Tom Crabtree signed a two-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers over the weekend and we’ll get to that in a second. That loss (along with the failure to re-sign Greg Jennings), most likely means you’re in for another season of Jermichael Finley running his mouth, dropping passes and doing other Jermichael Finley things.
There was talk the Green Bay Packers were considering releasing Finley instead of overpaying him at $8.25 million this season. There’s little to no chance of that now because, well, who are you going to throw the ball to?
Crabtree was the only tight end on the Packers roster, other than Finley, who’s shown anything. He was great as a blocker and had at least shown some potential as a playmaker in limited opportunities. So there’s no clear replacement at tight end and, with Jennings gone, the Packers would be down to three proven pass catchers without Finley.
Not exactly optimal for a team that relies on the pass more than most.
As for Crabtree, the Packers didn’t tender him and then tried to sign him to a one-year, $700,000 deal. Tampa came in with a two-year $1.6 million deal. The Packers ultimately decided they couldn’t afford an $100,000 in 2013 and let Crabtree, who wanted to remain with the team, walk.
Really. The Packers wouldn’t fork over an extra $100,000 for a core special teams player and a top backup.
That’s what it’s come to in Green Bay. We won’t pay market value for anyone! You’ll take what we offer you and like it! It’s a privilege just to play here!
Crabtree should get plenty of opportunities in Tampa, so we’ll see if the Packers were right to let him move on. We doubt they were though.