The Green Bay Packers made a massive splash in the free agent safety market by signing Xavier McKinney. With adding to the safety position still a need, re-signing Rudy Ford is a move that right now makes a lot of sense.
Even with McKinney, the Packers’ safety room remains relatively empty with only Anthony Johnson, Benny Sapp, and Zayne Anderson on the roster. Unless Johnson makes a big jump over the summer, there’s a good chance that McKinney’s running mate isn’t on the roster yet.
Re-signing Ford is a relatively low risk move for the Packers but one that could benefit them in a few different ways.
From a salary cap perspective, Ford came with a cap hit in 2023 of just $1.5 million. After appearing in only 13 games last season and finishing the season on IR, Ford’s 2024 deal will most likely be in a similar range.
So if he makes the team, that’s a very low cap hit for the Packers to carry through the season. But with such a low cap hit and little to no guarantees, the Packers have the flexibility to move on from Ford when they set the initial roster and there will be minimal, if any, dead cap to deal with.
If Ford is on the 53-man roster, he is going to contribute in some fashion to the 2024 Packers. Depending on who else is added to the safety position, and how things shake out within that position group during training camp and the preseason, if needed, Ford has shown that he can be relied upon to start.
When at his best defensively, Ford has proven to be a sound tackler, a willing run defender, and can be the communicator on the back end of the defense. Although it sounds simple, Ford’s ability to execute consistently on what his specific responsibility is has put him in fairly consistent positions to make plays on the ball. Over the last two years, Ford has five interceptions and five pass breakups.
As the Packers try to implement a different defensive mindset and play-style under Jeff Hafley, Ford brings an intensity and physical presence to the secondary.
“I like his physicality,” said defensive backs coach Ryan Downard last season. “He’s stout against crack blocks. He’s willing to throw it up in there. He uses his hands on crack blocks, and he’s pulling the trigger as well.”
While we are going to see McKinney’s role each week be game-plan dependent, Ford, from a skillset perspective, can provide a nice complement to McKinney, who will likely spend the bulk of his snaps as the deep safety. Ford, with his willingness to help in the run game and be a tackler, could take on more of a primary role as the box safety, and then be called upon to play deep if needed.
With that said, let’s say Johnson emerges over the summer or the Packers find find a safety in the draft who wins the starting role next to McKinney. Then Ford provides experienced depth, which is certainly valuable, and would contribute on special teams.
Although during Ford’s two seasons with the Packers he has turned into an oftentimes important defensive contributor, when he was first signed by the Packers prior to the 2022 season, he was known for his special teams abilities, specifically as a flier on the punt coverage unit.
So either way, Ford has a path to being able to make an impact on this 2024 Packers team—whether that be on defense or special teams.
Now, there are still a few impact safeties available in free agency, including Justin Simmons and Julian Blackmon, both of whom at this stage of the game are likely to come with shorter term, affordable deals. And for the Packers, they do have some wiggle room in terms of salary cap space.
But even if the Packers were to sign one of these players – which as of now, there is no indication that’s the case – that still shouldn’t stop them from signing Ford for the reasons mentioned.
On the flip side, signing Ford shouldn’t stop the Packers from looking to the draft to address the safety position either. However, with this being a so-so safety class overall and a position that doesn’t always make an immediate impact, relying solely on the draft to round out this position group would be a risky move—again validating the value that Ford can bring to the roster.
Every general manager wants options, especially over the summer, and Ford provides that. He will help elevate the competition within a position group that very much needs it—an emphasis for Brian Gutekunst this offseason. Ford also has a few different paths to contributing to the team this season, and he isn’t going to break the bank either.
“He’s very intentional,” said Downard of Ford. “He’s very detailed. He wants to know the ins and outs of everything. You’re not just going to give Rudy a brush-off answer and let him take it. He wants to know, how do you want this play? Do you want us to be in this check or this one? And he’s going to raise his hand and say, I want everyone to hear it, so we are all on the same page. I think that cultivates an environment of accountability. So he’s brought that.”
