Nelson ‘Done’ Now But Could Have Helped Past Two Seasons

On “Wilde & Tausch,” Jordy Nelson said: “I think the track record between Aaron and I, I think we could have been productive no matter what year it would have been.”

GREEN BAY, Wis. – If the Green Bay Packers’ offense struggles once again in 2020, don’t look for Jordy Nelson to come riding to the rescue.

“We’re done,” Nelson said on the “Wilde & Tausch” show on ESPN Wisconsin last week. “I’ve always laughed and talked to my wife, Emily, about it. When you first get in the NFL and you’re performing very well, you’re underpaid; and then when you sign a big contract, you become overpaid. When you’re towards the end of your career, you get released and people say you’re too slow, you’ve lost a step, you can’t play anymore. And then apparently when you retire, everyone wants you to come back. I’m confused on what I need to do, so I’ll just stay at home. No one’s ever satisfied. So, we’ll just stick with staying home at the family.”

Having retired before last season, Nelson and his family have settled into life in Kansas. That includes Nelson working on his brothers’ farm a few days a week and tailgating before Kansas State football games.

In his prime, Nelson was an elite receiver. A second-round pick in 2008, he played 10 seasons for the Packers. He finished his career ranked third in franchise history in receptions (550), fifth in receiving yards (7,848) and second in receiving touchdowns (69). After averaging just 9.1 yards per reception in 2017, the Packers released him in March 2018.

Nelson believes he “definitely” could have helped the team in 2018, when the Packers finished 6-9-1. While their second-leading pass-catchers among receivers, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Randall Cobb, caught merely 38 passes, Nelson caught 63 passes for 739 yards and three touchdowns for Oakland. Nelson thinks he also could have helped the team last year, when it went 13-3 and reached the NFC Championship Game despite its No. 2 receiver, Allen Lazard, catching only 35 passes.

“I don’t know what kind of player I’d be if I sat here and said, ‘No, I wouldn’t have been able to help them,’ but I think the track record between Aaron and I, I think we could have been productive no matter what year it would have been,” Nelson said. “I think we proved it over the time, year-in and year-out. We were both very productive. And until proven otherwise, I would say yes, I would have been able to.”

How about 2020?

“I’ll say no to that one,” he said. “I can’t say yes to everything.”

As Nelson’s career declined, Davante Adams’ ascended. Over the last four seasons, he leads the NFL with 40 touchdown receptions.

“He’s become one of the best in the league, that’s for sure,” Nelson said. “And I think the great thing I’ve seen over the years is his maturity. You can even ask him to this day, when he first came in our room, he didn’t like me very much and he didn’t think I liked him very much. But it was because I was hard on him. He was playing so I wanted him to know what he needed to do on the field, if it was signals, if it was route combinations, it if was understanding more than just his position. It was everything that goes into the classroom and being prepared. …

“He told me a couple years ago he now understands how I was feeling when he was a rookie. It all goes in a circle. But he’s become a great leader, a great player, he’s perfected his craft, he’s been very coachable. I think when coach (Luke) Getsy got in our room, he did a great job of really breaking down Davante’s abilities and allowing him to maximize everything he has. When you’re as explosive and quick as Davante is, you can just rely on that. But Coach Getsy has done a great job of teaching him how to maximize that stuff and really use it to create more separation. And that’s a credit not only to Coach Getsy to challenge him but Davante to take that coaching. Sometimes that’s hard. But that’s how you become one of the great ones of the game.”