Let’s rip the Band-Aid off right now. Davante Adams no longer plays for the Green Bay Packers. Losing the best wide receiver in the NFL is not ideal, especially when he has a seemingly psychic connection with Aaron Rodgers. Knowing Adams chose his college quarterback over Rodgers stings, and it’ll take a while to get used to seeing him in black and silver.
Alas, life in the NFL comes at you fast. Adams is gone. But now the Packers have four top-60 draft picks and a lot more cap space to work with. Brian Gutekunst suddenly has a king’s ransom to spend on the draft and in free agency. To the chagrin of many fans, the Packers traditionally have not drafted wide receivers in the first round. But now that they are down one WR1 and have the capital to claim a true playmaker, the Packers should break tradition and take one early. And that receiver should be former Ohio State Buckeye Chris Olave.
We’re all familiar with Green Bay’s drafting patterns. Throughout Aaron Rodgers‘ career in Green Bay, they have drafted only one skill position player in the first round, Jordan Love. We’ve heard Gutekunst did try to take a Day 1 wide receiver in 2020, but the board didn’t fall his way, and the cost to move up was too great.
This year offers a different set of circumstances. Adams is gone, and the Packers need to restock the cupboard. They have two first-round picks and two second-round picks. The positional need is there, and they have the capital to attack it without neglecting other positions. The 2022 draft is also top-heavy at the wide receiver group, and the top options are very enticing to imagine in Matt LaFleur’s offense. Both of their first-round selections are in the bottom half of the round. However, they have enough capital to move around and select their guy.
So why should that guy be Olave? He finished his collegiate career with 75 receptions, 2,702 yards, and 35 touchdowns. Pretty dang good. While it’s near-universally agreed that Olave is a first-round talent, many draft analysts are split on whether he is even the best receiver from Ohio State. Most of them believe teammate Garrett Wilson will hear his name called first.
Wilson and Olave had similar production levels at OSU. Per Saturday Tradition’s Paul Harvey, Olave had the edge in scoring, becoming the franchise’s all-time leader in touchdown passes caught. However, Wilson was the leader in catches and yards this past season.
But Olave seems like a better fit for the Packers, who suddenly need a future WR1. What separates Olave from the rest of the pack? Olave may be the most pro-ready receiver in this class after a highly productive career against some of the top competition in college football, including playing in a National Championship in 2020.
Part of that NFL readiness is thanks to his route-running ability. Many draft gurus believe Olave is the most polished route-runner in his class, and that ability should translate beautifully to the NFL. “Ohio State wide receiver Chris Olave is one of college football’s most refined route runners,” writes The Draft Network’s Kyle Crabbs. “A true route technician, Olave has illustrated high levels of football IQ.”
The Packers just lost the league’s best route runner and a highly cerebral player. While Olave won’t walk onto the field and immediately become Davante 2.0, emulating the traits that make Adams successful isn’t a bad way to do business.
Gutekunst and Co. love themselves some athletes, and Olave has the stats to impress. While a bit smaller than the Packers traditionally like, Olave’s 8.61 Relative Athletic Score is good for the 13th-highest in this year’s WR crop. He tested much better than his teammate at the NFL Scouting Combine, as Wilson scored a 7.70.
In particular, Olave has 4.39 40-yard dash time that is evident on tape, as PackersWire’s Brandon Carwille showed in his excellent analysis of Olave’s traits. Green Bay has plenty of talented wide receivers, but the WR room lacks speed unless Marquez Valdes-Scantling returns.
The Packers also met with Olave at the combine, so the interest is there. Plus, it may be fun for the Packers to draft Bears QB Justin Fields‘ favorite college target.
Olave had a highly successful college career. He’s a gifted athlete, and he has traits that should translate well in the NFL and LaFleur’s offense. The sky is the limit on his potential ceiling, and he has one of the highest floors in this draft class. Olave is exactly the type of player you break tradition for, especially when talent meets needs.
Green Bay got a good return for Adams, and they need to use that capital to stock the wide receiver room for the rest of the Rodgers era and beyond. Chris Olave is the rare type of receiver that can have a role as a rookie and develop into a true star.
