Nice bargain. None of the tightends in this class are even remotely close to cooks athleticism . Most of the tes are pass catchers with the exception being Jerrell Adams who should go in the 3rd.

I'm just glad Ted awoke from his coma and realized Green Bay needed another tight end.

He reads PH and pays close attention to the wisdom of a certain poster named DakotaT.

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I missed him missing the Dallas game; you missed him missing the Stl game [402 yards-he only had a a couple of snaps]. So Finley actually substantially missed 5 games in 2009 and the avg yards without him was 380.

The point analysis is bogus. It fails to take into account how many scores were made by the D or STs or scores set up by them. Relative yards is the best [relatively easy] stat indicator to determine how efficient the offense operated with and without Finley. The point argument only holds water if it can be shown RZE was better with Finley in there and that would take some time.

Parsing minor deviations in the numbers is silly.

It is uncontrovertible that When Finley was replaced by very bad players: Rookie Quarles, DJ Williams, Ryan Taylor, the offense absolutely could not be said to have suffered. And the numbers show the offense improved, which could be an anomaly, who knows, it doesn't really matter.

What mattes is that if Finley was so great for the offense, his being replaced by a turd should have resulted in a stark decline in the numbers! It simply did not happen; Finley simply was not valuable. He got his contract for potential, not for his actual performance.

"The point analysis is bogus." <-- that is the best line ever!!!

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Doesn't analysis of yards fail to account for the same thing? If you get a pick 6, or good field position from ST your yards will be skewed too. I don't mean to delve into this too much, I don't have the time or interest to statistically validating the value of Finley.

Bottom line for me is I'm optimistic about the impact an athletic TE in a "prove it contract" will provide the Packers in 2016.

Love the signing, low risk high value, albeit a short window.

I think this says a couple things about Ted's thinking:

1. The draft is limited in providing instant help.
2. Reports are the Packers were seeking a two year deal, that probably means he has confidence in the young core but that they are not ready yet.
3. Hell, I think Ted was either drunk or maybe hit his head, what is this, signing a free agent.

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Richard Rodgers has a presence in the red zone. They need a TE that can contribute between the 20s. I think Jared Cook can do that. I'm curious as to how he'll perform with a top-flight QB. He's never had one. A lot of underachievers tend to play well when placed in the right situation. I think it's a good move for both parties.

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If RR slims down, he should be able to run a little better. If they use him like they did in that Detroit game, I think he can do some things. But I really like our depth now.

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The concept that a good TE can open things up for the offense is a legitimate concept. Saying that Finley, an incomplete TE, did it is just wrong. This is not supported by any statistical data that I’ve seen. Nor is it confirmed by my independent evaluations [for whatever the hell that’s worth], which I believe is corroborated by the data I’ve seen. I predicted GB would let Finley walk and was SHOCKED when they signed him to 2 yr 15M.

In direct response to your point/yards analysis question...NO! Either superficial analysis needs for things like quality of defense, whether the OL was healthy, etc., to average out; but the point analysis has aspects that are 100% skewed. For example, GB's D and STs can directly ADD points [STs and Ds cannot add offensive yards] and when the opposite occurs, points are not subtracted from GB's total; they are only added to the opposing team's total, which is ignored in the point analysis. When the analysis is yards: yes, Janis returning a KOR for TD or Starks fumbling, limits the offensive opportunities; but when the opposite happens, EG, the other team gets a KOR for TD or our D generates a turnover then the offensive opportunities are increased. It hopefully averages, the yards analysis isn't skewed at all, it is an equal opportunity stat for this analysis.

Do the stats presented prove that Finley did nothing for the offense? No, it’s superficial. The sample size isn't big enough and there a plethora of other variables that are not incorporated. And two years couldn’t be analyzed because Finley played in 16 games. But, again if Finley was such a force AND HE'S REPLACED BY A JAG, the sample should reflect, a noticeable difference if he’s gone...It dont!

If one really wants to do this, in most games Finley played between 50-70% of the snaps; show the difference of yards of each play with Finley in and out.

Exhibit B: From 2009-13; Finley had 311 targets; 217-2711-12.5-19. In that time, all other TEs combined had 237-153-1,568-10.25-17. These TEs include JAGS, Lee at end of career, Havner, Bostic, Crabtree, Taylor, Williams and Quarles. Over this period, AR missed most or all of 11 games; Finley played in only one of those [where Flynn had the best game of any GB QB in history]. Had AR played in all the games the scrub TE’s numbers would be slightly better, making them pretty damn close, if not better, than Finley’s.

Exhibit C: in 2012; Finley played 16 games; but only 62% of the snaps. Several games through his career when he was perfectly healthy he played less than 60% of the snaps. Jordy, Gronk, play 90%+ when healthy. Coaches play their receiver difference makers more than 60% of the snaps when healthy.

Exhibit 😨 when AR went down and replaced by bad QB [Wallace, Rookie Tolzien, broken armed Flynn]; when Jordy was replaced by Jones; when decent Bulaga was replaced by bad Barclay; you saw a noticeable drop in production. That is what happens when a relative stud is replaced by a JAG. When Finley was replaced by a JAG TE, actually guys that proved to be less than JAGs, and not so much of a difference.

Stats be damned, you all KNOW the last one. The conclusion: Fast/athletic TEs, who are incomplete, don’t do shit for a team!