The Green Bay Packers could have easily justified making free-agent additions at either the receiver or tight end positions this offseason. However, one reason that they held off was that they wanted to make sure the young players get some much-needed reps.
“Obviously, we are very excited about that group,” said general manager Brian Gutekunst on Tuesday of the receiver room. “They’re going to grow together with Jordan and the whole offense. But we look at all those things (signing a free agent), and we will continue to. If the right player and the right price and all that kind of stuff comes around, we will see if that makes some sense. But the players we have in that group right now need to play. They need reps, so we are excited about that.”
At receiver, Jeff Cotton, a 2020 undrafted rookie, is the longest-tenured player at this position group, but he has just one career NFL snap. Romeo Doubs and his 529 career snaps are the most on the team, while he and Christian Watson both have fewer than 45 receptions. Tight end, meanwhile, has a historically difficult transition from college to the NFL, which is why we rarely see rookies making significant impacts. This is in large part due to all of the responsibilities these players have, whether it be lining up anywhere along the formation or the need for them to impact both the running and passing games.
“We never shut the door on these things,” said Gutekunst about adding to the tight end room, “but at the same time, for us we drafted two guys fairly high (Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft) that we really want to see get reps and get out there. Along with Tyler Davis and Josiah Deguara, we are really excited about those guys and what they can do for us.”
For first-year starting quarterback Jordan Love, having stability around him will be important to his success, but as of now, with such young pass catchers, we don’t know how much of that he will have. Odds are there are going to be ups and downs, even from Watson and Doubs.
This is why adding a veteran presence to either receiver, tight end, or both made sense for the Packers — not to mention the added value that an experienced player can bring to the sidelines on game days, the film room, and the practice field as a mentor.
However, this year’s Packers team is in a different place than past versions of it with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. Of course, the goal is still to win games, but ultimately, Green Bay needs to figure out if Love can be their future quarterback, along with who will be their nucleus of young players moving forward. The highs and lows that Green Bay will go through relying heavily on young players will hopefully be rewarded with a shorter learning curve and a much greater impact sooner in their careers.
While there are reasons to make a free agent addition, what the Packers want to avoid is a situation we saw in 2022 with Sammy Watkins, who took away valuable practice and in-game reps from rookies Watson and Doubs, but unfortunately, Green Bay didn’t see the production in return on the field. Watkins was then released at about the halfway point of the season.
Although inexperienced, there is a lot of excitement as well around the receiver and tight end positions. The data shows that Year 2 is often a jumping-off point for many successful wide receivers. There is also a lot of speed that can create big play potential, both downfield and after the catch, as well as versatility, allowing LaFleur to stress defenses by running a variety of plays from just a few personnel packages with the ability to move players around creating mismatches.
“The unknown,” said LaFleur when asked about the challenges that come with coaching a young team. “Every year has its own unique set of challenges, but it’s going to be how quickly we can acclimate these young players and get them ready to roll. How we come together as a team, but there is a lot of excitement today.”
