Justin Hollins fit right in

Just to break the trend of questions a bit, who would you like to see the Packers play in their home opener to usher in the Jordan Love area? I do remember the Aaron Rodgers era opened at home against the Vikings and a prestidigitation touchdown pass near the goal line from Rodgers that helped to win that game for the Packers.

The Chicago Bears at Lambeau Field. If a new era is starting, let’s start it off right.

Walt from Middle Inlet, WI

Hi Wes. I love the way Mike had to show Jim of St. Paul his way out the door again. As to voided contracts not being allowed a compensatory pick, would the main reason be that it’s a deterrent to its use? Otherwise, the team would get its cake and eat it too.

Perhaps. As Spoff said, I’m trying to get to the bottom of this. Last year, the Packers re-signed both players whose contracts voided (De’Vondre Campbell and Robert Tonyan), so we were no wiser as far as how the voided contracts affect the compensatory process. I re-read the collective bargaining agreement on Friday and it’s clear as mud. There is one line that spoke to me, though: No UFA shall qualify as a CFA if the player’s NFL Player Contract is renegotiated to reduce the Maximum Possible Term of the contract. So, if you renegotiate a player’s deal to reduce the previously agreed upon length, that player no longer counts towards the comp formula. However, it seems a player would still count towards the formula if he plays the “maximum possible term” of his deal (e.g. Dean Lowry signs a three-year contract with the Packers in 2019 and plays all three seasons).

I know there would be pushback from the players, but is there any possibility to see something like a max contract a la the NBA? This could work out for players as well as owners because of workarounds to the cap. Imagine if the Packers could pay A-Rod a bit extra outside of the cap due to his MVPs the last few seasons. Could be a longshot but it seems like the NBA players have more negotiating power in general and the NFLPA would like to have that kind of leverage.

I don’t see that happening tomorrow, but possibly someday. It’s the non-guaranteed nature of NFL contracts that complicates matters. If an NBA player signs a “max” deal, he’s promised to make every penny of that agreement. In the NFL, guaranteed language needs to be baked into the contract. I also don’t know how feasible it is to isolate “max” deals to a single position. It’s a QB-driven league, on and off the field. With revenue continuing to…