Packers Can -- and Should -- Look Into Re-Signing CB Davon House
-- 12 months after the Green Bay Packers signed Davon House to a one-year deal, the veteran cornerback is once again back on the free agent market. Should the Packers be reluctant to move on?
House is only 28 -- 29 in July -- and while relying on him as a starter likely serves against the better line of judgment given the Packers' current group of cornerbacks, he'd serve as more of a role player and veteran depth that can be relied on if push comes to shove.
The pushing and the shoving, of course, is the Packers being stricken with the oh-so-familiar injury bug that seemingly plagues the roster on a yearly basis. In which case, keeping House around on a cost-efficient deal wouldn't hurt. Similar to the $2.8 million dollar deal he signed with the team last offseason.
After serving four seasons in Green Bay and a pair in Jacksonville with the Jaguars that saw him register one of his best years as a pro, House's services were called upon presumably to replace Sam Shields, whom the Packers released just a month prior to House's signing.
Now, they'll once again have a decision to make on the 6-0, 195-pound cornerback.
"This is where I always want to play," House said at the end of the season according to Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journal.
"I don't know how other people were thinking. With me, there shouldn't be any question about my toughness this year or if I really want to play or things like that. I left all that I've got out there. ... I'm excited to see what happens. I did some good things. I feel like I got better. But I know the nature of the business."
House referred to the same "business" that eventually released long time receiver, Jordy Nelson, after an eventful 10 seasons in Green Bay. Being re-signed to a deal after residing on the market through the first wave of free agency is another side of that business, and it's one that House is evidently hoping to see in his future.
On top of being another body on the depth chart, House brings unbridled experience to an already-young locker room that could certainly use it.
Sans Damarious Randall, who was traded to the Cleveland Browns, the average age of the six cornerbacks currently on the Packers' roster is under 25 years. Last year's 33rd overall pick, Kevin King, is likely going to be paired with another rookie that the Packers may target in the early rounds of this year's draft.
If that's how the chips fall, House would have two young players at his position whose growth and development could be influenced by House's presence.
He did miss four games last season, but House had played in full, 16-game seasons for three of his last four years prior to 2017. The transverse fracture he suffered in his back in the win against the Cleveland Browns late last season didn't stop him from missing the final two games of the year, even despite the Packers already being eliminated from playoff contention.
An added value to House returning is his subtle versatility. Last season, he played multiple snaps outside of his natural cornerback position. He served in the box as a linebacker, the nickel cornerback in the slot and even at safety in certain packages, albeit scarcely.
House finished his reunion season in Green Bay with just one interception and six passes defended. His 37 tackles broke his previous personal high in Green Bay of 36, and he also sacked the opposing quarterback for the first time since week 2, 2013.
House is just one of the many veteran corners on the market that could prove beneficial to the Packers' sub-optimal group, along with former Packers cornerback Tramon Williams; another popular option. The obvious kicker is whether or not they want to pull the trigger.
The Packers were reportedly sitting with $20.1 million in cap space as of Monday after the deals for Graham and defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson.
__________________________
Zachary Jacobson is a staff writer/reporter for Cheesehead TV. He's the voice of The Leap on iTunes and can be heard on The Scoop KLGR 1490 AM every Saturday morning. He's also a contributor on the Pack-A-Day Podcast. He can be found on Twitter via @ZachAJacobson or contacted through email at [email protected].



Comments (44)
stockholder
March 20, 2018 at 02:33 pm
Yes ! Give him bonus money, Stock, a new car, a gold watch. 1 year for 4,mil. and an option year. He's here to help the youngsters. And while their at it, bring his friend Williams back too.
GBPDAN1
March 20, 2018 at 03:50 pm
Burnett signed for under 5m a year. He wasn't worth that to the Packers?
ricky
March 20, 2018 at 06:54 pm
Obviously not.
TheVOR
March 20, 2018 at 10:39 pm
Been saying it for weeks, no brainer, resign House, good football player, reasonable money. Takes a lot of pressure off of tanking another #1 draft pick on a freekin CB! Allows us to shop the 2nd and 3rd rounds. Sign the man, very durable player who played well. Cripes, he played reasonably well with a fractured back. Name one other player on this glass roster who could/would do that. Dudes a baller, sign him already.
Colin_C
March 20, 2018 at 02:21 pm
I agree. Bring him back. That is all.
Savage57
March 20, 2018 at 09:11 pm
One thing about House you can't overlook is how slow and heavy-footed he is. If he can press and stay hooked up to his man it's all good, but if he gets shed on a move, game over. Has no recovery quicks.
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 02:30 pm
That's a big NOOOOOOOOO...
to House.
Nothing left in the tank.
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 02:33 pm
And TWil.....in my best dizzy 20-something chicken voice.....
Seriously??
stockholder
March 20, 2018 at 02:36 pm
Yes several wanted Williams back on this site. I'm OK with it for a year, and to help the depth , and youngsters coming in. They still believe they can make a difference!
holmesmd
March 20, 2018 at 02:47 pm
Why all of the caution with Williams on this site? He’s been the most productive CB in the NFL for the last decade! He’s better right now than ANYONE we have. My mind is still blown as to why we haven’t signed House & Williams as of yet. SMH
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 03:04 pm
I agree Holmes...
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 03:12 pm
The Packers rarely bring back players like that.
He was torched by Doug Baldwin 5 years ago and lost the game.
That isn't likely to change in 2018.
Give it up already.
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 06:28 pm
So you offered your negativity wizzy but, what’s the alternative? Someone that has Packer roots, would love a chance to redeem himself and was always on the field! Sounds like a tryout at the least during camp... but, you, obviously, know better...
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 06:29 pm
WE LOST THAT GAME FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS, NOT JUST WILLIAMS LAST PLAY!!!!
Finwiz
March 22, 2018 at 08:58 pm
Yeah, I watched the final five minutes of highlights again.
Williams had very good coverage, but Wilson made a perfect pass.
He couldn't make a play on the ball because he was too busy trying to stay with Kearse. But the coverage itself wasn't "blown" per se.
Unfortunately, that was a long time ago.
It isn't likely he's faster now, than he was then.
NickPerry
March 21, 2018 at 04:50 am
It wasn't Baldwin it was Kearse and it wasn't Williams who lost the game for GB. 19-7 with 5:02 left in a game that should have been 19-0 if the Packers had a ST worth a damn.
To blame THAT game on Williams is absolutely ridiculous Finwiz... The Packers lost that game well before THAT TD.
Finwiz
March 21, 2018 at 09:59 am
Well I hear you, and I stand corrected on Kearse, that only makes it worse because he's not the receiver Baldwin is.
The fact is, despite all the other BS that went on in that last 5 minutes, it was still a TOASTER special that lost the game in OT. Williams had the coverage but Kearse had separation and Williams couldn't make a play on the ball. Conclusion - he didn't have the speed back then, and he likely doesn't have it now FIVE years later!
Don't shoot the messenger - he isn't coming back.
MedicMike
March 20, 2018 at 08:42 pm
He'll be cheap and if he can't play and/or gets replaced by rookies he can be let go any time without a significant cap hit.
His experience and leadership is what this secondary needs most.
Lare
March 20, 2018 at 03:12 pm
House was injured part of last season, played through it and performed reasonably well. Signing him seems like a no-brainer to me.
Might have to wait though, I think BG and TT are on vacation down on some deserted island for a few weeks.
Lphill
March 20, 2018 at 03:57 pm
I will take House or Williams , the way things are going we might be asking for Jarrett Bush as well .
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 03:59 pm
Let's get Woodsen out of retirement too. And Al Harris.
Sheesh - this place reeks of desperation.
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 06:31 pm
Why don’t you keep your negativity for your Professional Scouting Company picnic because you ain’t making any friends here...
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 06:32 pm
Better than just reeking!!!
dobber
March 20, 2018 at 04:05 pm
There's nothing wrong with bringing these guys back on low-money, low-guaranteed deals to see what they can do. If they get outplayed in camp or can't do it anymore, you cut them. There's no rush on these two...they're not likely to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Minniman
March 20, 2018 at 04:35 pm
I wonder if the Packers "self review" hasn't concurred with something that Since 61' quirkily said a couple of months ago - paraphrasing here - a low ranked young defense is still the same as a low ranked veteran expense, only cheaper.
Regarding the secondary, I wonder if they have the mindset that they are going to let these veterans test the waters, and if they get paid, congratulations. If not, then they may be a target to bring in on low cost single year (prove it\ desperation) type deals to supplement this secondary while they work out where these young players ceilings are?
I'm not necessarily endorsing this, and its most certainly risky, I'm just trying to get a bead on BG's motives as a curiosity
Minniman
March 20, 2018 at 04:37 pm
ha ha - I meant low ranked veteran Defense, not expense.... perhaps it was a freudian slip - but agreeing with you Dobber
flackcatcher
March 20, 2018 at 09:08 pm
Looks like that is how things are shaking out. This is a classic Ron Wolf-Ted Thompson move. Soft rebuild with veteran signings after the draft. If it works, rinse and repeat. If it does not, go hard and cut the veterans and trade for draft choices and move up in position. The soft rebuild has been very successful for the packers since 2008. Lets hope the GM is not forced to go hard, things could get very ugly at 1265 if that happened.
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 04:46 pm
>There's nothing wrong with bringing these guys back on low-money, low-guaranteed deals to see what they can do.<
Don't usually disagree with you on football much, but this one I'll say, yeah there is. They're old and they suck, in no particular order.
I'll take my chances in the draft.
worztik
March 20, 2018 at 06:38 pm
Wizzy, you sound like the Lone Ranger here! Maybe Tonto can play CB? You play it safe and ride off into the sunset, boi...
Finwiz
March 20, 2018 at 07:29 pm
It's OK, I'm a big "boi"....I can handle the heat.
House looked like tarzan, and played like Jane last year. Forget about it.
He was laying on the ground after every play last year, and if not, he was trailing a receiver by 3 yards.
Williams is old and they let him walk 5 years ago. He's not even worth a look.
There's good players in the draft and a couple of warm bods from last year to develop.
Plus we have Herbie Waters - what's the worry?
LOL
holmesmd
March 22, 2018 at 08:32 pm
Guess you’re not as smart as you thought. Williams to sign with GB on a 2 yr deal. It’s ok though man, you know more than PFF so you have that going for you. Lol
Finwiz
March 22, 2018 at 08:50 pm
It's a long training camp, and there will be plenty of competition in the form of draft choices and free agents. He still has to make the team, and that will be no sure thing.
HankScorpio
March 20, 2018 at 05:08 pm
Yes, to a CB, please!
Let's make it a double!
Qoojo
March 20, 2018 at 06:22 pm
I think they should resign him.
PatrickGB
March 20, 2018 at 06:43 pm
I wonder how much input Witt has is this process? He was the guy who actually saw them in practice but probably not the guy who runs the roster gameday and before.
ricky
March 20, 2018 at 06:57 pm
Why not re-sign him for depth, if nothing else? This is still a QB driven league, which means you need a lot of DBs who can offer some sort of defense. Besides, if the D line can create more pressure, making the opposing QB make quicker decisions, there will be a little less stress on the DBs.
Packer_Fan
March 20, 2018 at 08:42 pm
House is a fill in at the best. No reason to be interested in him until a better CB is chosen first.
flackcatcher
March 20, 2018 at 08:55 pm
Short view. Packers had no choice but to purge the secondary. Too many core players not accountable (injuries, attitude, etc). The overall toxic go between players and their position coaches meant change. McCarthy is accountable too, for not putting the hammer on his coaches to 'clean it up'. What happened to the secondary was happening to various degrees throughout the team. McCarthy lost his coaches, then his players. I suspect it is the first time this happened to him as a head coach, and he was not ready for it.
Savage57
March 20, 2018 at 09:17 pm
At the end of the 24 hour time period, MM will be judged not by how much he accomplished with two, first-ballot HOF locks at QB, but how little.
al bundy
March 22, 2018 at 09:04 pm
U got that right
NoNonsense
March 20, 2018 at 11:33 pm
Go look on PFF, last year Tramon was their 9th ranked defensive back in the NFL. He played well, had 2 picks and held QBs to a 58.6 passer rating when targeting his receiver. But I guess one can overlook facts when looking at somebody's age.
House I thought would have played better last year but he's still a decent player and I would take the chance that Pettine may be able to get the best out of him.
Also think BG could call Philly and finagle one of their many CBs away from them like Ronald Darby, Jalen Mills or Daryl Worley just to name a few. Not sure what it take to get the one GB like best but I bet Philly would listen. A 5 and a 7, or our comp 4th rounder maybe. Something like that.
Royalty Free GM
March 21, 2018 at 01:06 am
And we are officially in desperation mode.
Thinking about bringing back our old CBs that nobody else wants. They were part of the reason our secondary was weak for years.
Gute had change and obligation to get some impact players on our secondary. But he failed and it is on him. You can sugarcoat it all you want, but the facts don’t change... Our secondary was one of the biggest weaknesses we had and Gute should have spent money to fix it.
He didn’t and the secondary will still be one of the biggest weaknesses we have.
holmesmd
March 22, 2018 at 08:37 pm
No, that was just a GM who has CTE. Williams, House, Hayward, Hyde...all very successful on their next teams. Take the homer shades off man. It’s ok. GB brass has screwed the pooch on the maintenance of this secondary for a decade. SMH
al bundy
March 22, 2018 at 09:03 pm
House was non existent last year, no speed or strength. His lose would open it up for gutsy and our great management team to go get those hard tackling , speedy CBS we so covet in free agency.
If your willing to rely on house types then 8-8 Is an accomplishment