While there are still some high-profile free agents who have yet to find a home, the vast majority of the big-name players who hit the market this year have, although none of those players signed with the Green Bay Packers.
Okay, so nobody ever really expected the Packers to hit the market hard, and they certainly didn't. On the first day of the legal tampering period, a day during which $2.3 billion worth of new contracts were handed out, Green Bay didn't contribute a single dollar to that total. Instead, the big move made that day was trading Rashan Gary to the Dallas Cowboys.
Gary was going to be released anyway, so Brian Gutekunst does deserve some credit for getting a fourth-round draft pick out of Jerry Jones.
Gary obviously isn't the only now-former Packer who'll be wearing a new uniform last season, as Elgton Jenkins (Browns), Nate Hobbs (49ers), Romeo Doubs (Patriots), Malik Willis (Dolphins), Quay Walker (Raiders), Kingsley Enagbare (Jets), Rasheed Walker (Panthers), Emanuel Wilson (Seahawks), Zayne Anderson (Dolphins), and Colby Wooden (Colts) are all gone as well.
Green Bay did eventually make some moves, of course. In addition to re-signing/tendering several of their own free agents, the most significant of which was Sean Rhyan to the tune of three years and $33 million, Gutekunst did add a little external help, signing defensive lineman Javon Hargrave, cornerback Benjamin St-Juste, and wide receiver/return specialist Skyy Moore. Zaire Franklin was also added in the player-for-player trade that sent Wooden to Indianapolis.
Given the overall lack of movement, the Packers have obviously taken plenty of heat, both from fans and pundits alike. And ESPN has now gone as far as to say that only two teams have handled things worse than Green Bay has over these last two-plus weeks.
The Packers ranked 30th in ESPN's free agency class rankings
Earlier this week, ESPN's Ben Solak took the time to rank the free agency performances of all 32 teams, taking signings, re-signings, and trade acquisitions into account, also throwing departures into the mix.
And given that formula, it really should come as no surprise that the Packers ranked near the bottom, ultimately landing at No. 30, with only the Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers below them. Here's how Solak assessed what Green Bay has done (or hasn't done) thus far:
"I didn't love: The whole philosophy, frankly. On defense, the Packers lost over 3,000 snaps following the departures of Colby Wooden, Rashan Gary, Kingsley Enagbare, Quay Walker and Nate Hobbs. The offensive line lost another 1,018 snaps when Rasheed Walker left and 516 when Elgton Jenkins was cut. And Romeo Doubs' consistent availability (795 snaps) mattered a lot in a receiver room otherwise plagued with injury.
"It's OK to draft and develop, but guys such as Enagbare and Walker signed extremely palatable one-year deals elsewhere. Green Bay's payroll got a lot cheaper this cycle and the team expects four compensatory picks in the 2027 draft -- a huge haul. But it didn't need relief that badly. And it sure didn't get better."
Solak did praise the Hargrave signing, noting that he should "return to his pocket-wrecking ways" by reuniting with defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon.
For the most part, that's a pretty solid assessment. I don't think many Cheeseheads will miss Elgton Jenkins or Nate Hobbs, but I see what he was getting at.
It'll certainly be interesting to see what Hargrave brings to the table with Gannon at DC, but don't sleep on the Benjamin St-Juste signing, as he was one of the highest-graded corners in the league last year with the Chargers, albeit in a reserve role.
Green Bay still has a strong roster from an overall standpoint, and maybe Gutekunst has some sort of wild trade idea up his sleeve leading into the draft. Or even after the draft, for that matter. For now, though, the Packers are probably right where they should be on this particular list.