The flaws with the Green Bay Packers roster are evident. The team needs an injection of talent on offense. Green Bay has lost two of its top contributors in Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Adams informed the Packers that he would not accept the franchise tag designation, and Valdes-Scantling signed with the Kansas City Chiefs last week. Green Bay offered Adams the same type of money that he is currently being paid by his new team, the Las Vegas Raiders. But he declined the offer and preferred to join a different organization.
Moving forward, the Packers must find an elite talent to strengthen their wide receiver core. Then, they can utilize an option to address those needs through the NFL Draft. The draft has been filled with talent at the wide receiver position for several years.
Players such as Justin Jefferson, Tee Higgins, and D.J. Moore were not selected as high picks. If Green Bay wants to maintain their level of dominance in the NFC, they must draft a player that can have the same type of impact that Ja’Marr Chase had on Cincinnati. While the NFC may be weaker compared to previous years, the teams at the top are loaded on offense. The Rams, 49ers, and Buccaneers have one thing in common. They each have a bonafide playmaker and a legitimate number two option at the wide receiver position.
At the moment, Green Bay has neither. As it stands right now, the Packers wide receiver room consists of Alan Lazard, Randall Cobb, and Amari Rodgers. Out of the three names listed, Lazard is the only player that has the potential to become the Packers’ primary option. In 2021 Lazard finished the season with 40 receptions for 513 yards and eight touchdowns. However, would it be wise for the Packers to roll with Lazard as their number one wideout and an older Cobb as their secondary option?
Ask the New Orleans Saints how that turned out when they decided to settle with second-year wideout Marquez Callaway as their top receiver in 2021? Callaway was expected to step in for All-Pro receiver Michael Thomas last season. Thomas never stepped onto the field because he never fully recovered from an ankle injury in 2020. As a result, New Orleans would take on the title of having the worst wide receiving situation in the league in 2021, a label that has been placed upon the Packers right now. That’s why Lazard should remain the second or third option in Green Bay’s passing game. First, let’s look at how Chase contributed to the Bengals’ successful 2021 campaign.
Ja’Marr Chase’s Impact on the Bengals
Can you honestly say that the Bengals would still be in the situation they are in right now if they decided to select Penei Sewell instead of Chase? Despite what people stated on how bad the Bengals’ o-line was, they did enough to keep Burrow upright for most of the season. With the addition of Chase, the Bengals emerged as one of the league’s best offenses in 2021. From a historical standpoint, Chase’s season was one of the best we have seen in years by a rookie.
Ja’Marr Chase after he got drafted: “I’m going to break every record they got.”
Then the drops came in camp and the preseason and some wrote him off.
The season started and he did all this. And then the playoffs came and he broke more records.
He really meant what he said. pic.twitter.com/YD5e4cwTgd
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) February 7, 2022
Because of his production, the Bengals were able to advance to Super Bowl LVI to take on the Los Angeles Rams. Even though the Bengals did not win, the selection of Chase shows how important it is to have the wide receiver position figured out. Sometimes teams have to go with the best player available in the draft instead addressing glaring holes on the roster.
Green Bay received the Raiders first-and second-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft in exchange for Adams. In total the Packers will have two first round picks and two second round picks. Which means they will have multiple opportunities to find a player that can have a Ja’Marr Chase-like impact on the team. Here’s a list of receivers that can fall to the Packers at either 22 or 28 in this year’s draft.
1. Chris Olave: Ohio State
2. Drake London: USC
3. Jameson Williams: Alabama
4. Treylon Burks: Arkansas
5. Jahan Dotson: Penn State
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