The first domino is about to fall for the Green Bay Packers and according to Ian Rapoport that domino is safety Charles Woodson.
The Packers will release Woodson in a move that will save $10 million against this season’s salary cap.
Carl Poston, Charles Woodson’s agent, tells me: “They’re getting ready to release him. It’s part of the business.”
Although this sucks, it wasn’t unexpected.
The Packers need the salary cap room. They had just over $7 million when the season ended. They’ll spend around $5 million to sign their draft class and then they’ll need to address their own free agents.
The priority there would seem to be cornerback Sam Shields, who’s a restricted free agent. He will likely command at least $2 million per season.
The question now is will the Packers try to re-sign Woodson to a cheaper contract?
We know he wants to keep playing. The Packers don’t exactly have a ready-made replacement on the roster either.
Jerron McMillian would be the top candidate to replace Woodson in the lineup, followed by M.D. Jennings. Neither player inspires a lot of confidence.
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After this initial report came out, the Journal Sentinel came out with a story saying the Packers will not attempt to re-sign Woodson. That piece went as far to say Woodson would have been a backup if he was with the Packers in 2013.
It also more or less blamed Woodson for the playoff loss to the 49ers.