In a young and also somewhat crowded Green Bay Packers wide receiver room, a name to keep your eyes on this summer is Bo Melton, who could fill a very specific role within the offense as a motion man and gadget player.
Melton was a seventh-round pick out of Rutgers in the 2022 draft by Seattle, where he spent most of the season on their practice squad. Then in late December, the Packers signed him to their active roster. Melton doesn’t have any career NFL snaps at this point, but he does possess 4.34 speed that could be useful in the Matt LaFleur offense. During his final season at Rutgers, Melton ranked 26th among all receivers in average YAC, according to PFF, and he averaged 7.5 yards per attempt over his career as a ball carrier.
I went into greater detail here, but in short, I do expect there to be a larger role in the offense this season for a gadget-type player with Jordan Love at quarterback, where we see more motion and snaps under center. The obvious benefit of having a speedy playmaker in this role is that it can be a relatively easy way to generate a big play via jet sweeps, end-arounds, or screens. However, there can also be a positive trickle-down effect to the rest of the offense just from having that skill set on the field, even if the play design doesn’t have him touching the ball.
Having a man in motion with playmaking abilities can create mismatches for the rest of the offense. Movement just before the ball is snapped forces the defense to adjust on the fly as it can change what some of the defenders’ responsibilities are, and it can also force the defense to tip their hand a bit, which is valuable information for Love. Once the ball is snapped, the defense then has to figure out who has the ball, the motion man or the quarterback, and that split second of hesitation can open up passing lanes and allow blockers to get into a better position, perhaps even at the second level. All of this can create opportunities for others within the offense and hopefully take some of the playmaking burden off of Love’s shoulders.
Through OTAs I haven’t seen Melton used in this capacity yet, but these last few weeks the Packers are laying the groundwork for what they want their offense to become. Training camp is where we will see them go deeper into the playbook and the potential for this gadget-like role to emerge.
You got it. Bo Melton. https://t.co/74ep7R8YsD pic.twitter.com/UDc3dvO7CR
— Paul Bretl (@Paul_Bretl) June 6, 2023
The Packers do already have players who we know will be on the 53-man roster that can fill this role in Christian Watson and Jayden Reed. Not to say that we won’t see either utilized in that gadget role at times, but Watson’s value is best maximized as a receiver running routes, where his role is going to expand this year as he’s asked to run a greater variety of routes, while the Packers may want Reed to become comfortable with his receiving responsibilities before adding more to his plate, something we’ve heard several coaches mention this offseason when discussing young players.
If the Packers keep just five receivers on their Week 1 roster, which they’ve done in the past, then this position group is pretty well set with Watson, Reed, Romeo Doubs, Samori Toure, and Dontayvion Wicks. If they choose to keep six, then perhaps there is some wiggle room for Melton to make the roster. During Brian Gutekunst’s and Matt LaFleur’s tenures together, the two have often prioritized keeping their own draft picks when making those final roster decisions, making Grant DuBose the obvious choice for that potential sixth roster spot. He is, however, yet to practice this offseason as he is sidelined with an injury, forcing him to play catch-up and possibly creating an opportunity for another receiver to make the team.
Although Melton’s skill set allows him the opportunity to carve out a defined role within the offense, in the grand scheme of putting together a weekly game plan, it is still a smaller role, even if it can make an impact. That means that, in all likelihood, he will have to find a way to contribute on special teams as well in order to maximize his value.
Ultimately we are still a long ways away from when these final decisions have to be made, and what happens during training camp and the preseason will be the deciding factors. But with that said, Melton can fill a role within this Packers offense that may be more prominent this season and one where simply his presence on the field can benefit those around him. So at the very least, he’s a fringe roster player worth watching this summer.
