GREEN BAY — It’s rare for an NFL general manager to go on the record with his intentions, much less as early as Brian Gutekunst did. But speaking last summer on the eve of training camp, the straight-shooting Green Bay Packers GM made no bones about the importance of getting a long-term extension done with star defensive tackle Kenny Clark.
Gutekunst was talking about his decision to part ways with veteran Pro Bowl defensive lineman Mike Daniels shortly before camp was set to begin, and he acknowledged that moving on from Daniels and his $8 million salary was a decision that was based, in part, on the need to marshal resources to pay Clark.