Packers are expected to cut a $50 million All-Pro after…

Packers are expected to cut a $50 million All-Pro after the 2023 season

The Green Bay Packers may have to make difficult decisions about a couple of its older defensive players as the 2024 offseason approaches, one of which might be the departure of former All-Pro linebacker De’Vondre Campbell.

Campbell has struggled to live up to the worth of the five-year, $50 million contract deal he received from the Packers following his All-Pro season in 2021. He has missed six games due to injury and could miss a seventh if he is unable to return for the regular-season finale against the Chicago Bears in Week 18.

With Quay Walker and Isaiah McDuffie performing well in his absence, Matt Schenidman of The Athletic believes Campbell will be cut after the season.

“[Jordan] Love agrees to a four-year, $180 million contract extension.” [AJ] Dillon is a free agent. “Campbell and [David] Bakhtiari are cut,” Schneidman predicted in his weekly Packers mailbag on January 3, in response to a query concerning the futures of key Packers players.

De’Vondre Campbell No Longer Essential for Packers

Campbell was previously thought to be the Packers’ long-awaited defensive solution. During his rookie season in 2021, he provided a stable presence at middle linebacker and earned first-team All-Pro honors while playing on a one-year, $2 million contract. And the Packers were impressed enough to sign him to a five-year, $50 million contract extension.

Nonetheless, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst hedged his best almost quickly, selecting Walker, a star on Georgia’s national championship team, with his first of two first-round draft picks in the 2022 NFL draft. Walker appeared to be the Packers’ No. 2 linebacker behind Campbell at first, but it took less than a season for Walker to win a larger portion of the snaps.

In the last week of 2023, Walker is easily the Packers’ best linebacker. McDuffie, a sixth-round pick in 2021, has also performed admirably in relief of Campbell while he recovers from a neck injury. If the Packers are confident in both of them moving ahead, they may decide Campbell is expendable.

According to Over the Cap, releasing Campbell after June 1 in 2024 will save the Packers approximately $10.7 million in cap space. They would be responsible for around $10 million in dead money over the following three seasons, but it may be a price they are willing to pay to escape his $12 million-plus cap hits through 2026.

Which Others Packers Could Be Gone in 2024?

De’Vondre Campbell is hardly the only Packers veteran who could be released in 2024. Schneidman mentioned it in his mailbag, but it appears that Bakhtiari, a five-time All-Pro, is on the verge of a divorce with the Packers.

Throughout his Packers tenure, Bakhtiari has been great when he has been able to play, and Green Bay would almost likely want to keep him if they thought he could rely on his availability. Unfortunately, the Packers’ patience with his knee has likely run out, as it has remained unstable and has kept him out of 38 games — not including playoffs — since he first injured it on New Year’s Eve 2020.

Bakhtiari appeared in just one game in 2023 before hurting his knee and needing season-ending knee surgery again. At some point, the Packers must cut their losses and remove him from the payroll, especially with his cap hit expected to exceed $40 million next season. If they fire him, they will save around $20 million by 2024.

Running back Aaron Jones is the other veteran in question. While Jones has faced with injury issues in 2023, he has reminded everyone in recent weeks that he is a difference-maker for the offense when he is on the field. Jones’ salary hit is expected to grow to almost $17 million next season, but the Packers also owe him approximately $6.63 million in 2025 — during a void year when he is no longer under contract.

The Packers’ best option may be to negotiate a new contract with Jones, one that lowers his cap figure for next season while also providing him with more future security.