Green Bay Packers

The 2010 Patriots' Offense Could Be A Blueprint For the 2022 Packers

Photo credit: Dan Powers (USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

It’s no secret how much Davante Adams meant to the Green Bay Packers. While his on-field production will be hard to replace, there is precedent for a team surviving the loss of a Hall of Fame-caliber receiver coming off a historically great run. If Packers fans need a blueprint of what a best-case scenario might look like this season, turn the clock back just over a decade and look at how the 2010 New England Patriots dealt with Randy Moss‘ absence.

Moss’s three-year run in New England got off to a fantastic start. In the legendary 2007 season, he tallied 98 catches for 1,493 yards and 23 touchdowns. That year the Patriots went 16-0, only to fall to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl. Moss and Brady had two more stellar years after that, with Moss racking up 250 total catches, 3,765 yards, and 47 touchdowns in the three years he spent in New England. The 2010 campaign got off to a rocky start, with Moss wanting a contract extension that the Patriots were apparently unwilling to deliver. Ultimately, the Pats traded Moss to Minnesota four weeks into the regular season.

The terms of Adams’ departure from Green Bay are not really similar, but the common thread is the gaping hole in the statistical production left by the two wideouts. As good as Moss’ stint in New England was, the past three fully healthy seasons that Adams played — 2018, 2020, and 2021 — surpass Moss’s gaudy stats. Adams put together better than 1,300 in each season, totaling 4,313 yards and 349 catches, including 42 touchdowns over those three seasons.

However, the Patriots did not miss a beat after trading Moss. They finished the season with a 14-2 record, leading the league in points (518) and points per game (32.4) by a healthy margin. It wasn’t necessarily gaudy yardage totals that propelled New England to points, as the team only had the eighth-most yards and ninth-most rushing yards. It was the ultra-efficient Brady, spreading the love to running backs, tight ends, and wideouts, all while protecting the football to the tune of 36 touchdowns, four interceptions, and a unanimous MVP trophy at the end of the season.

Brady’s receiving corps had talent, but it wasn’t as glamorous as some of the names look. A 29-year-old Wes Welker, coming off an ACL and MCL tear the season before, led the team with 86 catches and 848 yards. Deion Branch was back with the Patriots after a three-year sojourn up to Seattle and finished with 48 catches for 706 yards. The rookie tight end duo of Rob Gronkowski (42 catches, 546 yards) and Aaron Hernandez (45 catches, 563 yards) was the most significant addition for Brady and the Patriots. Still, neither of them was near their NFL primes yet.

Running the ball, New England used the combination of a rumbling 5’11”, 215-lb. running back in BenJarvus Green-Ellis and the dynamic yet undersized Danny Woodhead as perfect complements to each other. Green-Ellis narrowly eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark on 229 carries, while Woodhead had 97 carries for 547 yards and 34 receptions for 379 yards.

So what does this mean for the Packers? First and foremost, the real success of the team ultimately rides on Aaron Rodgers‘ right arm. Sure, Green Bay can tout itself as a run-first offense led by perfect complements in A.J. Dillon and Aaron Jones (which is a much better version of The Law Firm and future LIV Golf star Danny Woodhead). Still, Rodgers has to play at an MVP level once again for the Packers to truly be a Super Bowl contender.

The comparisons aren’t 1:1, but the logic is there. That New England team had no 1,000-yard receivers, Green-Ellis barely got to 1,000 yards, and the strength of the offense came from balance and efficiency.

Green Bay needs several players’ potential to turn into reality, but none need to be otherworldly and replace Adams entirely on their own. Allen Lazard is ready to break out and catch 75 to 80 passes, but he doesn’t need to be over 100 like Adams was. There’s undoubtedly still life in Randall Cobb‘s legs — he could conceivably put together a Deion Branch-type season with 55 catches and 700 yards. (That’s just shy of four catches for 45 yards each game, and, remember, Rodgers loves him.) It’s a different position and big shoes to fill, but Gronk and Hernandez didn’t light the world on fire in their rookie seasons; could Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs come up with 800 to 1,000 yards between them? It’s certainly possible. Add in a healthy Robert Tonyan, some wild cards in Sammy Watkins, Amari Rodgers, and Tyler Davis, and the Packers should be able to cobble together an above-average NFL offense.

The 2010 Patriots didn’t achieve the ultimate post-season glory — and thankfully so, because another Lombardi Trophy just happened to come back to Titletown that year — but the precedent for success is. There are capable pieces in place for this Packers offense to do great things. But, much like Brady did 12 seasons ago, Rodgers must elevate the players around him, protect the football, and take an efficient, opportunistic approach.

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