Green Bay Packers Draft: Tracking the Receivers

The first six receivers are off the board by pick No. 18, including the Tennessee Titans taking Treylon Burks after trading A.J. Brown.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers entered the 2022 NFL Draft with a dire need at receiver. Who will be left when they’re on the clock?

As expected, the Atlanta Falcons were the first team to take a receiver, grabbing USC’s Drake London at No. 8 on Thursday night.

The New York Jets weren’t far behind, snaring Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson at No. 10.

On their heels, the New Orleans Saints sent third- and fourth-round picks to Washington to move up from No. 16 to No. 11 to get Ohio State’s Chris Olave.

And then, in an NFC North stunner, the Detroit Lions sent Nos. 32, 34 and 66 to the Minnesota Vikings to grab Alabama’s dynamic Jameson Williams at No. 12.

After a brief hiatus, the Commanders used the 16th pick to select Penn State receiver Jahan Dotson.

In another blockbuster, the Tennessee Titans traded star receiver A.J. Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Titans got the 18th pick in return and grabbed Arkansas receiver Treylon Burks, a good replacement in terms of skill-set.

With six receivers off the board in rapid-fire fashion, the consensus top players at the position are long gone before Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst was scheduled to go on the clock at No. 22 and No. 28. Will he get aggressive to get a receiver from the next group, such as Georgia’s George Pickens? Or Arkansas’ run-after-catch monster, Treylon Burks?

The only thing that could stop London was a broken ankle. In eight games, he caught 88 passes for 1,084 yards (12.3 average) and seven touchdowns. He was the Pac-12’s Offensive Player of the Year even while missing the final four games with an injury that prevented him from testing before the draft.

According to Pro Football Focus, he had eight drops (8.3 percent), averaged 5.2 yards after the catch and had 15 receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was 67.8 percent on the strength of a national-best 19 contested catches. According to Sports Info Solutions, he averaged 23 missed tackles per 100 touches, No. 10 in the draft class, and was 29th with 8.9 yards per target.

London will instantly upgrade the worst receiver corps in the NFL, a unit thrown for a loss when Calvin Ridley was suspended for the season for gambling.

At 6-foot-3 7/8, London is built like a basketball player, and for good reason. He dominated in football and basketball to such an extent that he played both sports at USC as a freshman before giving up hoops to focus on football.

“It feels like a part of me has left. That was my first love,” London told The Orange County Register. “I never really told anybody that, but [basketball] was my first love. That was the first ball that I picked up, the first sport that I started playing.” He added, “Football had more pros, basketball had a little bit more cons so I just had to go with the golden egg that was right in front of me.”

Wilson was a first-team All-American in 2021 following a season of 70 receptions for 1,058 yards (15.1 average) and 12 touchdowns. In three years, he scored 23 times.

According to PFF, he had six drops (7.9 percent), averaged 6.0 YAC and had nine receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was 61.5 percent. He averaged 29 missed tackles per 100 touches, third-best out of 45 receivers in the draft class ranked by Sports Info Solutions, and was ninth with 10.4 yards per target.

Olave was a big-time performer for each of his final three seasons. As a senior, he caught 65 passes for 936 yards (14.4 average) and 13 touchdowns to earn first-team All-American. That gave him a four-year total of 176 receptions for 2,711 yards (15.4 average) and 35 touchdowns.

According to PFF, he had five drops (7.1 percent), averaged 4.2 YAC and had 10 receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was an excellent 62.5 percent. According to Sports Info Solutions, he averaged five missed tackles per 100 touches, No. 43 (tied for last) in the draft class, and was 24th with 9.2 yards per target.

Williams caught 15 passes at Ohio State but had 79 receptions for 1,572 yards (19.9 average) and 15 touchdowns upon transferring to Alabama. He was a first-team All-American and the SEC’s leader in receiving yards and touchdowns. As an added bonus, he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns.

According to PFF, he had six drops (7.1 percent), averaged 9.3 YAC and had 13 receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was 40.0 percent. According to Sports Info Solutions, he averaged 16 missed tackles per 100 touches, No. 23 in the draft class, but was No. 1 with 13.1 yards per target.

The native of St. Louis won Missouri state track and field championships in the 300-meter hurdles and 400 meters, and he broke Ezekiel Elliott’s state record in the 300 hurdles.

Williams suffered a torn ACL in the national championship game in January. “I should be back soon,” Williams told NFL Network after being drafted.

Dotson practically doubled his production every year, going from 13 receptions in 2018 to 27 in 2019 to 52 in 2020 to 91 in 2021. He earned third-team All-American as a senior with 1,182 receiving yards (13.0 average) and 12 touchdowns. He returned 25 punts for his career with a 13.5 average and one touchdown.

According to PFF, he had two drops (2.2 percent), averaged 5.3 YAC and had 11 receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was 41.6 percent. According to Sports Info Solutions, he averaged 10 missed tackles per 100 touches, No. 36 in the draft class, and was 35th with 8.3 yards per target.

Burks was the Arkansas offense in 2021, when he caught 66 passes for 1,104 yards (16.7 average) and 11 touchdowns. He was first-team all-SEC and set the school record with six games of 100-plus receiving yards. In three seasons, he grabbed 146 passes for 2,399 yards and 18 scores.

According to PFF, he had four drops (5.8 percent), averaged 9.3 YAC (No. 4 in the nation) and had 12 receptions on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. His contested-catch rate was 43.7 percent. According to Sports Info Solutions, he averaged 24 missed tackles per 100 touches, No. 8 in the draft class, and was second with 12.3 yards per target.

The drafted started with five consecutive picks on defensive players, followed by two offensive tackles. Since then, it’s been offense, offense, offense.

NFL Executive Has Receiver Plan for Packers

Ohio State WR Chris Olave

Which receiver would the executive trade up to select in the first round?

“I think Olave would be the next one who you’d probably have to go get,” he said. “Personally, I’m comfortable enough where I would say Jameson (Williams, who is coming off a torn ACL) but I don’t think Jameson is a great fit in Green Bay. I think Olave is the cleaner, Green Bay dude. He kind of reminds me of Greg Jennings a little bit. Not as great of a route-runner but smooth, consistent, great hands, very trustworthy. I know Aaron (Rodgers) would love him.”

Arkansas WR Treylon Burks

Framed as Burks would be a good fit with all those quick-hitting passes that went to Adams, the executive said: “You get him the ball in space, flex him outside and throw him jump balls. He’s a guy that you’ve got to play to his strengths. If you try to line him up as an X and say, ‘This dude’s going to win matchups and be that dynamic one-on-one receiver,’ he’s not really that person. You have to create the matchup for him and then you can take advantage of it. He is athletic. Personally, I’m OK on him. I think he was overhyped and it’s kind of come down the center a little bit. I’m just OK on him, to be honest, if you plan on taking him in (Round) 1.”

Asked if the Packers could draft him to create a bunch of schemed catches while he grows into a larger role, he said, “Fair. That’s fair to say. I wouldn’t bet on it, though.”

Penn State WR Jahan Dotson

Asked if Dotson is a slot-only receiver or if he could win across the formation, the executive said: “He’s going to win inside. I think he can play outside because he’s smart, he catches the ball, he can run a little bit. You can put him outside in certain situations and scheme up some vertical routes or scheme up some matchups. But he’s going to be a slot. That’s the interesting part. He’s kind of what they have already. Good player, good dude, good guy. Loves football, plays hard, really smart. He has all the intangibles but is probably just an OK talent.”

Georgia WR George Pickens

Framed as Pickens seems like the right fit because he’s big, fast and will block, the executive said: “From a talent perspective, he’s pretty much got everything you want. He’s big, he can run, he can play the ball in the air. He’s a freelancer a little bit but he’s a good route-runner. He has all the physical talent to be a good route-runner and get open in this league. His issue is off-the-field. You just don’t know if you’re getting the type of person you want. He is raw, he’s still immature. He can live off his ability. That dude is legit. If his character was better and he had some more productive seasons, he’d be a first-round pick. A high first-round pick.”

As someone responsible for making the picks on his team, how do you know when it’s the right time to pick a player like Pickens?

“There is no perfect formula. It’s a gut thing. There’s a line. You don’t put a certain quantitative figure on it. There’s a pick where the reward outweighs the risk. But it’s also based on where your picks are on. They’d probably have to take him with one of their first-round picks. He’s not going to be there with where they’re at in the second. He’s not getting to 53. You’d have to take him with your second pick (No. 28), probably.”

South Alabama WR Jalen Tolbert

“Big dude, kind of tight. More an outside-to-inside receiver. Hands are OK. Makes some contested catches. I think he’s more of a No. 3. You’d probably be re-creating a less-dyanmic Marquez (Valdes-Scantling). Marquez could give you legit explosive plays. But then he’d drop the easy, basic routes or shorter routes on third down. This dude probably catches a little bit more of the gimme targets, but he also doesn’t make as many dynamic plays. You’d be trying to upgrade if you take him too high. I think he’s a third-round pick.”

North Dakota State WR Christian Watson

“Wat, he’s big, raw, competition is one of the questions. His hands, depending on what level of film you watch, is one of the questions. But he really came to life throughout the spring. If you’re trying to bet on upside, he’s a dude you take in the second round. I just don’t know if he’s there with their second-round picks. He’s another one where they may have to just take a shot. People don’t give him enough credit. He’s like 6-4, 215, ran 4.3, athletic, makes plays with the ball in his hands. His competition wasn’t great so it’s hard to give him too much credit.”

Cincinnati WR Alec Pierce

“He reminds me of Jeff Janis but what you thought Jeff Janis should have been. Seriously. He’s big, he can run, he makes contested catches, he makes explosive plays down the field. He’s got that same upper-body tightness as Jeff so, on shorter routes or if he gets pressed, he won’t always get open quickly or he struggles to create separation. He’s not really productive after the catch, so he’s not going to be a great playmaker with the ball in his hands. But the dude was pretty productive for two years. I think he could be a really good third, maybe turn into a No. 2. He’ll be good on special teams, he’ll give you a big body on the outside. You know how Davante had that basketball to him? He’s like the complete opposite. Sometimes, he’s a little robotic but I like him. I think he should go in 3; maybe someone takes him in 2.”