Rather than lock in wide receiver Greg Jennings for the 2013 season at a price of 10.5 million dollars, Green Bay Packers General Manager Ted Thompson has declined to issue the franchise tag on the 7 year veteran and two time Pro Bowler. Monday was the deadline for NFL teams to issue franchise tag designations. Jennings will become an unrestricted free agent on March 12 and it's looking more likely he won't return to the Pack. He's caught 425 passes and 53 touchdown for the Packers but injuries limited him to just 36 receptions and four TD's in 8 regular season games last year. Jennings will turn 30 in September and he reportedly is seeking a deal in the neighborhood of 12-14 million dollars a year that would put him third among the NFL's highest paid receivers behind Calvin Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald. Whether another team is willing to meet that price remains to be seen but the free agent market price might have been set Monday when Kansas City re-signed Dwayne Bowe to a five year deal. Financial terms haven't been disclosed but we'll learn soon enough how much the deal is worth. Thompson is apparently positioning the team to work out lucrative contract extensions for B.J. Raji and Clay Matthews, whose rookie contracts will expire after the 2013 season. Then there's Aaron Rodgers, grossly underpaid at around 9 million dollars a year, especially in light of Joe Flacco's record setting 120 million dollar deal over 6 years signed Monday with the Baltimore Ravens. With the release of Charles Woodson and the retirements of Donald Driver and Jeff Saturday, the Packers are about 22 million dollars under the salary cap. If Jennings indeed signs elsewhere, the Packers will still have James Jones, Jordy Nelson and last year's team leading receiver Randall Cobb in the fold. That won't ease the loss of one of the most popular and productive Packers in recent years but the financial realities of the NFL are rearing their ugly head again.
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