As the season gradually swirls down the drain, there are few positives to be gleaned about the future of the Green Bay Packers. Most, if not all, of these have been beaten to death in the past few weeks by anyone covering the team. Brian Gutekunst and Co. have opted to repeatedly keep trying the same thing while expecting different results.
Of course, any criticism or praise has to be framed within the context of the supposed direction the team is going. Are these Packers in win-now mode? Or are they in a rebuild? Should they be in rebuild mode?
Yesterday’s inaction at the trade deadline said everything about where this team is going: nowhere. At least not this year. However, those who have followed the team for years should know that this is all part of a philosophical team-building process that has transcended any general manager at the helm. The draft-and-develop philosophy remains prevalent even with today’s team. The Packers will not mortgage any part of its future with draft capital to trade for players in a pinch.
Green Bay’s reluctance to commit to either the win-now mode or rebuild phase is highly frustrating. No progress is being made regarding winning, and few young players are given a chance to shine to create optimism about the future. I have previously lobbied for the inclusion of Jordan Love in the starting lineup. Still, the exorbitant amounts of money reserved for Aaron Rodgers would imply that he will be behind center until he or injury decides otherwise.
If Green Bay wants to truly see if it has a bright future, it must look toward its young crop of wide receivers.
Injuries to perpetually hurt old guys Randall Cobb, Sammy Watkins, and Allen Lazard have forced the team’s hand to give more reps to Romeo Doubs, Samori Toure, and even the much-maligned Amari Rodgers. Doubs’ emergence has been well-publicized this season, and he had a nice bounceback game against the Buffalo Bills after a couple of quieter weeks. The emergence of Toure and Rodgers as legitimate playmakers within this offense was encouraging, mainly because it came at such a crucial time when the offense has otherwise lulled in the doldrums.
Toure had the most apparent breakout in Buffalo. He only had one catch, but he made it count with an on-the-fly adjustment 37 yards downfield for an easy touchdown from Aaron Rodgers.
Toure was a training-camp darling, which is more that can be said about most seventh-round picks. He was praised for his route-running ability and athleticism. Still, it was surprising to some that he was kept on the final roster over Juwann Winfree, a player Aaron Rodgers has vocally supported. But it appears that Rodgers has changed his tune on Toure, saying on The Pat McAfee Show that Toure is “too talented” to keep on the sidelines. His two catches on the year aren’t much. However, he should continue to get opportunities to shine if the injury bug doesn’t go away.
Amari Rodgers is a far more peculiar piece. How he hasn’t gotten cut after repeated special teams felonies is a mystery that only Gutekunst knows the answer to. Still, there has been some positive development for him in recent weeks. Just when everybody counted him out, and the Packers released him from kick-returning duties, Rodgers has shown tangible potential as a wide receiver. Yes, the position he was drafted to play.
Amari Rodgers has unquestionably looked better on offense than he has on special teams. His emergence, if we can label it that, calls into question some of the comments that Aaron Rodgers made about Amari earlier this season. “He’s returning for us now,” Rodgers said, “That’s all I’ve got.”
Is it possible that Aaron Rodgers, one who’s had an eye for receiver talent and habits that fit into his style, was playing coy about how Matt LaFleur and the rest of the coaching staff were using Amari Rodgers? It isn’t out of the question. Regardless, the early returns on Amari Rodgers playing WR have been encouraging. However, it remains to be seen whether or not he will be able to continue that momentum as he fights for his career.
The opportunity for these young players to showcase their abilities and build chemistry with Aaron Rodgers is of the utmost importance for two reasons. Primarily, if this team gets on a hot streak and gets a shot at the playoffs, No. 12 will need all the chemistry with these young guys he can get. He already has a great bond with Cobb and Lazard. But if he can get a few more guys on the same wavelength, there is still a chance that this offense could look lethal by the end of the season.
Most importantly, the young WRs are on the timeline of whoever the next quarterback will be. If the plan is to go to Love, and it should be, these guys are on his timeline. The heavy investment in the WR position now is similar to what the Packers did when it was almost time for Aaron Rodgers to be the starter. Rodgers started with the core trio of Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and James Jones, all WRs who had ample experience with Brett Favre while Rodgers was his understudy. If the team handles Love in a similar fashion, Love will get that same familiarity if and when he steps into a starting role for this team. He will grow with them, and they can use their experience with a Hall of Fame quarterback to aid his development. It is a win-win for the Packers.
If Green Bay doesn’t play and develop these young guys now, it could have a catastrophic effect on the talent of the offense moving forward. The team already has an exciting young back in Kylin Hill, who will be a great backup to A.J. Dillon when Aaron Jones is gone. All of the backup pieces are in place to take the helm in the post-Rodgers era, so these WRs are a major piece of that puzzle. LaFleur can’t keep bending his will to Aaron Rodgers and give playing time to these veterans with injury histories. The young guns are the future, and the Packers should divvy up playing time accordingly.
