6 free-agent moves from NFC North rivals that Packers fans can laugh at
With free agency slowing to a halt, it seems like it's as good a time as any to start looking back on what's happened. The Packers were plenty busy, making a half-dozen notable moves that included enduring a half-day's worth of running back drama to bring in Josh Jacobs and replacing Darnell Savage with former Giants' safety Xavier McKinney.
And while it always takes some time for the free agency dust to settle, we know from literally every other NFL season in history that a bunch of these contracts aren't going to age particularly well. The time between now and next month's NFL Draft is probably going to drag, so why not take a moment to look around the NFC North and mock some of their free agent decisions.
These are the six free-agent moves from NFC North rivals that Packers fans can laugh at.
Chicago Bears
1. Signing D'Andre Swift
The Bears wasted no time signing former Lions and Eagles running back D'Andre Swift, which was a little puzzling at the time considering how the rest of the market played out. Three years and $24 million is a lot of money for a running back who's only rushed for 1,000 yards once in four seasons (though 2023 was the first time he started more than half the games he appeared in).
By current APY, he'll go into next season as the fourth highest paid running back in football, which comes with a lot of expectations for a running back who's only ever played behind elite offensive lines. The Bears' unit isn't even that bad, but rushing to throw a running back a bunch of top-of-market money with so many unknowns – including how many reps he's going to get alongside Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson.
2. Missing out on an elite defensive lineman
The Bears' defense had a nice second half of the season, but defensive line was a glaring place for improvement heading into this offseason. And armed with some of the most cap space across the entire NFL, the Bears used that cash to ... sign a running back and two 30-year old vets.
Meanwhile, Chris Jones and Justin Madubuike went back to their respective teams, Christian Wilkins went to Las Vegas, and the Bears passed on everyone else. And maybe Ryan Poles' plan is to use their 2nd first round pick – ninth overall – to go get one of the elite lineman in this year's class, but that's asking a lot of said rookie, especially in Matt Eberflus' defense. Or maybe they'll just run it back and hope for the best?