I was hoping this wouldn’t happen because I have Brandon Jackson stashed on my keeper league’s farm system and it would hurt his keeper value. But, it seems Green Bay could pick a rival for the #1 overall spot in the 2010 QBallers Rookie Rankings and put a hurting on Jackson’s keeper league status. From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
According to sources, the Packers will keep [Ahman] Green in mind but wouldn’t mind adding a faster back in the draft. Whether it’s Green or another player, the Packers want starter Ryan Grant to have someone pushing him. They felt Green did that this past season.
If you weren’t ready to let go of Brandon Jackson, you will be if 32 year old (will be 33) Ahman Green beats him out for the backup role in 2010. You can also drop Jackson down your board if Green Bay drafts a rookie RB with the 23rd (Dwyer), 56th (Dixon) or 86th (McCluster) overall picks. However, you shouldn’t drop him off your board entirely because Green Bay may have to lose Ryan Grant by 2011 due to contract size. From the Green Bay Press Gazette.
[Ryan] Grant topped the 1,250-yard rushing mark, which earned him a $1.5 million escalator in base salary for 2010, pushing his pay to $6 million when his salary is combined with roster and workout bonuses. That makes him the Packers’ fourth-highest paid player for 2010, behind only Woodson, receiver Donald Driver ($7 million) and quarterback Aaron Rodgers ($6.5 million).
Looking further down the road, Grant has escalators for 2011 that could end up giving the Packers pause on whether they should keep him at this time next year. He not only can earn the same salary escalators based on this upcoming season’s performance — he also has a roster bonus based on cumulative yardage that could add $2 million or $4 million to his 2011 pay.
The escalators would increase his 2011 salary by $500,000 if he tops 1,000 yards rushing in 2010, $1.5 million if he tops 1,250 yards and $2.5 million if he tops 1,500 yards. He also can make a $2 million roster bonus if he rushes for 3,600 yards from 2008 to 2010 and another $2 million if it’s at least 4,100 yards. He’s rushed for 2,456 yards in the first two years of the deal, so he’ll need 1,144 yards to get the first $2 million roster bonus for 2011, which appears quite attainable, and 1,644 yards to add the second $2 million.
So, if he rushes for the same 1,253 yards he gained this past season, his base salary would go up to $5 million, plus he’d pick up the $2 million roster bonus to go with $2 million in other bonuses he’s already scheduled to make. That would put his 2011 pay at $9 million. It’s hard to see the Packers paying him that much, so they probably would try to work out a contract extension or pay cut, or release him before the 2011 roster bonus was due.
Its a situation that has to be watched because the potential is there for a big-time rookie RB to emerge. The Packers are a team that likes to feed the ball to one back, which is very rare in itself these days, but the team as a whole is already very talented which makes it more likely the RB will be able to flourish right away and last for a long time.
Personally I’m not ready to give up on Brandon Jackson especially after what he did with eight touches in week 16 (3 TDs). I hope that was a glimpse of his potential rather than a fluke. The Packers drafted him 63rd overall in 2007 so the guy is no slouch. Whats always kept him off the field was pass blocking, but he seems to have figured it out in 2009. From Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Third-year man Brandon Jackson earned his keep as well, becoming a terrific blocker in blitz pickup situations.
Jackson doesn’t have the speed to ever be a difference-maker as a third down back, and the Packers could certainly draft his replacement in April.
Jackson averaged just 3.0 yards per rush, although his average of 8.9 yards on 21 receptions was a career high.
If Jackson remains in his role as a third down back, though, the Packers can certainly trust he’ll keep quarterback Aaron Rodgers protected.
“His performance and picking up the blitzes was very impressive,” McCarthy said of Jackson. “It’s something that, frankly, it will be on a lot of our teaching tapes as we move forward.”
Ahman Green, who turns 33 in Feb., was re-signed Oct. 21 after DeShawn Wynn (knee) went down again.
Green almost certainly won’t be back, which figures to leave Wynn, holdover Kregg Lumpkin and perhaps a draft pick battling it out for a roster spot.
While not a ringing endorsement, it might not matter if no one else is left standing. Once the dust settles, it will be a rookie or Brandon Jackson as the primary RB for Green Bay by 2011.