GREEN BAY, Wis. -- B.J. Raji is headed into free agency for the third straight year.

Each time has come under different circumstances

In 2014, the former first-round pick was coming off a disappointing season. He couldn’t find a long-term deal so he re-signed with the Green Bay Packers for one year and $4 million.

In 2015, he had even fewer options after he missed all of the previous season because of a torn biceps tendon he suffered in the preseason. He did another one-year deal with the Packers for $2.75 million.

This year, Raji not only made it through the season (mostly) healthy, but he was more productive -- especially in the first half of the year -- than he’s been since at least the 2011 season.

“I've been through it the last two years,” Raji said of free agency. “It's almost like I come into the process [and] have an idea, but you're not too sure. But I've still got a few months. Most teams aren't even looking at that until a few weeks.”

Raji is positioned better for free agency than he was in either of his two previous forays except for one thing: He’ll turn 30 by the time training camps open this summer.

Back at his old nose-tackle position this season, Raji started fast. He shared a sack in the regular-season opener against the Chicago Bears, ending a 35-game regular-season streak without a sack. However, he did not record another sack all season. Still, he was a force early on against the run until a groin injury slowed him down. He missed Week 6 against the San Diego Chargers but returned after the bye and played the rest of the way. He played 41.6 percent of the defensive snaps this season, a fair number for a player who rarely was on the field for third-down plays.

“I felt like when I’m healthy, I’m one of the better nose tackles in the league,” he said. “But that’s a tough position to stay healthy at all year, and I felt like I had a few things that I nicked up and was just proud of the way I kept playing.”

It was Raji’s first full season as a nose tackle since 2010. He moved to end in 2011 so the Packers could play Ryan Pickett at nose. When the Packers re-signed him in 2014, they promised him he would return to his original position. With Raji on injured reserve that entire season, Letroy Guion effectively replaced Raji at nose. This past season, Guion moved to end and did not have as productive a season as he did in 2014.

Part of the Packers’ decision on Raji could depend on whether they plan to re-sign Guion, who is also scheduled to become a free agent. Guion might come cheaper.

“The last two years taught me a lot,” Raji said. “You really have no idea. It’s tough too. I don’t think it's the right approach to start thinking because you really, until my people speak with them up top you really have no idea what they’re thinking. So to assume, it’s just wasted energy, wasted thoughts. Once you have some type of idea of what my agent says this or says that, then it’s like OK, now maybe the ball’s rolling. But [days after] the season to sit here and say, you just don’t know.”