Green Bay Packers: Potential roster cut additions in free agency

Kendrick Lewis, S, Baltimore

Lewis already became a cap casualty for the Ravens, but he can easily be a useful contributor to a team. He missed most of the past year with injury concerns (just 17 snaps), but when healthy he was a pretty good piece for the Ravens.

Green Bay doesn’t need nearly as much help at safety as they do cornerback, but there should be more concern for the spot than we’ve given credence to so far. This team plays a ton of defensive snaps in the nickel package (five defensive backs), and within those snaps are an abundance of “Big Nickel” looks (i.e.: using three safeties instead of three corners).

For a large portion of those snaps over the years, we’ve seen Hyde lining up in that spot, acting as an excellent combination of both corner and safety skills; if he leaves, there is a gigantic gap left behind, one that will be hard to fill with any one player.

Besides just that, Morgan Burnett is a guy who’s missed chunks of time due to various injuries in his Packers tenure (missed 22 out of 112 possible games since he was drafted; only managed two 16-game seasons, and none since 2012). A lot of those injuries have been hamstring-related; many players who come down with those have a tendency to suffer more of them in the future (Clay Matthews, for example).

Lewis would be a clear drop-off from what Hyde provides, but his addition could take some of the sting off potentially losing Hyde (or, if Hyde does re-sign, he would be nice insurance over injuries that may hit the position).

Alternative Option: Rahim Moore (S; NYG)

Moore was a part of multiple decent Denver defenses. In those four seasons he was on the team, Denver was a top-10 DVOA unit twice; in terms of run defense DVOA (the area his skill set helps the most), the team was top-10 three times (including twice in the top 5).

His time since his Denver days hasn’t gone well, however. He went to Houston in the 2015 offseason, but had an underachieving year; from there, he was subsequently cut, picked up by Cleveland, and cut again right before the season. Nobody signed him again until the Giants grabbed him on a reserve/futures contract in January, and depending how their plans go in free agency and the draft he could again be on the chopping block.

If he hits the open market again, Green Bay could see him as a depth piece at safety and give him a chance to revitalize his career (to a degree at least) with their many three-safety looks. He’d be a downgrade if he has to step into a starting role for long stretches, but as a depth piece there would be decent value at giving him a shot.

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