The Green Bay Packers have released AJ Hawk this offseason and on the free agent market, names like Jason Worilds, Justin Houston, Rey Maualuga, Brandon Spikes, Rolando McClain, Davis Harris and Mathias Kiwanuka could be potential options for the team to sign and this comes as they are expected to keep Julius Peppers into 2015.
According to ESPN.com, Hawk was released this week and it comes after he was a first round pick in the 2006 draft for the Packers. The move clears $3.5 million for the Packers and this comes after Brad Jones was also cut loose, which gave the team another $4 million in space. The 31-year-old is now a free agent and could be a target for a number of teams, including the Vikings.
The Packers have some options on the market to replace Hawk, including names like Jason Worilds, Justin Houston, Rey Maualuga, Brandon Spikes, Rolando McClain, Davis Harris and Mathias Kiwanuka. McClain is coming off of a comeback season with the Cowboys, while Harris is expected to be a target for the Dolphins, Giants and Raiders this offseason, according to NFL.com.
The Packers don't usually go too big in free agency, but they signed Peppers last year and now they have Randall Cobb on the market. Cobb is a great player with explosive talent and he is young, but the team may not break the bank to keep him. The Packers like Davante Adams and they also just signed Jordy Nelson to an extension and that could leave Cobb out. The team wants to bring him back, but he may price himself out of Green Bay after having a career season.
There are a number of teams out there that have the cap space to offer Cobb a huge deal and those teams all have needs at wide receiver. The Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders, NY Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars all could make strong offers and while Cobb said he "prefers" to stay in Green Bay, he could consider cashing in. Cobb suffered a knee injury in 2013 and played in just six games and with him being just 24 years old, he could look at security as a reason to take the most money on the market.
Cobb is coming off of a career season in which he had 91 catches for 1287 yards and 12 touchdowns and he showed explosiveness all year while staying healthy. Cobb played in 16 games after playing in six the previous season and he also was strong on deep balls and averaged 14 yards per catch. Staying with Aaron Rodgers is a pull for Cobb, but reports have him asking for $9 million and that could be too much for him to stay.
According to Bill Williamson on Twitter, the Raiders are expected to go after Cobb strong this offseason, as they need playmakers on offense. ESPN.com reports that the Browns and Jets also could go after Cobb, but that the Raiders have the cap space to really compete with any offer the Packers make. Victor Cruz got a deal worth about $7.5 million, while Nelson signed for about $9.75 million per season, according to Spotrac.
