Green Bay Packers 2022 Season Awards

The Green Bay Packers finished 8-9, snapping a three-year streak of 13-win seasons. From MVP to biggest disappointment, here’s the best and worst from 2022.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Jan 21, 2023 1:42 PM EST

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Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – For the first time since 2018, the NFL’s Elite Eight will play in the divisional playoffs but the Green Bay Packers will be on the couch, at the beach or on the golf course.

The Packers never got close to overcoming the offseason trade of Davante Adams. Christian Watson dropped a pass on the first offensive snap of the season and Aaron Jones fumbled before halftime in the final game. Matt LaFleur never found an answer on offense and Joe Barry’s defense rarely lived up to the hype.

What happened?

“Certainly, we had some moving parts, but we just never played complementary football,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said at the end of the season. “The times when our defense was playing well, we didn’t adjust and do things in the second half and our offense was taking some time to get going. I think we got better as the year went on, but I think there was just inconsistencies in our complementary football. And I think that hurt us along the way.”

Isn’t that an indictment of the coaching staff?

“It’s everything. It’s players. It’s coaching. It’s just everything,” Gutekunst responded. “If I had the answers, we wouldn’t have been there, you know what I mean? So, I think as we look back and we look at everything we did to prepare for the season and what we did in the season, we’ll look at all that stuff to try to prevent it from happening. It’s everything.”

With that, let’s dive into our season-ending awards.

Most Valuable Player on Offense

Yes, he set a career high in fumbles, including the momentum-changer at the end of the first half of the season-ending loss to the Lions, but the Packers would have been sunk without Aaron Jones.

Jones set a career high in rushing yards and receptions. Of the 42 running backs with at least 100 rushing attempts, Jones ranked second in average and ninth in elusive rating, a Pro Football Focus metric that measures a back’s success independent of blocking. Despite some wear-and-tear injuries, he played in all 17 games.

When Jones topped 65 rushing yards, the Packers went 5-1. When he was held to 4.0 yards per carry or less, the Packers went 2-6.

Most Valuable Player on Defense

Jaire Alexander wasn’t always to-his-standards dominant but he led the Packers with five interceptions (one off the NFL lead) and 14 passes defensed (one out of the top 10).

When the Packers needed him at his best, Alexander overcame a bad game at Chicago with the clinching interception, then allowed 66 receiving yards in the final four games, according to PFF’s best guess at coverage responsibilities. He didn’t do it alone but he was at his swagger-filled best vs. Vikings star Justin Jefferson in Week 17.

Why Alexander wasn’t put in a featured position more often by defensive coordinator Joe Barry is one of life’s great mysteries. Perhaps that will be the adjustment in 2023.

Least Valuable Player

This is not the team’s worst player. It’s the least valuable. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers got a three-year, $150 million contract during the offseason, then proceeded to have the worst season of his career.

It’s apples-to-avocados because of Travis Kelce, but Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes saw his All-Pro receiver, Tyreek Hill, traded to Miami and Rodgers had his All-Pro receiver, Davante Adams, traded to Las Vegas.

Their response? Mahomes led the NFL in passing yards, passing touchdowns and QBR. He’s probably going to win MVP. Mahomes averaged 308.8 passing yards per game; Rodgers didn’t hit 300 yards all season.

What happened?

“There’s a lot of things I could say but I don’t feel like saying the right here and right now,” Rodgers said after the game, punting on a question for one of the few times of his career.

If Rodgers returns, he and coach Matt LaFleur had better figure it out.

Most Valuable Draft Pick So Far

This was a tough one because general manager Brian Gutekunst appears to have put together a strong draft.

Quay Walker was a Day 1 starter at linebacker and led the team in tackles. Defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt made plays down the stretch. Receiver Christian Watson has star potential; he and fellow receiver Romeo Doubs could be Green Bay’s next great receiver pairing. Zach Tom legitimately was a savior on the offensive line. Kingsley Enagbare, at the very least, looks like a quality No. 3 outside linebacker. Safety Tariq Carpenter was a late-season force on special teams.

But how can you not go with Watson? His three-touchdown game against Dallas did more than just win the game. It changed the trajectory of his rookie season. Plus, it helped save the team’s season by providing a much-needed jolt of energy. While the flurry of touchdowns evaporated down the stretch, he showed enough that there should be mass firings if the passing game doesn’t flow through No. 9 in 2023.

Worst Draft Pick So Far

The Packers used their third-round pick on UCLA offensive lineman Sean Rhyan. Green Bay’s third-round draft history is legendary. And not in a good way. Tight end Josiah Deguara, taken in 2020, is one of a few decent role players but the Packers haven’t found a legit player since safety Morgan Burnett in 2010.

Year 1 was a disaster for Rhyan. Even with the uncertainty on the offensive line, Rhyan never got close to competing for a starting job. He wound up playing one snap on special teams before a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs ended his season.

Making matters worse: The Lions selected safety Kerby Joseph five picks later. He had three interceptions against Aaron Rodgers in their two matchups. Joseph is the No. 1 reason why the Lions booted the Packers out of the playoffs.

Biggest Surprise

It’s easy to criticize the belated decision to put Keisean Nixon back on returns. But the fact is there was almost no history to suggest Nixon would be a season-changing weapon. In three seasons with the Raiders, he returned six kickoffs for 84 yards (14.0 average) and zero punts. In two seasons at South Carolina, he returned three kickoffs for 45 yards (15.0 average) and zero punts.

Better late than never, at least. Finally fed up with Amari Rodgers, Nixon altered the Packers’ season and his own professional fortunes by earning first-team All-Pro honors. He led the NFL with a 28.8-yard average on kickoff returns. Among his league-leading five kickoff returns of 50-plus yards were a 93-yarder at Miami and a 105-yard touchdown vs. Minnesota in back-to-back games. He averaged 12.7 yards per punt return, too, his unorthodox style of fielding the ball certain to not be on any teach tape.

Nixon signed a one-year minimum deal of $965,000. How many times that amount will he earn in free agency?

Biggest Disappointment

In late April, the Packers flipped the switch on Darnell Savage’s fifth-year option, meaning he’ll play for a guaranteed $7.9 million in 2023. In 2022, Savage was demoted from starting safety to nickel to dime before getting moved back into the lineup at the end of the season.

Savage went from four interceptions and 12 passes defensed in 2020 to two interceptions and nine passes defensed in 2021 – those 21 passes defensed ranking No. 1 among safeties – to one interception and five passes defensed in 2022. What has been consistent throughout his career has been his tackling. As in consistently bad. Of 87 safeties to play at least 300 snaps in 2022, Savage ranked 82nd in missed-tackle percentage, according to PFF. He’s had double-digits misses in each of his four seasons.

Best Signing/Re-Signing

Keisean Nixon would be the obvious winner here, but the Academy of Phony Football Awards has a rule against double-winners. So, the invisible trophy goes to defensive tackle Jarran Reed.

Given a one-year contract, Reed had an underrated season. He had only 2.5 sacks but was second on the team with 14 quarterback hits. His strip and recovery against Miami was one of the biggest plays of the season. He was by far the team’s most consistent interior rusher. Reed will be a free agent; the Packers would be wise to bring the 30-year-old back to join Kenny Clark, TJ Slaton and Devonte Wyatt.

Worst Signing/Re-Signing

Imagine a player with a lengthy injury history getting injured. While the Kansas City Chiefs signed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling after trading Tyreek Hill, the Packers’ response to dealing Davante Adams was signing Sammy Watkins.

In a shocker, a player who had missed 27 games over the previous six seasons went on injured reserve with a hamstring injury and never got close to being an impact player upon his return. In nine games, he caught 13 passes, had two drops and botched a few routes.

Biggest Loss

Maybe in the long run, the trade of Davante Adams to the Raiders for first- and second-round picks will pay off. It didn’t in 2022, though.

Adams caught 100 passes for 1,516 yards and 14 touchdowns with the Raiders. Not only is Adams a fantastic player, he seemingly shared a brain with Aaron Rodgers. With merely a look or a gesture built upon years upon years together, they routinely made magic in key moments. The Packers didn’t have that without Adams, which is a big reason why it was such a struggle for Green Bay to have sustained success within a game, let alone from game to game.

Three things you won’t find in the box score. One, in 2022, Adams forced 16 missed tackles. Every Packers receiver combined for 13. On third and fourth down in 2022, Adams caught 29 passes for first downs. The three rookies and Sammy Watkins combined for 19. In the red zone, Adams scored 10 touchdowns for the Packers in 2021; in 2022, nobody had more than nine receptions.

Most Underrated

Despite an elite combination of size and athleticism, Yosh Nijman went undrafted in 2019. The Packers signed him and showed rare patience. Their patience was rewarded in 2022, with Nijman starting all 17 games.

Nijman spent the entire offseason, training camp, preseason and first six games of the regular season at left tackle. Confident that David Bakhtiari was ready for full-time duty, the Packers made an enormously challenging set of moves on the offensive line. Among them was moving Nijman to right tackle.

The transition wasn’t smooth, and a late-season shoulder injury impacted his final numbers, but Nijman proved he’s a legit NFL starting offensive tackle. He’s so athletic and strong in the run game, and a full offseason to acclimate to the right side should help him round out his game.

Play of the Year

Here’s your voting for best play of the year and the worst play of the year.

More Green Bay Packers Offseason

100 Days of Mocks

Starting Jan. 17, when there were 100 days until the start of the NFL Draft, we started our mock-worthy goal of 100 mock drafts in 100 days. Here’s the series.

100 days: First-round quarterback?

99 days: Trading for outside linebacker

98 days: Stud tight end

97 days: This pick would break a long drought

96 days: Back to Georgia