Randall Cobb: 'I thought [Khalil Mack] was coming here'
-- As far as Randall Cobb knows, Khalil Mack was going to be his teammate.
At least, that's what he went to bed thinking he was going to wake up to last weekend.
"I thought he was coming here," the Packers wide receiver said of the Bears' newest pass-rushing acquisition. "I thought I was going to wake up and find out that we had gotten him. But some things happen, and obviously, he ended up in Chicago. That’s part of it, that’s part of the business."
The Oakland Raiders traded Mack -- as well as a 2020 second-round pick -- to the Bears in exchange for their 2019 and 2010 first-round picks, as well as pending third and sixth-round choices.
It didn't take long for the Bears to extend Mack, which was the entire premise behind his holdout with the Raiders to begin with. He quickly netted a six-year, $141 million dollar deal, securing $90 million guaranteed and cementing his place as the highest-paid defensive player in league history.
He adds another interesting twist to the rivalry between the Packers and Bears -- flames that will rekindle Sunday night and burn brightly until week 15, the second, and presumably final, meeting of the season.
"Damn, man. We gotta see him twice a year now," Cobb said.
It should be no issue for quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who has gone up against the likes of Brian Urlacher, Julius Peppers and Jared Allen in the NFC North multiple times a year. That isn't to say he was willing to discuss his thoughts on the trade on Wednesday.
"I don’t need to react to every comment that’s made," Rodgers said. "I think I’ve made that pretty clear."
It would be a fool's game to pretend Mack won't impact Sunday night's clash. Despite having just roughly a week to learn the defense and implement himself into it from a schematic standpoint, Mack should be disruptive -- not by his usual standards, but noticeably so.
"That’s a really good player in his prime. They obviously gave up some picks, but it just adds to the rivalry now. We get to see him a couple of times a year."
The Packers reportedly had an offer in place with the Raiders and were one of the top teams in the running to land Mack, however, the Bears are almost destined to have superior draft stock considering their likelihood to finish lower in the division and with an inferior record to that of the Packers.
That made the trade all the more appealing to the Raiders' brass, Jon Gruden and Reggie McKenzie. But the Packers certainly could've used the support.
Outside of Clay Matthews and Nick Perry starting on the edge, Reggie Gilbert and Kyler Fackrell are the only two other players at the position. Gilbert, still relatively unproven but a promising project nonetheless, and Fackrell, a less-than-inspiring third-round pick from 2016 who does stand out on special teams.
One of the surprise 53-man roster additions at inside linebacker, James Crawford, can also rush the passer if needed.
Still, Rodgers is adamant on having no input on those kinds of developments, i.e., the result of the Mack trade.
"I don’t worry about that stuff. I don’t need to give my opinion on that. Brian [Gutekunst] and his staff do a good job of player acquisition and we play with the guys we got."
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Zachary Jacobson is a staff writer/reporter for Cheesehead TV. He's the voice of The Leap on iTunes and can be heard on The Scoop KLGR 1490 AM every Saturday morning. He's also a contributor on the Pack-A-Day Podcast. He can be found on Twitter via @ZachAJacobson or contacted through email at [email protected].
Comments (12)
JonathanSpader
September 05, 2018 at 10:50 pm
Can't wait for Sunday and Mack to be neutralized after being away from camp and being with a new team. Maybe then we can finally stop talking about him. Looking forward to seeing the Packers beat down the Bears. Read an interesting article comparing Mitch to Eli Manning.
4thand10
September 06, 2018 at 10:29 am
Bulaga and Mercedes should be able to neutralize 247 lbs if everyone else does their job.
Lphill
September 06, 2018 at 05:23 am
I wonder if Cobb was part of the package for Mack , I would have liked him but in reality the price was high and Mack and Rodgers salaries combined would have hurt the team but of course given a choice the majority would rather have Rodgers over Mack .
Community Guy
September 06, 2018 at 07:08 am
the league has two mechanisms in place to support parity/competitiveness: a progressive draft and the salary cap.. in its bid for Mack, the Packers ran into both of those mechanisms. in a way, the Packers were victims of their own success.. they had the best, and highest paid, QB in the league on their roster, and, they couldn't offer the Raiders the same level of draft picks that the Bears will presumably be providing the Raiders. so, Mack goes to the team that was expected to be the weakest in the division. the result should be more competitive and interesting series between the best teams in the division and the Bears.
as a Packer fan, i am disappointed that the Packers lost their bid for Mack; however, for the NFL and the average fan across the league, the parity that the aforementioned mechanisms create make for a better product on Sundays.
Curt
September 06, 2018 at 08:45 am
And if you don't think that is true - look at the NBA and its three or four team league.
Razer
September 06, 2018 at 07:31 am
I'd rather have a bunch of good moving parts than just "the one" particularly in a game where injury is an absolute. We'll get our two 1st rounders next year and add to a decent pool of talent. Gutekunst is making good moves and the roster is being rebuilt with a new attitude. Having endured some of the bad teams pre Favre and Rodgers, I am willing to wait for the changes on defense.
Samson
September 06, 2018 at 09:32 am
Mack would have put GB's "D" over the top.
Packer fans need to quit focusing on "next year" or "next season". -- That was always TT's approach. -- That's also why TT's gone and the Pack haven't seen a SB since season 2010.
This season is what counts at this time, not next or the next or the next. --- Eventually, GB's biggest weakness will be a sub par starting QB. -- AR is getting older. He won't last forever.
Bearmeat
September 06, 2018 at 01:05 pm
I'd have agreed with you 100% before the Donald extension. Now, I'm not quite as sure. With ARod at 35, I personally would have paid 2 1st round picks - especially if I got a 2nd back. Yes, the defense would have been way better with Mack this year, and yes, our OLBs are bad at professional football. But that contract was insane. It had the possibility to really kill the cap with ARod's contract in there too.
LambeauPlain
September 06, 2018 at 09:59 am
I am excited to see what Pettine dials up for Trubinski on Sunday night. I am confident the bare QB will be surprised and startled.
I would rather have Pettine sans Mack vs Capers and Mack.
I really have faith Pettine will run an exciting, dynamic defense that will actually help WIN games when the O is having an off day.
JonathanSpader
September 06, 2018 at 01:07 pm
"I am confident the bare QB will be surprised and startled."
I'd be surprised and startled if I was on national television naked!
dblbogey
September 06, 2018 at 10:10 am
The Bears will be better this year because of Mack, but still not a contender. The loss of 2 first round picks, along with Mack's huge salary, will hurt them for the next several years. As a Packers fan, I like it.
billybobton
September 06, 2018 at 11:59 am
The illusion of next year is amazingly lost of many packer fans who won't recall last year where the team with all the pre season talent turned into untalent disaster without one players.
that one hit could have been career ending....then where is your next year?
Without AROD is this team another draft away from a super bowl?
is it remotely as super bowl ready as this team WITHOUT Mack is?
the answer of course is no, not even close and quit being stupid.
We have AROD now if you are building a dream for 2 years from now you are quite missing the point