the range was understood. GB's offer was within 1 million. Then bring back Dillon? Yes, the NFL is a business, but some managers understand the value of people in the business.....just like other companies out in the business world. Talented people who know they have options certainly consider such above pure dollars.

Despite disagreement with that move, reality is now here and we'll all certainly understand more pending Gute's final work in roster building for the year. I might praise him later if he acquires an upgrade in the RB unit. Until then, we can grumble if we want..... thanks ken.

Like many other comments above, ENOUGH about Jones! Yes, we're all a little saddened with his leaving. But, the game and the Packers go on.

This idea that Gutes talks GM talk? Newsflash- he is a GM. Another Newsflash- things change quickly in the NFL and a good GM must react accordingly. Frankly, we have one of the best GMs in this league so writers who say otherwise - on a slow news day - don't impress me much. Nor do the ignorant Gutey haters... Imagine if we had one of the many "successful" Bears' GMs here? There's a sobering thought.

Like at the end of last season, I am again excited for us. Many things can still happen in the draft and before the start of next season. GPG

I wasn't aware that it is Sensationalistic News Month at CHTV. First, a couple of days ago, a headline - "Rosenhaus Won and Gutekunst Lost. " Now today - "Offer to Jones Not Sincere." Tomorrow - " Did Gutekunst Really Take Someone's Lunch In High Schoo1?" Sheesh!

How much of the alleged low-ball offer was a knock against Aaron Jones and how much of the alleged low-ball offer was a knock against his agent, Drew Rosenhaus. Remember, Aaron Jones changed agents to Rosenhaus after he inked his deal with Green Bay last year. A move to Rosenhaus signifies to all that Aaron wants the big money. However, the market collapsed at the RB position (for a nearly 30 year old RB) and he isn't worth the amount of money that he was under contract for. When he was asked to take a pay cut, after he had changed agents to one who is known for getting big money for his players, the writing was on the wall. If the Packers were faced with a long protracted negotation over a player who missed 11 games last year, or moving on to a younger player who has more left in the tank, they were going to move on. Surely Rosenhaus must have known this. It was this negotiation between Gutekunst, negotiating on behalf of the team, and Rosenhaus, negotating on behalf of his client, which put the player, Aaron Jones, into a pickle. Jones had to choose between loyalty to the team that drafted him and fan base that loved him, and a higher payday in the light of a collapsing RB market. He chose the money over loyalty. It was his choice to make. That's why he hired Rosenhaus. At the end of the day, it is still a business between the player and the management.

I sure hope its "the Lass" time we have an article about Jones and his departure...write about the Packers, Jones is gone now...

Of course it was sincere. Because it reflected his ACTUAL current value based on age and recent injury history.
It was also fair.
Aaron Jones didn't think it was insincere. He thought it was unfair.
Thus he rejected it.
And time will tell.
Very good chance he doesn't provide the value of the number he signed for this year and loses 5 games to injury this year.
Smart Gutey, as usual.

Why do we assume Gute was being insincere? His statement looks perfectly honest to me. Wanting him back and acknowledging his career and contributions is quite different than ignoring the market, ignoring his injury history and ignoring his age when you are negotiating and team building. An incentive laden offer of $6 million is a damn good one that he could easily have taken if he truly wanted to stay. Remember the Packers were looking to pay J. Taylor last year, tipping their hand on what they thought of Jones durability and Dillon's capability as an RB1. I'm pretty confident that during the negotiations to reduce Jones salary last year he was made perfectly aware that if certain conditions weren't me health and durability) that they would revisit his contract. Thus hiring Drew Rosenhouse. I think you will see several more signings leading up to the draft to fill glaring needs at safety and LB, not glamorous players but functional NFL players on the cheap. Then it's BPA during the draft.