List of NFL’s Best Quarterback-Receiver Duos Spells Trouble for Packers

Do the Green Bay Packers have enough pass rush without Micah Parsons?

Do they have enough good cornerbacks to be anything more than a nuisance to elite receivers?

Those are real questions confronting new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon as he deals with the reality of not having Parsons, one of the NFL’s premier defensive players, for the start of the upcoming season.

At Fox Sports, Eric Williams listed his top 10 quarterback-receiver duos. Not surprisingly, Jordan Love didn’t make the list alongside any of his receivers. Maybe that will change if Christian Watson takes advantage of more targets or Matthew Golden takes a Year 2 jump.

The bigger challenge for the Packers isn’t the lack of a premier QB-receiver duo. It’s the number of games against teams that do have that dynamic duo, and the potential challenge of stopping them.

The Packers will play eight games against teams with an elite passing-game tandem. That starts in Week 1 when Green Bay plays at the Vikings. Minnesota signed veteran quarterback Kyler Murray. He will have arguably the NFL’s best trio of receivers with Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and Jauan Jennings.

Murray and Jefferson are the No. 10 tandem.

For Murray, it’s a “career reset” after toiling away in Arizona for seven seasons, Williams said. Jefferson, meanwhile, “gets an elite thrower of the football who should more accurately connect … on deep shots, while also providing the added dimension to distort the defense and create explosive plays on second-reaction throws” because of his elite running ability.

“He’s a top-level franchise quarterback,” Gannon, who was Murray’s head coach the past three seasons, said after the 2024 season. “He’s played like that, he’s shown that.”

After somewhat of a respite – not that the specter of facing the Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield and the Bears’ Caleb Williams without Parsons will be easy – five of Green Bay’s next six games will come against the top-10 list.

First, it’s Dallas in Week 6, with the Cowboys featuring Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb. They are the No. 4 tandem.

“George Pickens was the most productive receiver for Dallas last year in his first season with the Cowboys,” Williams wrote, noting his career-best season off 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns. “However, Dak Prescott has built a stronger rapport with CeeDee Lamb because of their time together.”

In Week 7, Round 1 of their rivalry against the Lions will be played at Ford Field, where Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown are especially dangerous. They are the No. 5 tandem because of their “unique chemistry” together.

“St. Brown has produced a league-high 33 receiving touchdowns over the last three seasons,” Williams wrote, noting St. Brown’s dominance in the slot.

In Week 9, the Packers will go against Romeo Doubs and the Patriots. Their offense is highlighted by the combination of Drake Maye and A.J. Brown, who was acquired from the Eagles. Maye-Brown are the No. 6 tandem.

“Drake Maye played well enough to finish one vote shy of winning MVP last season in only his second year as a pro, and that was with Stefon Diggs as his most talented receiver,” Williams wrote. “Now, the addition of Brown gives New England one of the best receivers in the league and should open things up for the rest of the offense.”

Brown was a thorn in Green Bay’s side while with the Eagles.

“He’s such a big, physical receiver, and he could take a slant or under route and break a tackle and take it to the house,” coach Matt LaFleur said before the 2024 wild-card game. “He’s been doing it for a long time now. Obviously, he got us Week 1 on a double move that we couldn’t get him on the grass after he caught the ball. He is a dynamic playmaker.”

After getting another crack at the Vikings in Week 10 and following their make-believe Week 11 bye, the Packers will play their Thanksgiving Eve showdown at the Los Angeles Rams, who are the Super Bowl favorites at FanDuel Sportsbook. Green Bay will have to contend with the NFL’s No. 1 duo, reigning NFL MVP Matthew Stafford and prolific receiver Puka Nacua, who led the league in receptions and yards per game.

“Stafford has developed a potent rapport with the acrobatic catching style of Puka Nacua, who posted the second-most receiving yards by a player in their first three seasons in NFL history,” Williams said.

In Week 14, the Packers will host the Bills, who Josh Allen – the betting favorite to win NFL MVP at FanDuel – throwing to former Bears receiver D.J. Moore. They are the No. 7 tandem.

“Allen will do a good job of getting the ball out quickly in space to Moore, allowing him to create big plays after the catch with his elite ability to make defenders miss in space,” Williams wrote.

The regular season will conclude at Lambeau Field against the Goff, St. Brown and the Lions.

Green Bay’s revamped secondary, which includes free-agent addition Benjamin St-Juste and second-round pick Brandon Cisse, will be put to the test throughout the season.

In terms of receivers and receiving yards, Nacua was second, Pickens was third, St. Brown was fifth, the Saints’ Chris Olave was seventh, the Texans’ Nico Collins was eighth, the Lions’ Jameson Williams was ninth, Lamb was 10th and Jefferson was 11th. That’s eight of the top 11.

For receiving yards per game, Nacua was first, Pickens was fourth, St. Brown was fifth, Lamb was sixth, Atlanta’s Drake London was seventh, Collins was eighth and Olave was ninth. That’s seven of the top 10.

For receivers and receiving touchdowns, the Rams’ Davante Adams was first, St. Brown tied for second, Nacua tied for fourth, Pickens, and Olave and Jennings tied for sixth.

Every year, I rank every player on the Packers roster based on talent, importance, salary etc. I will again this year, too.

For now, let's cut right to the chase. Here is a quick-hitting look at the 2⃣5⃣ most important players for the 2026 season.⬇️https://t.co/ezDAkl7vmd
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) June 17, 2026

SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY PACKERS NEWSLETTER

Add us as a preferred source on Google