At the moment, the Green Bay Packers are in the thick of an offseason lull. In just a matter of weeks, fans will be able to start making conclusions over which offseason moves were the right ones and, on the other hand, which ones don't quite look sufficient.
One recent offseason move we can, indeed, draw some conclusions on however, is that of 2024 free agent Jon Runyan Jr. The Packers chose to allow him to hit free agency where he signed a 3-year, $30 million with the Giants -- and this decision to avoid a reunion now looks genius.
Brian Gutekunst refused to bring Runyan back on that type of deal and thus proved himself right. Last year with the Giants, Runyan had himself a pretty poor season.
Brian Gutekunst avoided a disaster by allowing Jon Runyan to sign with the Giants
After three seasons of starting 16 or more games at guard for the Packers, Runyan would go on to start 13 for the Giants in 2024. And, in his first year with New York, let's just say he performed less than desirably for Giants fans.
If you were to take Pro Football Focus' word for it, Runyan finished as the no. 94 ranked guard last season with a pretty miserable grade of just 56.1.
Oh, and that fantastic season you saw from Josh Jacobs in his first year as a Packer? It might have been less than what it was had Runyan stuck around. PFF also gave Runyan a grade of 52.3 in the run blocking department.
That was good for 119th among guards. For a moment, let's just do the math here. There are 32 teams, each with two starting guards. That's 64 starting guards before injury. After several injuries or benchings, even, Runyan clocked in as the 119th-ranked run blocking guard.
Big yikes, as the kids would say.
So, in a nutshell, yes, the Packers avoided disaster, here. They dodged a significant bullet by allowing Runyan to walk. This sounds harsh, but Josh Jacobs is probably pretty happy with the decision, and so are Packer fans.
