Don Barclay: Why is he still on the roster of the Green Bay Packers?
Don Barclay has had his ups and downs with the Green Bay Packers and his inconsistency has left him continuing to have to prove himself.
Why is Don Barclay still a member of the Green Bay Packers?
First off, he is under contract … and with a very team-friendly deal.
According to Spotrac.com, here is how Barclay’s contract came about:
"Don Barclay signed a 1 year, $1,025,000 contract with the Green Bay Packers, including a $150,000 signing bonus, $150,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $1,025,000. In 2017, Barclay will earn a base salary of $775,000, a signing bonus of $150,000 and a workout bonus of $100,000, while carrying a cap hit of $1,025,000 and a dead cap value of $150,000."
Definitely a good deal when considering it’s for an NFL player.
OK, I can hear you chuckling now, “Don Barclay? An NFL player?”
Thus the question – why is Don Barclay still a member of the Green Bay Packers?
Experience is the key phrase here. GM Ted Thompson likes that factor – it’s a positive that Don Barclay brings to the table.
Versatility is also something goin the Barclay’s favor -though it appears Barclay is much better on the interior … or at least his mistakes aren’t as visible … as they are on the outside of the line.
He’s always been seen as a mauler – a guy who, when he gets his grip, he hangs on pretty well.
Don’t ask Barclay to impress with his feet. It won’t happen. In fact, you could probably list a number of times when youve see Barclay stumble and bumble around before finally losing control and letting his guy descend on Aaron Rodgers.
The statistics and evaluations confirm those observations.
In 2015, while coming off knee surgery in the offseason, Barclay played in 36 percent of that season’s snaps. Though he played sparingly, he still gave up nine sacks.
Profootballfocus.com ranked Barclay 76th among all tackles in the league at the end of that season – that is out of 77 tackles in the league.
Yeah, that’s bad.
He hasn’t gotten much better.
In 2016, he finished the season with an overall score of 46. 5. At least he was consistently in both the run and pass game. He came in with a score of 43.5 in the pass blocking game and 46.8 in the running game.
Here is what I wrote about him previously on this site:
"He’s just a blue collar, solid backup with extensive starting experience who will not only bring that experience to the table, but also has the skills to play at just about any position across the line."
That was at the beginning of the 2015 season.
More from Green Bay Packers News
- Packers: Picks in NFL.com mock draft would be a home run
- Packers salary cap update following second week of free agency
- Packers’ cornerback depth chart after second week of free agency
- Packers’ edge rusher depth chart after second week of free agency
- Packers’ tackle depth chart after second week of free agency
Barclay was an undrafted free agent who was brought to Green Bay by Ted Thompson out of West Virginia in 2012.
Remember when everyone asked why Jarrett Bush was still on the Packers roster? He had a rough start to his career, but Bush was a talented player on special teams and also added depth to the defensive backfield. That’s why he stuck around.
Could it be a similar situation with Barclay?
Given the fact that the guys listed below are also on the 90-man roster, one wonders how long Don Barclay will be around.
Guards on the Packers current roster include the following:
Adam Pankey
Gray, Geoff
OK, so we don’t know much about the majority of these players, with the exception of Evans, but one has to guess that the competition for Barclay will be stiff heading into the remainder of OTAs, mini-camps and training camp.
Stay tuned …
Don Barclay career statistics, as provided by profootballreference.com:
D