Packers sign eight to future contracts

The Green Bay Packers re-signed eight players from their practice squad to futures contracts on Monday.

WR Ed Williams

WR Jamel Johnson

TE Mitchell Henry

OL Matt Rotheram

OL Jeremy Vujnovich

DL Christian Ringo

DL William Campbell

ILB Carl Bradford

Henry, a 6-foot-4, 252-pound tight end out of Western Kentucky, impressed the organization during the summer before he broke his finger early in training camp. It forced him to play most of the preseason with a club.

The Packers let Henry go during final cuts, but he was claimed by the Denver Broncos who had pre-draft interest. He spent the first five weeks in Denver before he was released. The Broncos showed interest in bringing him back on the practice squad, but Henry opted to return to Green Bay.

He re-signed with the Packers on Oct. 16. Now, he’s looking forward to showing what he can do when completely healthy.

“This year was like a roller coaster going from here to Denver to back to here again,” said Henry, who plans to spend a portion of his offseason in Green Bay. “Hopefully, I won’t have to do that again next year. Getting another chance to come in here during the offseason and compete again, it’s all I could ask for.”

Ringo, 23, was the only member of the Packers’ 2015 draft class who didn’t make the 53-man roster, but the 6-foot, 298-pound defensive tackle was one of six players to spend the entire year on the team’s practice squad. That includes defensive back Robertson Daniel, who was activated on Friday.

The Packers thought enough of Ringo to increase practice-squad salary in November from the mandatory $6,600 per week to 25,588, which is the same weekly base salary all rookies on the active roster make (prorated from the $435,000 league minimum).

The Packers did the same last month with Rotheram, a 6-foot-4, 325-pound offensive lineman out of Pittsburgh who was seen as one of the team’s most coveted undrafted free agents last spring. He’s joined by offensive tackle Jeremy Vujnovich, who has now spent two full seasons on the practice squad.

Bradford, a fourth-round pick in 2014, will get another chance to continue his conversion to inside linebacker. He spent all of his rookie season on the active roster, but was inactive for all 18 games.

The only active practice-squad player who wasn’t immediately signed to a futures contract was running back Ross Scheuerman, who signed Dec. 8. The Packers also have defensive lineman B.J. McBryde on their practice-squad injured list.

whodkiew@pressgazettemedia.com and follow him on Twitter @WesHod.