Green Bay Packers make cut-day trade with Los Angeles Rams
Almost overnight, the NFL world has gone into a frenzy due to Tuesday’s cut day and while the Packers and Rams haven’t made a ton of surprising moves, the two NFC playoff contenders got in on the action.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Rams sent punter Corey Bojorquez and a seventh-round pick to the Packers in exchange for a sixth-round pick.
Punters don’t hit the trade block often, and if the NFL preseason is a measuring stick when it comes to punting, there couldn’t be a better choice for any team.
We are talking about two teams ready to make a Super Bowl run now, so let’s dive into the trade implications for both.
Rams win trade?
The fact that Sean McVay was able to receive compensation for a punter, is well, just good business. The Rams opted to get a little back for their young, breakout punter and roll with veteran Johnny Hekker, who restructured his contract to stay with the Packers and was on the radar for the Cowboys and others if released.
Over three preseason games, Bojorquez averaged 51.9 yards (net and gross) and put four punts inside the 20-yard line. According to Pro Football Focus, his 4.81-second hangtime average was the best in the NFL.
Bojorquez will replace JK Scott, a fifth-round pick of the Packers in 2018 who produced three mostly inconsistent seasons as the punter.
Bojorquez has punted 165 times over 40 career NFL games, all with the Buffalo Bills between 2018 and 2020. He led the NFL in yards per punt in 2020.
Implications for Rams and Packers
Special teams gets overlooked, but any NFL coach will tell you it’s one of the most vital position groups. Unless Hekker bombs, this was a no-brainer for McVay and company.
The plot thickens when we dive into Green Bay’s motive for the move and instability on special teams.
Green Bay Packers ESPN reporter Rob Demovsky provided an update from the Packers point of view when the trade was announced.
“Update on the punter trade,” Demovsky tweeted. “JK Scott is out as the Packers’ punter. We’ll see tomorrow if they make a long-snapper switch, too, pending who’s available.”
With just 12 days until the Packers head to play New Orleans, it feels a bit last-minute to be making these types of moves, but the Packers’ current staff and roster is a talent-laden proven group with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations and seemingly weren’t happy with their punter-long snapper combination.
“Apparently the Packers needed someone to better handle Bradley’s low snaps into the turf on field goals and extra points,” Demovsky speculated after hearing Green Bay had acquired a new punter.
That certainly sounds like more of a long-snapper issue, yet when Bojorquez was acquired in the trade, the incumbent Packers’ punter — not the long-snapper Bradley — was released.
As of now, Hunter Bradley remains the long snapper in Green Bay as he’s listed on the final 53-man roster.
Now, though, the Packers’ special teams plot thickens.