Packers bring back linebacker Justin Hollins

The fourth year pro was claimed off waivers from the Rams last November. 


The Packers continue to solidify their depth in free agency as they are reportedly bringing back linebacker Justin Hollins. 

Hollins appeared in six games for the Packers after being claimed off waivers from the Rams, and gave the Packers nine pressures to go along with three sacks. 

For a team that will need all the help it can get at Edge while it waits for Rashan Gary to get back from his ACL injury, Hollins is a nice depth piece and a guy who could be counted on as part of a rotation early in the season. 

Hollins also held up well against the run last season and could give Rich Bissacia some help on special teams. Overall, this is very good depth signing. 

 

 

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9 points
 

Comments (32)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
packer132's picture

March 23, 2023 at 11:08 am

Good cheap signing of a young player who will get better in the system. He flashed in limited play and will contribute again on special teams. Packers have re-signed Ford, Nixon, Ballentine, Davis, and added LS Orzech and Moore from SF. Expect the special teams to improve in year two of Bisaccia's scheme. Kicker is still an unknown, as Crosby could return. There are 13 free agent kickers should Mason retire or move on. Too many needs to draft a kicker late, in my opinion.

5 points
5
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jannes bjornson's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:11 pm

6th-7th round for the kicker. Hollins was a good fill-in as a designated rusher. He should bring in 6-8 sacks if he stays Healthy.

3 points
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dobber's picture

March 23, 2023 at 01:43 pm

Currently rostering one kicker: Parker White...yeah, I had to look him up, too.

"Too many needs to draft a kicker late, in my opinion."

6th-7th rounders are preferred UDFAs anyway. I have no problem with a PK at that point, but I think they'll be better off with the low-cost FA.

2 points
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jannes bjornson's picture

March 23, 2023 at 02:01 pm

Ruggles is mocked to the 5th-6th and Moody will be around in the 7th. I don't know if Ryland can kick in the colder weather. Maybe Andre Szmyt from Syracuse?

1 points
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dobber's picture

March 23, 2023 at 02:57 pm

Even Syracuse plays indoors.

0 points
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KnockTheSnotOutOfYou's picture

March 23, 2023 at 03:59 pm

J,
What I liked on film with Hollins is how he held the edge. He didn't get fooled & rushed inside like Gary does and held the edge in the run game.

2 points
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NickPerry's picture

March 24, 2023 at 04:49 am

Jake Moody in the 6th or 7th would be fine with me. IIRC Mason was a 6th rounder and that worked out okay.

Right on the money in your assessment of the ST this year IMO.

1 points
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splitpea1's picture

March 23, 2023 at 11:15 am

A good economical signing. Maybe (or maybe not) Barry can cobble together enough of a pass rush to get by until Gary gets back. I'm not sure how much sense it makes to use a high draft pick on an OLB this time unless the guy is a bonafide instant impact type--unless we get extra picks and an opportunity arises that is too good to pass up.

3 points
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jannes bjornson's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:11 pm

Draft two @ the Edge position. Get Better.

3 points
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dobber's picture

March 23, 2023 at 02:58 pm

I'd like to see a faster, bendy guy just to change up the pacing.

Packers have a "type" and are pretty uniform in their OLB HWS. Hollins is actually a little light for them.

1 points
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KnockTheSnotOutOfYou's picture

March 23, 2023 at 04:00 pm

J,
Be all for that! In fact, my mock drafts always have 2 Edge rushers & usually pretty high.

0 points
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dobber's picture

March 23, 2023 at 11:52 am

Depth signing of a position lacking playable pieces (until Gary comes back).
This is how BG shores things up leading up to the draft with only pennies to pay.

8 points
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PatrickGB's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:02 pm

If anything he provides veteran experience and is a nice backup. He looked better as the season went on.

4 points
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KnockTheSnotOutOfYou's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:09 pm

Interesting signing! I like him and he flashed from time-to-time.

If the Packers end up drafting a top Edge rusher in the draft how does the re-signing of Hollins play out? With the re-signing does it mean the Packers are not going Edge early and have their eyes on other positions & prospects? Does Hollins provide Gutey the opportunity to be more flexible April 27th?

1 points
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T7Steve's picture

March 23, 2023 at 01:00 pm

Last season proved we can't be too deep at edge. What would be great is if we can get someone that's reliable enough to be able to pace Preston S. to keep him fresh and impactful.

Being a good run stopper, is a plus that I hope permeates through the whole line too. NINE stops in 6 games played! I wonder if we could look back and get his snap counts for those games. I bet much less than 50%.

0 points
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jannes bjornson's picture

March 23, 2023 at 01:11 pm

A top pick puts Garvin on notice.

4 points
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KnockTheSnotOutOfYou's picture

March 23, 2023 at 04:01 pm

Top edge rusher, or Jermaine Johnson definitely puts Garvin on notice. I was thinking the same thing J.

0 points
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Packers0808's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:16 pm

Still young enough to develop and has shown flashes as a possible improvement as season goes!

4 points
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egbertsouse's picture

March 23, 2023 at 12:17 pm

Typical Gutey signing. Nobody in the league wants this guy. “I’ll take him!” says Gute.

-6 points
4.5
10.5
dobber's picture

March 23, 2023 at 01:25 pm

If that's the case, then everyone is making typical Gutey signings right now.

6 points
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KnockTheSnotOutOfYou's picture

March 23, 2023 at 02:26 pm

👍

0 points
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coolhand's picture

March 23, 2023 at 03:50 pm

Decent back up at OLB, could be good on special teams. He is about the only type of player the team can afford at this point.

0 points
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Swisch's picture

March 23, 2023 at 04:32 pm

This may be an area in which Gute excels as a GM, finding value in players underappreciated by other teams.
We'll find out more this season, first of all by observing how well Campbell and Douglas play. They made a big splash in 2021, then seemed not as good in 2022, meaning that 2023 is a decisive year for both.
We have to hope that Joe Barry has learned over years of experience as a defensive coordinator (two with the Packers) -- each of which seems mediocre at best -- how to get the best out of his players as individuals and as a unit. (This relates to the story about whether or not to sign Adrian Amos.)
Second of all, let's see how Hollins and Melton do as recent pick-ups from the thrift store of the NFL.
How many will go forward as solid finds for Gute, or perhaps even better?
***
My impression is that Gutey has been on his way to being a top GM in the NFL, and that his major mistake has been weakness with regard to Aaron Rodgers -- although his level of responsibility for the way Rodgers has been handled seems difficult to discern.
In any case, this upcoming season without Rodgers seems to be a clean slate and a major opportunity for many of our players and coaches -- and in turn, this will reflect for better or worse on Gute.
Not so long ago, the Packers won 13 games in three straight seasons (with a couple of wins in the playoffs, as well) -- which would indicate at least the possibility that there is enough potential on the team going forward to contend for the playoffs this upcoming season, and to do even better from there.
It may take a couple of seasons, but it seems we'll get an idea of how much Rodgers has been helping the Packers versus inhibiting them -- and how well Gute has done in building the rest of the roster.

1 points
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TKWorldWide's picture

March 23, 2023 at 08:03 pm

A GM has got to have confidence and conviction. But when a “risky” pick doesn’t pan out, he gets that “smartest guy in the room” label. Ron Wolf was definitely an alpha but he was also self-deprecating. He made bold moves, took risks, and admitted his mistakes. Of course, bringing GB back from years of obscurity granted him some leeway as well.
TT was so…quiet, and, kind of awkward. But a workaholic without a doubt. Be successful and nobody cares what your interviews are like, sizzle or no sizzle.
Gutey is harder to get a grip on. Definitely more aggressive (esp in FA) than TT was. Loves his RAS guys. Doesn’t seem to like to do interviews either. The Love-Dillon-Deguara draft sure seems like a “smartest guy in the room” move to me.
This upcoming season will certainly shed light on whether that 10-28-81 sequence was madness, genius, or something in between.

5 points
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Swisch's picture

March 23, 2023 at 08:24 pm

Huge years for Love-Dillon-Deguara; and it should be fun to watch how they do.

1 points
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TKWorldWide's picture

March 23, 2023 at 08:39 pm

Same page, amigo!

2 points
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PeteK's picture

March 23, 2023 at 04:44 pm

If Enagbare develops even a bit, he will very adequately hold down the position until Gary returns. Then he and Hollins make up a good pair of backups that could also give our starters a breather.

3 points
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Swisch's picture

March 23, 2023 at 06:09 pm

Sounds good, Pete, to take care of the position for next season.
That way, in this upcoming draft, we may want to look for an edge rusher or two in the later rounds (day 3 of the draft) -- perhaps high-ceiling guys with lots of athleticism who aren't yet ready to start in the NFL, but could be stars in the future.
As edge rusher seems to be a premium position in the NFL these days, it seems good to restock at least a little every season.
P.S. I don't know whether or not there's an edge rusher worth one of our first three picks in this upcoming draft, but Hollins and Enagbare may allow us to not have to force an early pick at that position unless the guy is ready to be a major star right away.

2 points
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1
Tundraboy's picture

March 23, 2023 at 07:37 pm

And that's the way to look at it!

1 points
1
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BirdDogUni's picture

March 23, 2023 at 05:34 pm

I wish:

13: Quentin Johnston WR TCU
15: Broderick Jones LT Georgia
43: Darnell Washington TE Georgia
45: Dawand Jones RT Ohio State
78: Andre Carter II OLBer ARMY
116: Moro Ojomo DT Texas
149: Ronnie Hickman S Ohio State
170: Viliami Fehoko OLBer San Jose State
232: Matt Landers WR Arkansas
235: Will Mallory TE Uni of Miami
242: Hunter Luepke FB North Dakota State
256: Tyrque Jones S Boise State

2 points
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vin0770's picture

March 23, 2023 at 06:16 pm

Special Teams investment nice to see.

0 points
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Thegreatreynoldo's picture

March 23, 2023 at 08:30 pm

Very happy with this. I thought Hollins might get $2.5M type of money. He took a qualifying offer I gather so his cap number is about $1.06M.

I liked Hollins better than PFF did, who gave him a 54. Maybe the poor play was with his former team? Hmmm

So, 8 pressures, 2.5 sacks, 9 tackles in 128 snaps in GB.
Vs. 3 pressures, 1.0 sacks, 26 tackles, in 308 snaps in LAR.

4 points
4
0