Packer wide receiver Greg Jennings is in his contract year!

Greg Jennings becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of this football season.

This subject has been bugging me for the past couple of months.  I finally decided to write about it.  It’s now popped up at a critical time of the year for the Green Bay Packers.  It’s a time when team unity is important heading into the playoffs and contract discussions do not need to be talked about publicly.  The Packers secured a playoff position last Sunday when they defeated the Chicago Bears.

Yet, the question gets asked to Greg Jennings and he responds.  Greg appears to be a stand-up guy, but I don’t believe he needs to be as upfront with the media over his contract as he is.  It may be posturing on his behalf, but I think it detracts from team unity. On Wednesday he told reporters that “the writing is on the wall” about his future with the Packers.  Read More on NFL.com: Greg Jennings

Greg Jennings has to realize a couple of things! First and foremost, he’s a creation of the Green Bay Packers and his quarterback, Aaron Rogers.  The probability of his achieving or maintaining the level of success he’s achieved outside of Green Bay is a bit risky!

He’s now gone through two seasons with various injuries and has not been as productive as he once was. He does understand that this is a business, but he needs to understand that “he… Greg Jennings” is a business as well. On the one hand, the Packers can not afford to pay him “top receiver” salary. They need to concentrate on Aaron Roger’s and Clay Matthew’s contracts. And, what’s wrong with the franchise tag? I believe that means he’ll make in the range of $10 million.

Greg Jennings and his Old Spice Commercials

The other side of this equation is this. Jennings is making big money with his TV ads or sponsorship with Old Spice! This is just one his commercials.  On YouTube alone it has over 4.2 million hits!

Apparently, the Packers are allowing him to wear the Green Bay Packer uniform. There is a huge value in the Green Bay Packer brand!  Have you seen Eli Manning’s commercials for Citizen watch? Have you noticed that he’s not wearing the Giant’s uniform! Do you think Old Spice will want Greg Jennings without that uniform? I don’t!!

…some balance is needed here! Greg Jennings wants his family to stay in Green Bay! Another $10 million would certainly secure his financial future in Green Bay… on top of what he already has made in football.  Throw in the Old Spice contract and I think we assume he’s already a wealthy man.  He can pick up and move his family somewhere else. That’s his decision. Or, he can accept a contract that Green Bay can afford… either next year or in the future. Otherwise, I think he’ll lose his Old Spice deal. It’s all about good business and common sense!

Personally, I don’t care one way or the other!  I just find it interesting.  Is Greg Jennings a money grabbing opportunist?  I think that’s going a bit far.  He’s just doing his best to secure as much financial security for his family that he can.  What lies on the other side of his decision is what I’ll be looking at closely.