So Ted signs Martellus Bennett after Jared Cook’s negotiations break down. Makes, sense, right? If you can’t get an agreement with one guy, you go get another.
Then Packer Nation gets aflutter and there’s some faint hope that the Packers could still sign Cook and have an absolutely killer two tight end set. After all, Cook wants to play in Green Bay, right? Winning was awesome, right?
Well, before Cook (and his agent) had time to contemplate coming back to whatever offer the Packers had on the table after signing Bennett, Ted went out and signed tight end Lance Kendricks.
Former Rams tight end Lance Kendricks.
That’s right, the guy who replaced Cook in Los Angeles last year has replaced him in Green Bay this year.
It’s like Ted was watching gangster movies where they go after your family. It wasn’t just enough to replace Cook with Martellus Bennett, Ted had to really rub his nose it by going out and getting Lance Kendricks, too.
Let that be a lesson to any free agents who don’t know how Ted operates: when Ted makes you an offer, he’s not playing around. You take it or leave it (in which case he goes out and signs whoever took over your job last time you lost it). So don’t get cute.
Kendricks, a Milwaukee native and Packer fan who played his college ball at Wisconsin, put up 499 yard and 2 scores last year on 50 catches. Solid numbers, but don’t forget, he played for the Rams, quarterbacked by Case Keenum and Jared Goff (neither of whom could crack double digit touchdown passes on the season) – receiving stats in LA are calculated like dog years.
The best thing about Kendricks is his versatility. He played fullback and wide receiver in addition to tight end over his six years with the team. He can run all the routes and he can block.
This could make for a fascinating change in the Packers offense, which has not seen much blocking out of its tight ends as of late. Defenses started keying off on that last year, knowing that they weren’t going to run on their tight end’s side. In 2017, it’ll be a different story. They can have a two tight end set in which they can run or pass to either side. They could even run some overload formations with two tight ends on the same side. Imagine what that could do for a power running game.
Just go sign Eddie Lacy and we’ll be set!