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The Packers have signed 27-year old safety Charlie Peprah. Peprah played in 2 games for the Falcons last season making 1 tackle. He played with the Packers from 2006-2008 appearing in 37 games in which he had 26 tackles and he forced 2 fumbles. It was good for the Packers to bring back Peprah to provide depth in the defensive backfield and on special teams.
The Packers have released OLB Jeremy Thompson. He played in 6 games for the Packers last season making 1 whole tackle. In 2 years with the Packers, Thompson played in 15 games in which he made 9 tackles. Thompson intends to retire due to numerous spinal chord concussions so it made perfect sense to let him go before he injured himself permanently.
The Packers have selected safety Morgan Burnett out of Georgia Tech with the 71st overall pick (3rd round) of the NFL Draft. Burnett is a solid all around safety as he supports the run strongly and he makes big plays in the passing game. Burnett played in 14 games (all starts) for Georgia Tech last season and he finished up with 85 tackles, he broke up 4 passes, had 4 interceptions, forced 1 fumble and he recovered 1 fumble. Burnett played in 40 games (28 starts) in his three years in college and he finished up with 235 tackles, he broke up 19 passes, had 14 interceptions, forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles. This was a solid pick for the Packers as Burnett looks like he will play strong safety in the pros.
The Packers have selected DT Mike Neal out of Purdue with the 56th pick overall (2nd round) of the NFL Draft. Neal is a solid player when he’s not getting tired and he stays motivated. He seems like someone that the Packers are going to have to keep an eye on getting him rest during a game. Neal played in 12 games (all starts) for Purdue last season in which he had 35 tackles, 11.5 tackles for a loss, 5.5 sacks, he forced 1 fumble and he recovered 2 fumbles. He played in 46 games (23 starts) in his four years at Purdue and he finished up with 99 tackles, 26 tackles for a loss, 13 sacks, he batted down 2 passes, forced 1 fumble and he recovered 2 fumbles. Neal has a nice upside but it appears that the Packers might have picked him a round or two too early.
The Packers nabbed T/G Bryan Bulaga of Iowa with the 23rd pick in the first round of the NFL Draft. Bulaga was one of the most highly rated prospects at OT this season and the Packers were giddy when he fell to them. He played in 10 games (all starts) for Iowa last season. Bulaga’s future down the road will likely be at tackle but he will likely be moving inside in 2010 as the Packers need help at guard. Bulaga is a big guy at 6’5″, 310 pounds and he is adept at both pass and run blocking. He played in 30 games (28 starts) in his three years at Iowa. Packers’ GM Ted Thompson is at it again finding solid value late in the first round.
The Packers will be busy trying to fill holes this weekend as they have not added anyone in free agency this off-season. The Packers have 3 of the top 86 picks in this draft and they have 8 picks overall so they have the potential to trade up if they want to. The Packers have needs at OT, CB, OLB, S and PK heading into this weekend. The Packers have never been a team you can pinpoint in the draft as they sometime draft for need and sometimes they go with the best player available. I would think that they are considering using their first round pick on one of the following players: LB Sean Lee, OLB Daryl Washington, CB Perrish Cox, CB Kyle Wilson, CB Patrick Robinson, S Nate Allen, S Taylor Mays, OT Bruce Campbell and OT Charles Brown.
PROJECTED FIRST ROUND PICK: OT, Charles Brown, USC
The Packers have not signed one free agent or made a trade this off-season so far. They are looking like a small market baseball team right now and that might not be good for the Packers as the Lions & Bears have improved a lot already going into the draft. The Packers better be active in both the trade and free agent market after the draft this weekend because I doubt that they will fill all of their roster holes with rookies. The Packers need to get into gear now.
