Packers Rumors: CB Davon House and Packers Interested in Reunion

Cornerback Davon House and the Packers are interested in a reunion, according to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky:

The idea of bringing House back to Green Bay is intriguing, for three reasons:

House is familiar with the Packers scheme and personnel

The New Mexico State cornerback was rated by CBS Sports before the draft as the 55th best prospect in 2011. Green Bay chose the 6-0, 197 pound cornerback who ran a 4.41 40 yard dash in the fourth round, and he left for Jacksonville after four years as a reserve and special teams star.

The decision for House in 2015 came down to the Jaguars, Seahawks and Packers, and the cornerback chose to reunite with his collegiate coach, DeWayne Walker, who was serving at the time as the defensive backs coach for Jacksonville.

House saw his playing time in Green Bay steadily increase. In 2013, he was on the field for 37 percent of the defensive snaps and played almost half (47 percent) in 2014. He started and played 94 percent of the snaps in 2015 with the Jaguars and found himself on the bench for most of 2016.

We profiled House’s two year tenure in Jacksonville over the weekend.

House is a talented special teams player

One of House’s first big contributions as a member of the Packers was blocking Bryan Anger’s punt in a 2012 contest against Jacksonville:

He was named the NFC’s Special Teams Player of the Week for his block, recovered by Green Bay’s Dezman Moses for a touchdown. His talents as a special teamer were so great that he offered to, and did, play special teams for the Jaguars in 2015 and 2016. Typically when a player signs a contract worth $6 million annually, they are not expected to play special teams.

The Packers were ranked 29th by the Dallas Morning News in special teams in 2016. A reunion with House will go a long way to bolstering Ron Zook’s crew.

House is the type of free agent Ted Thompson targets

Last offseason, Thompson reportedly made no offer to cornerback Casey Hayward when he hit free agency. It was different when Davon House left, as the Packers were willing to get close to the number the Jaguars were offering but were not willing to offer $10 million guaranteed.

Thompson’s last two premiere free agent signings, linebacker Julius Peppers and tight end Jared Cook, both were released by their previous teams. Because of that, their signings did not hurt the Packers in the NFL’s secret compensatory pick formula. House was released by the Jaguars, and also would not hurt Green Bay’s chances at compensatory picks next offseason.