PFF Ranks Rosters; How Bad Are the Packers?

The Green Bay Packers' biggest weakness could wind up being their salvation.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
May 15, 2023 10:15 AM EDT

In this story:

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The problem with the Green Bay Packers isn’t just the inexperience at quarterback with Jordan Love replacing Aaron Rodgers. Quarterback is just the tip of the iceberg of the team’s shortcomings.

That’s the thought from Pro Football Focus, anyway, which ranked the NFL’s 32 rosters. Green Bay is No. 27 – sixth-worst in the league. PFF says to take the under on the over/under of 7.5 wins at FanDuel Sportsbook.

PFF’s choices for position strength (running back), rookies to watch (tight ends Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft) and X-factor (Love) were rather obvious.

The team’s biggest weakness will be a huge key to the season: the lack of dynamic weapons in the passing game following the free-agent departures of Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb and Robert Tonyan.

No, contrary to PFF’s thinking, the Packers didn’t “underestimate” Davante Adams’ value to the roster. Adams wanted to join Derek Carr and the Raiders, and nothing general manager Brian Gutekunst was going to do financially was going to change that reality.

So, Gutekunst made the deal and drafted Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs and Samori Toure.

Among Green Bay’s receivers, Watson had PFF’s highest grade, highlighted by a red-hot stretch in November in which he caught six touchdown passes in three games. However, in his next four games, he caught 14 passes for 154 yards and one touchdown.

Watson’s projection as Green Bay’s next star receiver is based on his big games – four catches for 107 yards and three touchdowns vs. Dallas, four catches for 110 yards and one touchdown vs. Philadelphia and five catches for 104 yards in the finale vs. Detroit – while ignoring the fact his three 100-yard games were also his three 50-yard games.

Doubs had three games of more than 50 yards but three games with less than 20. Of his 42 receptions, 11 were behind the line of scrimmage and 20 were from 0 to 9 yards downfield. On passes 10-plus yards downfield he caught 11-of-23. He had five drops but forced only one missed tackle.

Toure barely played; after a circus catch and fumble at Detroit on Nov. 6, he was targeted only one time over the final eight games.

There were enough flashes from Watson and Doubs as rookies to project them taking a big step forward in Year 2. Toure flashed, too, and the Packers obviously are high on the three Day 2 pass-catchers: second-round receiver Jayden Reed, who was a dominant force at Michigan State in 2021, and the tight ends.

If the projections are right – or at least enough of the projections are right – the team’s biggest weakness when looking at the schedule in May could have the Packers in the playoff hunt in December and January.