The Green Bay Packers have a new chief lawyer.
The team announced on Friday that Kevin Manara is the team’s new general counsel.
Incoming president/CEO Ed Policy made the announcement.
“We are excited to welcome Kevin to Green Bay,” Policy said in a team-issued release. “He brings a wealth of experience at both the league and team level that will be invaluable to the Packers and our overall operations. We look forward to his leadership contributions as a member of our Senior Staff.”
Manara has served as general counsel for the Cardinals since July 2023. Before that, he worked as senior V.P. and general counsel of the Raiders.
He previously worked for the league office from 2008 through 2021.
The Raiders are signing free agent linebacker Devin White to a one-year deal, Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports reports.
Raiders General Manager John Spytek was with the Bucs when they drafted White with the fifth overall pick in 2019. White also played with Raiders minority owner Tom Brady with the Bucs, winning a Super Bowl in the 2020 season.
White spent five years in Tampa, but his time there ended unceremoniously. He wanted a contract extension, and when he didn’t get it, White asked for a trade. In Week 15 of the 2023 season — his last with the Bucs — the team indicated he was a healthy scratch for a game against the Packers, prompting White to defend himself against accusations he quit on his team.
He signed a one-year deal with the Eagles worth up to $7.5 million a year ago, but the Eagles cut him Oct. 8 without White ever seeing the field. He signed with the Texans on Oct. 23 and played seven games, totaling 19 tackles while seeing action on 176 snaps.
White made the Pro Bowl in 2021 and has 585 career tackles with 23 sacks, 64 quarterback hits, three interceptions and 21 pass breakups.
Four weeks ago, it wasn’t clear what the Raiders would do at quarterback. Three weeks ago, the clouds parted. The new quarterback in Las Vegas is Geno Smith.
New Raiders G.M. John Spytek addressed the decision to trade for Smith during a recent episode of the team’s Upon Further Review podcast.
“The compensation from a draft-capital standpoint wasn’t so costly,” Spytek said. “I love my picks more than anybody, and I’ve got to remind Coach Carroll how much I love picks. But, listen, we used a late third-round pick to hopefully have our starting quarterback here for years to come. And it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.”
Smith, of course, is under contract for only one year. He’s due to make $31 million. There has been no extension, yet. And it’s fair to wonder when one is coming, given that Smith’s financial expectations prompted the Seahawks to trade him.
It remains to be seen how things play out. Will Smith show up for offseason workouts without a new deal? Or will he decide that he needs to prepare to have the best contract year possible, if a new deal isn’t coming sooner than later?
Regardless, the Raiders say they’re sold on Smith.
“When you’ve watched Geno through the years, he can throw the football with the best of any of them, honestly,” Spytek said. “I mean, you watch some of the throws he makes over and over again downfield, you know, short, intermediate. The touch is there, the arm strength is there.
“And when you have Coach Carroll in your camp and he can swear by the player, the competitor, the worker, the leader. That’s a front-row seat, or that’s information that if I was still with the Bucs, for instance, we wouldn’t have.”
So they believe in Smith. And they say they want him to be there. When it comes to quarterback contracts, however, money always speaks louder than words.
Using or not using a top-10 draft pick on a quarterback next month also does, too.
Hunter Renfrow wants back in.
After not playing in the 2024 season, Renfrow has recently taken a free-agent visit with the Panthers and is set to take another with the Raiders, according to NFL Media.
Renfrow met with Carolina on Wednesday and will meet with Las Vegas on Friday.
A fifth-round pick in 2019, Renfrow was a critical piece of the 2021 Raiders team that made the postseason. He caught 103 passes for 1,038 yards with nine touchdowns that year.
But injuries limited him to 10 games played in 2022. While he was on the field for all 17 in 2023, his production dropped as he caught just 25 passes for 255 yards with no TDs.
Las Vegas released Renfrow in March 2024. After spending a year out of the game, the Clemson product is looking to restart his career.
In 73 career games in his first stint with the Raiders, Renfrow caught 269 passes for 2,884 yards with 17 touchdowns.
Raiders defensive tackle Matthew Butler signed his exclusive rights free agent tender Wednesday, according to the NFL’s transactions report.
Butler, 25, appeared in seven games with one start in 2024, seeing action on 101 defensive snaps and 27 on special teams. He totaled nine tackles.
He spent part of the season on the practice squad before being signed to the active roster.
The Raiders made Butler a fifth-round pick in 2022, and he played six games as a rookie and two in 2023.
In his career, Butler has appeared in 15 games and recorded 15 tackles and half a sack.
