Biggest Offseason Question for Packers? It’s Familiar One

GREEN BAY, Wis. – For millennia, humans have asked a few monumentally enormous questions.

Are we alone?

How did the universe start?

What came first: the chicken or the egg?

When will the Green Bay Packers have a No. 1 receiver?

Some questions are bigger than others. For the Packers, there might be no bigger question for coach Matt LaFleur, quarterback Jordan Love and the championship-worthiness of a team that hasn’t reached the Super Bowl since 2010.

At Fox Sports, Ralph Vacchiano asked the biggest question for every NFC team. For the Packers, he asked if the Packers will “add or develop” a No. 1 receiver for Love.

“Love had an oddly low-production season last year for a QB with so much talent. And a big reason for that is this: He’s surrounded by a group of No 2 receivers, at best,” he wrote. “Much like the Bills with Josh Allen, the Packers have consistently failed to give him what every QB needs — an elite receiver to make his life easier.”

That’s true, although the question might not have been asked had tight end Tucker Kraft not suffered a torn ACL.

Before he was injured against Carolina, Kraft was on pace to finish with 73 receptions for 1,187 yards and 15 touchdowns. He would have shattered the franchise record for yards by a tight end (814, Paul Coffman) and threatened the NFL record for most touchdowns by a tight end (Rob Gronkowski, 17; Jimmy Graham, 16).

Kraft was a tackle-breaking menace. When he destroyed the Steelers in his final full game before the injury, he had 128 yards after the catch – the most by a tight end since 2008. When targeted, he rewarded his quarterbacks with a near-perfect passer rating of 157.2.

“I would say I felt like I was on the cusp of putting together one of the greatest seasons by a Packer tight end,” he said after the season, “and that was something I was looking forward to was just leaving my legacy on this game and playing as hard as I could every snap for the for this team, because, at the end of the day, the guys in this room, they mean so much to me. And when I wasn’t able to be out there for the last month-and-a-half, two months this season, it was really hard on me.”

Kraft was tremendous but, to Vacchiano’s point, there’s nothing as impactful for a quarterback as a receiver who can be a go-to player, especially on third downs.

Last season, Romeo Doubs led the team with 55 catches for 724 yards and six touchdowns. Running back Josh Jacobs was second with just 36 receptions. Christian Watson was third on the team in receptions; he came off his torn ACL to catch 35 passes for 611 yards and six touchdowns. Kraft was fourth in catches. Dontayvion Wicks was fifth with 30 receptions for 332 yards and two touchdowns.

Combined, Green Bay’s top three receivers caught 120 passes for 1,667 yards and 14 touchdowns. Three individuals caught more passes, two had more receiving yards and Davante Adams had as many touchdowns.

There are reasons to be optimistic, though. While Doubs probably will leave in free agency, Watson will be a year removed from his ACL and Kraft will return from his ACL. Jayden Reed, who had missed only one game in his career, was limited to seven because of a broken collarbone. And first-round pick Matthew Golden had a big-time playoff game against Chicago.

“Maybe Matthew Golden … will be that guy eventually,” Vacchiano concluded. “But he was barely noticeable as a rookie (29-361-0). The Pack’s second-leading receiver was a running back. It’s past time for an upgrade in weapons.”

GM Brian Gutekunst liked how Golden ended his season.

“I thought Matthew did an excellent job from the beginning of training camp, throughout the season,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said a couple weeks ago. “Whenever he got his opportunities, he capitalized on them. I thought he did an excellent job.

“Like all players, when you go through tough times when you’re losing games and maybe you’re not getting as many opportunities as you want, that’s going to be frustrating, but I thought he handled it like a pro and, when his number was called on, he performed. Really excited to see what he can do in Year 2.”

With limited salary-cap space and limited draft picks, the Packers have less offseason capital than almost every team, so their best bet will be hoping for health and improvement from within to make Jordan Love, who is ninth in the MVP odds at FanDuel Sportsbook, a legitimately elite player.

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