The Packers passing attack is under threat this offseason
The Green Bay Packers’ passing attack took a little while to start its engine this season. Rookie wide receiver Christian Watson got the plane off the ground, but it wasn’t enough to take full flight as the Detroit Lions game showed Sunday night. Early season injuries and youthful inexperience hurt the Packers’ chances at the postseason. A Packers beat writer suggested recently the situation might be bleaker next season.
The Packers drafted a trio of rookies in 2022. It was a move to bring young wide receivers to an offense that had lost veteran Davante Adams. Watson, Romeo Doubs, and Samori Toure were asked to develop into the offense quickly, while veterans Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, and Sammy Watkins showed them the ropes. Watkins never worked out, and Toure didn’t get much action. Doubs was frustrated by the season.
A few more veteran players could be missing in 2023
According to Bill Huber with Sports Illustrated, the Packers’ offense could be even more drastically changed after this offseason than last year, when the team traded Adams. Huber wrote that tight end Robert Tonyan, running back Aaron Jones, Cobb, and Lazard are all players that the Packers might have to decide they can’t bring back due to cap space:
Adding in some minor contributors, it’s possible 63.2 percent of this year’s receptions will walk out the door. Even if a restructure can be hammered out with Jones, 47.4 percent of the receptions could be playing elsewhere next season.
One wouldn’t think all those mentioned players wouldn’t be in Green Bay next year. But losing any of those critical pieces could hamper a passing offense that was one of the Packers’ worst in recent memory with Aaron Rodgers as the starting quarterback.
The good news for the Packers? Watson and Doubs will be in their second season in 2023. They both showed flashes of what they could do when they understand what they are doing in the offense. One would expect them both to carry a more significant load next season.
How much can they carry without bringing in more help?
