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The Green Bay Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers could take on more of a running identity on offense for the upcoming NFL season.
According to NFL writer Gregg Rosenthal, Green Bay will lean more on both the running game and defense because of their wide receiving corps:
“The Packers are going to rely more on their defense and running game than usual. Second-round pick Christian Watson could be a project, so Allen Lazard remains Rodgers' top wideout in a group that also includes veterans Sammy Watkins, Amari Rodgers, Randall Cobb and rookie fourth-rounder Romeo Doubs.”
Last season, Green Bay had the 10th best offense in the NFL, led by Rodgers throwing the ball for 4,115 passing yards and 37 touchdowns. He finished 10th in passing yards and had the fourth-most passing touchdowns. Looking at the running game last season, they were 17th in carries with 446 and 18th in rushing yards with 1,900.
Second-year running back AJ Dillion led the Packers with 803 rushing yards, while Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones was second with 799 yards. In total, they had 13 rushing touchdowns in 2021. Dillion had five, Jones had four, Rodgers had three, and Patrick Taylor had one.
Jones was also a part of the offense in the passing game as he was second on the team with 52 receptions and third for touchdown catches with six.
A possible reason for the rumored shift to the run game is because of the absence of receiver Davante Adams. Adams had 123 receptions for 1,553 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns for Green Bay in the 2021 season. He had the second-most receptions, third-most receiving yards, and fifth-most touchdowns in the NFL last year.
This offseason, Green Bay traded the five-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro receiver to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Packers Draft Receiver in Second Round
After going on defense with their two first-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, they selected receiver Christian Watson out of North Dakota State.
Last season for the Bison, he caught 43 passes for 801 yards receiving and seven touchdowns.
The six-foot-five 200-pound receiver could get some playing time this season, but we’ll have to see when the season gets underway. Without Adams to throw to, will another receiver step up to fill the void, or will Green Bay use the running game?
