The Packers notoriously avoid the acquisition of players who have played for other teams. Since real free agency began 22 years ago, the Packers have acquired enough big-name free agents to allow Homer Simpson to count them on one hand, with a finger left over.
Coach Mike McCarthy has no qualms about this approach to the building of a team, which relies almost exclusively on the draft and building from within.
“You got to coach the ones that are here,” McCarthy said from the league meetings in Arizona on Sunday, via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “You have to build it off the guys who are on the board right now. That’s the way we’ve always done it.”
But shouldn’t he be concerned about defections that have created holes in the team’s defense? Shouldn’t replacements for Davon House and Tramon Williams be found via free agency?
“I don’t agree with that mindset,” McCarthy said. “I think the reasons why we were in a position in 2014 that we were in is because we stayed the course. We relied on young players a lot early in the season.”
They’ll rely on that approach again.
“We have to really focus on guys that we have and make sure we need to be better,” McCarthy said. “We need to coach better. Find different ways to emphasize things that we need to do better. Every year, you come up with two or three things you really want to make sure that you put your practice time into it and it has to show up on game days. Those are the kinds of things I think we have to stay focused on.”
As long as they can keep finding and developing young players, it won’t be a problem. Still, there’s value in using free agency selectively.
For whatever reason, G.M. Ted Thompson wants only the rare free agent. While it still makes sense to build a team through the draft, plenty of needs can be filled by players who have played elsewhere. For the 2015 Packers, the all-time collection won’t be expanding beyond Reggie White, Charles Woodson, and Julius Peppers.