Daunte Culpepper Probably Should've Hired an Agent

Ross Tucker is a former NFL player who's turned out to be an even better writer. He's just like this guy, but different. Anyway, Tucker now has a weekly column on SI.com and his latest effort highlights why it makes sense for players to have an agent. Yes, this seems obvious, but Daunte Culpepper started representing himself a few years ago, and it probably cost him a job earlier this offseason.

MDS pointed out that Culpepper got the bright idea to turn down $1 million offer from the Packers because he wants to be a starter. Fine. Anthony Wright and Jordan Palmer have similar aspirations but they (on the advice of their agents, presumably) chose to go about it a little differently. Tucker adds some context.

...[S]ometimes -- who am I kidding? often -- players have an overly inflated opinion of themselves and their market value. An agent can work as a buffer to relay the reality of the situation to a player who might otherwise be unaware. Though Culpepper says he is speaking with several teams and does not seem concerned about his job status, it's hard to imagine another team that would be a better situation for him.

If he had signed with Green Bay before the draft, he would have had the chance to back up an inexperienced, unproven player on a team with legitimate Super Bowl talent everywhere else on the roster. Should Rodgers badly falter or get injured, Culpepper could have been waiting in the wings.

Makes sense to me. But who knows, maybe other teams are interested in signing Culpepper to compete for a starting job. That said, there's probably no better available situation than Green Bay; the team is poised to make another playoff run, and Rodgers, who has an injury history (though, ironically, not quite as impressive as Culpepper's), isn't a lock to make it through the season unscathed.

For now, Culpepper's still a free agent and the Packers head into training camp with two rookies on the depth chart behind Rodgers.