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As the Green Bay Packers and the rest of the NFL begin the 2018 league year, there are still plenty of moves to be made. The Packers need to do something at the cornerback position after trading away Damarious Randall, and many of the top free agent options have already agreed to contract terms during the open negotiating period.
However, one of the top remaining players at the position who has not yet selected a destination is Rashaan Melvin, formerly of the Indianapolis Colts. He officially became a free agent at 4:00 PM Wednesday, and the Packers are among the teams making a run at him, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter:
Packers and Raiders have expressed interest in signing free-agent CB Rashaan Melvin.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 14, 2018
Melvin, who played his collegiate ball at Northern Illinois, is a tall corner at 6-foot-2. His Pro Day results from his draft year show a player with good speed (4.42 second 40-yard dash, per NFL Draft Scout) but only moderate agility (7.32 3-cone time). He entered the league with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2013 and bounced from Tampa to Miami to Baltimore to New England and back to Miami before being signed by the Colts before week one of the 2016 season.
In his two years in Indianapolis, Melvin has played in 25 games, starting 19 of them. His 2017 season featured three interceptions and 13 pass breakups in ten games (all starts); according to Pro Football Focus, he allowed just two touchdowns last season and a passer rating of just 60.3 into his coverage, which ranked 12th in the entire NFL.
Time will tell whether the Packers end up signing Melvin, but it is at least encouraging to finally see the team showing interest in a player at his position.