With the loss of Letroy Guion to suspension and Mike Pennel to the Jets, Ted Thompson feels he found a good replacement in Washington Redskins Defensive Tackle Ricky Jean Francois.
After visiting the #Packers, DT Ricky Jean Francois is signing a 1-year deal for $3mil with GB.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 23, 2017
The 6’3 313 pound Francois is entering his 9th year after being drafted in the 7th round by the San Francisco 49ers in 2009.
Francois played in all 16 games starting in 2010 and continued that streak in every season with the exception of 1 in 2013, his first year with the Colts.
Francois played 3 years in SF, 2 years in Indianapolis, and 2 years in Washington before finding his new home in Green Bay.
In his 106 games, Francois totaled 153 tackles, 12 sacks, 12 pass deflections, and a forced fumble.
The selection of Francois won’t have any impact on the compensatory picks thanks to the fact he was cut by the Redskins, no doubt a big factor in the Packers interest in him.
After only watching minimal film on him, it seems the Redskins liked to use Francois on short yardage situations. With the loss of Guion to suspension for the first 4 games of the year and 333 pound Mike Pennel to the Jets, the signing gives the Packers a big man to take on the run while Clark, Daniels, and Lowry work their way up the field.
Some speculation is swirling that the Packers will cut Guion after the signing of Francois. Although it provides more than enough depth and the fact that Clark and Lowry’s snap counts went through the roof toward the end of the season, Guion was still the number two through most of the season behind Daniels. I don’t expect Guion to be with the team for much longer but I also see no need to cut him before the season starts.
With that, let’s all celebrate the newest member of the Green Bay Packers family the only way I know how…. peanut butter and jelly dance