GREEN BAY, Wis. — Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst just finished his seventh season in charge of Green Bay’s personnel department and held his annual season-ending press conference for about 35 minutes on Thursday afternoon.
It finished with this after Green Bay’s 14th consecutive season without a Super Bowl appearance.
“We need to continue to ramp up our sense of urgency,” Gutekunst said. “The life of a player in the National Football League is not very long. We’ve got a bunch of good guys in that locker room. We’ve got a bunch of talented guys in that locker room and I think it’s time we started competing for championships, right? I think they’re ready.”
Outside of that final rallying cry for the 2025 Packers, here are the seven most notable things Gutekunst said.
Alexander’s future
It’s hard to see cornerback Jaire Alexander returning to the Packers. The second-team All-Pro selection in 2020 and 2022 who turns 28 on Feb. 9 has played in only 15 of a potential 37 games the last two seasons because of back, shoulder, groin and knee injuries. He enters the 2025 league year with a cap number just below $25 million, third on the team behind quarterback Jordan Love and defensive end Rashan Gary. Cutting or trading Alexander before June 1 would free up about $6.8 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap.
“I think we’ll work through that,” Gutekunst said. “I know it’s been really, really frustrating for not only him as a player, but us as a club, just when you have a player who’s done what he’s done for us in the past and then not being able to get him out on the field consistently. That’s tough … we’re at the beginning stages of just kind of gathering information as a whole before we start looking at next year and how we’re going to lay this thing out. But we could (pay him). I mean, obviously, when he’s healthy and he’s ready to play, he’s a pretty good player.”
Compare that answer to the ringing endorsements Gutekunst gave on Thursday of linebacker Quay Walker and kicker Brandon McManus regarding their future contracts and it’s not difficult to read the writing on the wall with Alexander.
Love assessment
Gutekunst signed quarterback Jordan Love to a contract worth $220 million over four years last training camp before Love had an inconsistent season, partly because of his own inaccuracies and sloppy footwork but also because of factors outside his control like injuries and offensive line play.
“I think we’re very, very excited about his growth, not only as a player, but what he’s doing in our locker room as a leader,” Gutekunst said. “Obviously, he went through some things this year, battled through some injuries that he hadn’t done that before, came out the other side of it and was really proud of him how we went through that … I thought he played at a high level a significant part of the season. Obviously, certainly, there’s some games and plays he would probably want back, but I never really thought that overall for the season, the injuries were really holding him back. I think early, when he came back after that two games that he missed, you could tell he wasn’t quite moving around like he normally did, but I still think he played pretty solidly for us.”
Pass-rush disappointment
Head coach Matt LaFleur said during his season-ending press conference on Tuesday that the Packers didn’t rush the quarterback in the way he envisioned this season because, instead of simply rushing a traditional four, defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley utilized more simulated pressures in attempts to generate pressure. That means linebackers or defensive backs rushed the quarterback while defensive linemen dropped into coverage, a tactic Green Bay found success with since it sometimes confused opposing protection units. In other words, the Packers don’t have a good enough defensive front to simply rush four and win one-on-ones.
It seems like Gutekunst agrees.
“There was some transition to a new scheme, but I think we didn’t grow into that consistent front like we had hoped,” Gutekunst said. “But there were times that we showed it, so I know it’s capable. I think we’ve got the right guys. They’re workers in there. I think they’re all passionate about the game. They’re unselfish team guys, so I expect us to get better there.”
If anything, defensive line coach Jason Rebrovich could be on the hot seat if the Packers think they have the right guys up front but aren’t getting the most out of them.
Big move coming?
Gutekunst said the Packers are in a better cap situation than they have been in the last two or three years. According to Over The Cap, they rank 10th in the NFL at more than $50 million in cap space, with other transactions (like moving on from Alexander) potentially creating more.
“I feel really good where we’re at right now, would love to stay in that kind of flexibility year-to-year,” Gutekunst said. “We’ll certainly try to do that, but at the same time, if we kinda have to do some different things because we have an opportunity to acquire a player that can impact our team like these two guys (Xavier McKinney and Josh Jacobs) did, we’ll do it.”
While we can’t take anything Gutekunst says at these press conferences as gospel — he said last year that he “absolutely” expected running back Aaron Jones to return — that might be an indication Gutekunst is willing to make a splash or two for the second consecutive offseason. Maxx Crosby, anybody? The Packers need pass-rush help and Jacobs said he’d make calls this offseason in search of new teammates. Crosby and he played together for five years with the Raiders.
Maybe no Davante or Tee
Packer fans are enamored with Davante Adams and Tee Higgins right now. They don’t have a true No. 1 wide receiver of their own and one might help elevate a passing game that took a back seat to the Josh Jacobs show this season. Not only that but also Christian Watson will miss part of next season while recovering from a torn ACL. Having a couple of guys at receiver can work, but do the Packers need a GUY?
“I think historically, if you look at a lot of the teams, very rarely do teams that have one receiver that’s super heavy with targets, that doesn’t usually play out well for playoffs and success there,” Gutekunst said. “But I think we’re certainly looking for these guys that we have currently to take a step into that role where they are more consistent on the down-down basis. Certainly, if there’s somebody outside of our building, whether it’s the draft, free agency that makes some sense for us, we’ll certainly look to do that, but we’re also looking for these guys to continue to grow and hopefully grow into that space.
“I know the term No. 1 receiver gets thrown around a lot and I think that just depends what that means to you. But I’d like our football team to get to a point where we can win in situational football better than we have right now and I think for us to do that, that group’s going to have to take some steps and I think they will.”
Fifth-year options
Gutekunst and his staff must decide this offseason whether to exercise the fifth-year options on 2022 first-round picks Walker and defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt. According to OTC, Walker’s would guarantee his 2026 salary at $16.06 million and Wyatt’s at $13.098 million. That’s a pretty penny, but Gutekunst sounds high on both.
“We’re super fired (up) about both those guys’ seasons this year,” Gutekunst said. “Quay continued to make a leap and another guy who had struggled through injuries at the end of the year, but he was really impactful for us this year. Continues to be a great leader for us. Certainly think we would love to have him around here for longer than just a couple years. He’s that kind of guy. And D-Wy was probably our most consistent pass rusher from the inside this year. Both of them dealt with some injuries and was really proud of how they attacked those and played through some things this year, but I think both those guys had their best years as pros so far.”
Kicker consistency
After going 21-for-23 on field goals in 13 games with the Packers this season, kicker Brandon McManus seems likely to earn another contract with the team.
Gutekunst, who says he wants all players back, also said he wants McManus back. This one probably has more truth behind it, though.
“Had a good conversation with him before he left and obviously — and you guys know this — how he solidified that journey we were going on,” Gutekunst said of the team’s kicker inconsistencies in 2023 and the first six games of 2024. “Obviously, he’s a veteran guy. I think the thing that was so neat about being around him is not only his confidence, but his ability to adjust no matter where we were … If we were able to get Brandon back, I think certainly that would make me feel very, very, very good about that (specialists) group.”
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