At the conclusion of the 2024 NFL season, Packers GM Brian Gutekunst issued a call for "urgency" as Green Bay looks to return to competing for Super Bowl titles.
Many took this as a signal the team was poised to be aggressive this offseason in an attempt to upgrade the roster, and although the Packers spent over $126 million in free agency by signing Aaron Banks, Nate Hobbs and Mecole Hardman, Green Bay's GM has faced criticism for not doing more to address perceived weaknesses on his roster.
It always felt like his "urgency" statement was probably misunderstood and was more of a message to the players and coaches already on the team after the 2024 campaign fizzled out with three straight losses to end the year, and Gutekunst seemed to confirm as much at the NFL owner's meetings this week.
He told the assembled media: "The ‘urgency’ comment was really more for our team and our organization to understand what the expectations are.
"At the same time, I think we were very urgent in free agency. We went after a couple of top targets, we were able to acquire them and I think that is really going to help our football team.
Gutekunst continued: "The urgency comment is across the board, it’s for our players, it’s for our organization, and just how we’re going to approach things."
The Packers' defense ranked in the top half of the league for pressure percentage in 2024, but did not get consistently high level play from the front four in their first year in coordinator Jeff Hafley's scheme.
When pressed on his free agency activity and specifically, not spending more to pursue a pass rusher, Gutekunst said: "Every free agent class is different, you have to be honest with yourself about what it is. You can’t just go chasing after things and trying to create stuff.
"We very much felt the targets we targeted were the ones worth targeting. We were 10th in the league in free agency spending this offseason, so I thought we were very aggressive and we were able to acquire guys pretty early in the process. Every year is different with the free agency class and it’s just a matter of how you evaluate that."
Green Bay is indeed 10th in the NFL in spending, although they made the fewest signings at five, including retaining kicker Brandon McManus and linebacker Isaiah McDuffie. This should be seen as a positive reflection of the strength of their existing roster, rather than a damning indictment of inactivity.
Gutekunst's strong words indicate the group of pass rushers and defensive linemen in this year's free agency class were not ones Gutekunst felt it was worth throwing money at, especially with four former first-round picks already on their front four.
After firing defensive line coach Jason Rebrovich and installing DeMarcus Covington, the team appears to be relying on better coaching, as well as a second year in Hafley's scheme, to generate more consistent play from a talented front featuring Rashan Gary, Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt and Lukas Van Ness.
Holes can be picked in the particular moves Gutekunst made this offseason, but even if the "urgency" comment did relate to his own aggressiveness, which it appears it did not, it is hard to argue he did not take swings to try to push his team closer to a championship.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers GM clarifies 'urgency' statement, defends free agency strategy