The Green Bay Packers might be a playoff team, but it’s hard to tell whether they’re real title contenders.
At 8-3, the Packers are undoubtedly happy with their season to this point. But before beating up on the injury-riddled San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, they also had just two wins over teams that made the playoffs in 2023, both by less than a touchdown.
Part of the problem lies within the Packers’ own division. The 10-1 Detroit Lions, riding a nine-game winning streak, look like the clear-cut favorites to take home the NFC title. And the Lions aren’t going anywhere, so even if it’s not yet Green Bay’s year, they’ll still have to leapfrog Detroit at some point.
Fortunately, the Packers have money to spend in free agency this spring. The question is which positions they will choose to use it to adress.
Kris Knox of Bleacher Report recently identified cornerback as one of the Packers’ “biggest weaknesses,” and predicted they would sign Los Angeles Chargers star Kristian Fulton in an effort to improve at the position.
“With $63.7 million in projected 2025 cap space, Green Bay will likely take a long look at cornerbacks on the 2025 market,” Knox said.
“Kristian Fulton played extremely well in his first season with the Los Angeles Chargers before being sidelined with a hamstring injury. In eight games this season, he has allowed an opposing passer rating of only 73.4 in coverage. He’ll still be only 26 years old at the start of next season.”
Fulton has an interception, six passes defended, and 18 total tackles in his eight games thus far. He returned from the injury to post a season-high three pass breakups in the Chargers’ win over the Cincinnati Bengals last week.
Though the Packers will have other holes to address if they want to keep up with the Lions next season, adding Fulton to shore up the secondary would be a solid start. He’ll likely cost a fair bit more than his $3 million 2024 salary, but the Packers have wiggle room with the budget.
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