Packers bring back OG Lane Taylor - 2yr/4.15M

[salmar80]

Ted Thompson got another of his own back at the cusp of unrestricted free agency - backup guard Lane Taylor.

Packers had the option to him back for one year via a 1.671M RFA tender, but chose to sign him for two years instead.

From packersnews.com:

The fourth-year guard agreed to a two-year, $4.15 million contract on Tuesday morning that includes a $600,000 signing bonus and incentives that could push the total value of the deal to $5.15 million, according to an NFL source.

Taylor is 26 years old, started 2 games in 2015, and proved to be a much improved run blocker, but had his struggles against the pass rush. Taylor has steadily improved year to year, and his 2-year deal gives GB some security, since Lang, Sitton and Tretter are all UFAs in 2017.

OG depth now includes Tretter, Taylor, Josh Walker, Matt Rotheram and William Campbell.

 

[GBP4EVER]

That's a lot of money for a very average backup guard.

 

[Mark87]

Meh just TT resigning his own guys again.... whistling))

 

[DenverPackFan]

Not a lot of guaranteed money, though. And it gives us some protection with so many free agents on the OL after next season. Could be a savvy move.

 

[GBP4EVER]

Meh just TT resigning his own guys again.... whistling))

Yep TT overvaluing his own guys again and paying them instead of going out and signing players to improve this team. TT's way of thinking is I drafted or signed them as a UDFA so they are better then anyone else in FA from another team.

 

[GBP4EVER]

Not a lot of guaranteed money, though. And it gives us some protection with so many free agents on the OL after next season. Could be a savvy move.

IMO I saw him nothing more as a vet min guy and in truth we could do better then Lane Taylor as a backup.

 

[salmar80]

I'll be watching OG UFA signings with interest to see what we can expect for Sitton and Lang.

One of the better OGs, Kelechi Osemele just got a five-year, $60 million deal from the Raiders. He can play some tackle, though, and that's mos def tackle money. He'd otherwise beat previous highest avg for a OG by whoppin' 4M per year (Iupati gets 8M avg)!

On the other hand, Bills re-signed 33-year-old LG Richie Incognito to a three-year, $15.75 million contract. That's top 10 OG money, about the same as Lang is making now.

 

[salmar80]

Not a lot of guaranteed money, though. And it gives us some protection with so many free agents on the OL after next season. Could be a savvy move.

600k guarantee is so low, Taylor isn't 100% guaranteed a roster spot even this year. We will pick one, maybe two, OL in the draft, and we have some holdovers. He'll have to win a spot, and if he does, I can live with 2-3M.

He was OK in his two starts, so it's not like he hasn't proven anything. It may be an overpay, but not a huge one.

 

[Defensewins]

Ted Thompson got another of his own back at the cusp of unrestricted free agency - backup guard Lane Taylor.

Packers had the option to him back for one year via a 1.671M RFA tender, but chose to sign him for two years instead.

From packersnews.com:


Taylor is 26 years old, started 2 games in 2015, and proved to be a much improved run blocker, but had his struggles against the pass rush. Taylor has steadily improved year to year, and his 2-year deal gives GB some security, since Lang, Sitton and Tretter are all UFAs in 2017.

OG depth now includes Tretter, Taylor, Josh Walker, Matt Rotheram and William Campbell.

Kind of surprising, as he is a guy I figured we could replace with a 6th round pick or so.

 

[salmar80]

Kind of surprising, as he is a guy I figured we could replace with a 6th round pick or so.

Vast majority of OL take time to develop, even high round picks. Our starting OGs have had recurring injury issues (though they've usually managed to tough it out), so counting on a rookie would be a big risk.

Taylor started 2 games, and seems to have played well enough that people don't even remember him doing it

He is surely not a special talent, and I wish we could've had him for the vet minimum. But I don't see this as a big overpay for someone who's proven he can at least hold the fort. And the guarantee is so low it's almost inconsequential.

This signing doesn't affect our UFA or draft plans one bit.