The Green Bay Packers have 12 unrestricted free agents, including tight end Josiah Deguara, a former third-round pick.
In Part 2 of a series, here is the NFL free agency outlook for Deguara.
Here’s Why Packers Should Retain Josiah Deguara
Let’s pretend for a moment the Packers used the 194th pick of the 2020 NFL Draft on Deguara rather than the 94th. And let’s also pretend Deguara was drafted as a fullback rather than a tight end. In that land of make-believe, without the lofty expectations that come with being an early draft pick at what was a huge position of need, Deguara would have been an excellent pick.
As a role player, the more you can do, the better. The last two seasons, Deguara’s 455 offensive snaps were relatively evenly split between tight end, slot receiver and fullback. When tasked with blocking a moving target as a fullback, he’s played effectively. It wasn’t by much, but the Packers ran the ball and threw the ball more effectively with Deguara on the field, according to league data. Plus, he ranked third on the team with 219 snaps on special teams, where he added four tackles.
With so many duties, his experience is valuable.
“I want to do as much for the team as I can and, if that’s lining up in every spot possible, I'll do that,” he said during training camp. “I enjoy my role. Obviously, I have to dive into the playbook and make sure I'm on my game, because I can be in there in any personnel [package], any formation. I have to know the playbook like the back of my hand. I know the team trusts me to be able to do that.”
The league-minimum salary for a fifth-year player is $1.125 million. That’s only $330,000 more than for a rookie. If the Packers went with the in-house candidate, 2023 undrafted rookie Henry Pearson, the savings would be only $210,000.
Here’s Why Packers Should Not Re-Sign Josiah Deguara
While the Packers made a large investment in Deguara and he is coming off a career-high four starts, he’s seen a decreased role.
After missing most of 2020 following a torn ACL, Deguara played 367 snaps and caught 25 passes in 2021. That dropped to 258 snaps and 13 receptions in 2022 and 196 snaps and eight receptions in 2023. Of those eight catches last season, four came in Week 4 against Detroit. After that, he caught two passes. From Game 9 vs. Pittsburgh through the playoffs, he was not targeted a single time in the passing game.
It was somehow fitting that in the playoff game against San Francisco – a game featuring his draft comparison, eight-time Pro Bowl 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, Deguara played a mere six snaps.
The Verdict
The aforementioned Pearson went undrafted out of Appalachian State last year. He suffered a knee injury during training camp. The Packers could have done what they do with other young, injured players – give him an injury settlement and wish him luck in his future endeavors.
Instead, they released him at the end of camp and signed him to the practice squad. So, they obviously like his upside. He got to practice for most of the season to get him ready to compete in training camp this summer.
The feeling is Deguara has played his last down in Green Bay and it will be Pearson against a Rookie To Be Named Later to play that fullback-type role in 2024.
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