Green Bay Packers: Brian Gutekunst should call on Mohamed Sanu

The Green Bay Packers could use some additional help at wide receiver and the name that GM Brian Gutekunst should be calling on is Mohamed Sanu of Atlanta.

Prior to the beginning of the Green Bay Packers’ 2019 season, many expected that they would address the wide receiver position at some point during the offseason. However, as free agency and the NFL draft came and went, it was quite clear that the Packers were content with who they already had on the roster.

Coming into the season, the biggest question surrounding the receiver position was – who will step up and be the team’s second option behind Davante Adams? Well, we are five weeks into the season and we still don’t really have that answer.

While we have seen some flashes from the other receivers that include a 99 yard game against Denver by Marquez Valdes-Scantling and two touchdown receptions by Geronimo Allison, for the most part, the production from receivers not named Davante Adams has been quite sporadic.

In fact, just this past Sunday in Dallas with Adams out, the wide receiver group had a prime opportunity in front of them to put up some big numbers but as a unit, they would total only four receptions on 13 targets for 55 yards.

Since taking over as GM, Brian Gutekunst has shown us that he is willing to make moves to improve this Green Bay Packers team and a name that he should be calling on is Mohamed Sanu of the Atlanta Falcons.

To say that it has been a disappointing season for the Falcons is an understatement. They currently sit at 1-4 and are riding a three-game losing streak. Head coach Dan Quinn might be on his way out-of-town and the team could look to reload in the offseason. With the trade deadline at the end of the month, Atlanta could be ready to start planning for the future.

Through the first five weeks it has been a very efficient start to the season for Sanu. He’s caught 29 of the 36 passes thrown his way for 281 yards and a touchdown. Over the years, Sanu has been a very productive member of this Falcons’ offense as he has averaged 64 receptions, 731.3 yards, and just over four touchdowns per season from 2016 to 2018.

There’s no doubt that Sanu would be a very nice fit for this Green Bay Packers’ offense as he’d give them a reliable presence from the slot which is something that they don’t currently have at the moment. According to Pro Football Focus, of Sanu’s 282 total snaps at receiver this season, 232 have come from the slot. Not to mention that Matt LaFleur was the quarterbacks’ coach in Atlanta during the 2015 and 2016 seasons, so there is some familiarity between the two which would help acclimate Sanu to the new offense.

From a contract perspective, the 30-year-old Sanu comes with some team control as he is under contract through the 2020 season and has an affordable salary of $6.5 million next season according to Spotrac. Given the cap space that Green Bay has left in 2019 as well as what they have projected in 2020, this is a contract that they could work with.

At this point, there is no inclination that the Atlanta Falcons are shopping Sanu, but these next few weeks prior to the trade deadline will be telling. If they can rattle off a few wins, maybe they keep him for a playoff push. However, if they continue to struggle, GM Thomas Dimitroff may want to start the rebuilding process.

The addition of Sanu would give LaFleur and Aaron Rodgers another weapon that could go a long way towards making the playoffs and a potential Super Bowl run from there. At this time there is no harm in Gutekunst making a call and seeing what it would take to get Mohamed Sanu to Green Bay.