GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – To give a new cast of wide receivers time to jell with MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the Green Bay Packers may have to alter their offensive philosophy once the 2022 NFL season kicks off. Rodgers earned the league’s top honor four times in his 17 years with the Pack, slinging darts to a who’s who of Green Bay receivers from Donald Driver to Greg Jennings, James Jones, Jordy Nelson and Davante Adams. Eye popping production with passing yards and points may have to give way to reliance on more of a power game in the interim until the likes of Allen Lazard, Sammy Watkins and the draft picks led by Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs get comfortable with Rodgers.
To muscle up during training camp which opens next week, let’s break down the roster battles looming at running back, tight end and the offensive line.
The Packers love their backfield, with good reason. Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon both combined for more than 1000 yards of offense last season splitting 17 touchdowns between them. They should lean on them even more moving forward. 25 touches per game minimum should be the standard for the pair. They’re proven backs in the run game and have shown the ability to win matchups in the passing game. Screens, flares and check downs will lesson the pressure on the downfield passing game. Who will run number three in the backfield? There are four candidates vying for spot carries beginning with Patrick Taylor. He ran with impressive burst in very limited opportunities last year after battling injuries early in his career just to stay on the practice squad or active roster. Last year’s draft pick Kylin Hill is coming back from a major knee injury. He showed promise as a third down receiving back and kick returner before going down for the season in week 8. Two rookies will be hard pressed to break through with B.J. Baylor and Tyler Goodson rounding out the running back room.
Tight ends are a crucial part of the running game but that position remains in flux with Robert Tonyan on the mend of his season ending ACL tear midway through the 2021 campaign. Until Tonyan returns, they’ll lean on the Big Dog, Marcedes Lewis entering his 17th NFL season. Used sparingly but effectively in the passing game, Lewis remains one of, if not the best blocking tight end in the league at 38. Third year pro Josiah Deguara and last year’s free agent find Tyler Davis will be asked to pick up the slack in the air. Deguara offers a lot of flexibility with formations but needs to stay healthy. Hill has drawn the shine from both Head Coach Matt LaFleur and General Manager Brian Gutekunst after quickly absorbing the offense at mid-season and looking even more like a contributor this spring. Dominique Dafney is also back. Deployed as an H-Back at times, Dafney has flashed and he’s been a solid player on special teams. Eli Wolf and Alize’ Mack are both first year players who will need spectacular summers to stick.
So if the Packers are going to muscle up on offense this fall, they’ll need the muscle up front. However, the offensive line may be the most unsettled position group of all heading into camp. They’ll definitely be without one starter after right tackle Billy Turner wasn’t re-signed and the line may be without two more key players until the regular season is well underway. The most baffling recovery from injury is with All Pro David Bakhtiari. His knee surgery took place in January of last year and despite diligent rehabilitation, Bakhtiari made only a cameo before enduring a setback. He didn’t participate in any team drills this off-season and it’s anybody’s guess if the knee will respond enough for him to get back in the lineup by opening day. Then there’s Elgton Jenkins, the uber-versatile linemen coming off knee surgery himself and it’s a stretch to believe he’ll be ready by September 11. That leaves second year center Josh Myers to be flanked by perhaps last year’s starting guards, Jon Runyan and Royce Newman. Other players clearly in the mix to provide depth, if not start early in the year are tackle Yosh Nijman and third round pick Sean Rhyan from UCLA. Nijman held his own after waiting over a year on the practice squad for his shot and Rhyan certainly looked the part in spring drills. A host of young linemen will try to fill in the gaps. The Packers have drafted three linemen in each of the past three years to build depth. Jake Hanson is entering his third season, Cole Van Lanen from Wisconsin his second. The trio drafted this year include Ryhan along with Zach Tom and Rasheed Walker. Caleb Jones would be a fan favorite longshot to become maybe the largest O-linemen ever at 6-9 and 370 pounds. Center Michel Menet and tackle Cole Schneider have a real uphill climb toward a roster spot.
Three critical pieces, Tonyan, Bakhtiari and Jenkins, need to get right for the Packer offense to be complete and become competitive with an even stronger muscle-bound running game while the new passing combinations evolve.
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