Packers Beat Writer Tom Silverstein On J.J. Watt: "It's Not a Good Match"

Tom Silverstein, who covers the Green Bay Packers for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweeted that he did not love the Packers and J.J. Watt are a good match, citing financial issues the team is still working through to get under the salary cap.

Green Bay Packers reporter Tom Silverstein, who works for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, responded to a tweet from a fan, making the assumption that roster moves being made by the team were being made to clear space for J.J. Watt by saying that he did not believe the two sides are a good match.

I see where it might look like that, but the #Packers are not going to sign Watt. They have to get under the cap and they have too many others they need to re-sign/extend. Unless the market somehow collapses on him, he'll sign for way more than GB can pay. It's not a good match. https://t.co/tI0GcChICS

— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) February 19, 2021

The Packers restructured a deal with left tackle David Bakhtiari, changing a roster bonus into a signing bonus, which cleared some cap space. Friday, they announced the release of linebacker and former Cleveland Browns linebacker Chris Kirksey as well as reserve offensive tackle Rick Wagner, clearing a little over $10 million.

Silverstein is pointing out the fact the Packers have a lot of work to do with their salary cap and he's right. Beyond the fact the Packers have some free agents they might want to re-sign, they simply need to make sure they actually get under the salary cap and can afford to pay their incoming draft picks this season.

The belief of Silverstein is that the Packers will not be able to match the contract offers that teams, which likely includes the Browns, will be able to offer more. 

The Packers will need to perform some impressive roster gymnastics with the salary cap and Watt will need to to be willing to take less to go home to Wisconsin, where grew up a Packers fan and went to college.

This is welcome news for Browns fans who are cringing at every move they see the Packers make, assuming all of them mean Watt will be signing there. While none of them are likely to stop worrying that the Packers could find a way to sign Watt, perhaps they aren't quite as big of a threat as many believe.

None of this guarantees the Browns will get Watt, but it just further illustrates they have a really good case to make to the former three time defensive player of the year.

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