Packers Named as Likely Destination For Unhappy Pro Bowl Wide Receiver

The Green Bay Packers are a possible destination for many big-name wide receivers given the right circumstance.  After the departures of Davante Adams, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and E.Q. St. Brown, bringing  in a true number one wide receiver can’t be ruled out.  The Packers drafted three wide receivers in the 2022 NFL Draft in response to this off-season.  Rookie wide receivers rarely contribute in meaningful ways, resulting in a recent report that listed Green Bay as a possible landing spot for Terry McLaurin.

Jerry Trotta names Green Bay as likely destination for Terry McLaurin:

The Washington Commanders are over a week into OTAs, and there’s fittingly non-football storylines that are overshadowing what’s taking place on the field. The biggest distraction, for lack of a better term? Terry McLaurin’s absence.

McLaurin hasn’t been with the team since before the draft and reports indicate the star wideout doesn’t plan on participating in offseason workouts/practices until his contract situation his resolved. He’s entering the final year of his rookie deal.  He will be commanding a contract worth upwards of $20-23 million annually.

You might say, “The Packers just traded Davante Adams. Why would they trade for another star receiver and subsequently give him a huge contract?” It’s a fair question, but they tried moving heaven and earth to extend Adams before trading him to the Raiders. Per reports, Adams rejected a proposal that would’ve paid him more than $23 million annually, which would’ve been the highest-ever for a WR.

It’s unclear if the Packers are eager to equip Rodgers with another weapon.  They’re definitely a team to watch if McLaurin gets traded though.

Could the Green Bay Packers pull this off?

It is likely that the Commanders would ask for a “Davante Adams / Tyreek Hill” type of haul for McLaurin.  Trading future draft picks wouldn’t be the concern for the Packers, especially if they feel the 2022 draft solidified their defense and offensive line.

The problem would come (as it always does) with the financials.  Ken Ingalls specializes in the Packers salary cap. He annotated that after the Jaire Alexander extension, the Packers are sitting around 16 million in cap space.  However the expected cap space at the start of the season appears to be much lower after various common pre / mid season expenses.

It would definitely take some restructuring of multiple players to get something like this done.  For example, Ken Ingalls mentions Dean Lowry, Adrain Amos, and Allen Lazard as possible candidates.  The Packers have been great about “kicking the can down the road” so to speak.  Low cap hit in 2022 with massive cap hits down the road.  With the salary cap set to explode over the next few years, it may not be a horrible idea.  McLaurin to Green Bay may be unlikely, but not impossible at this point in time.