Green Bay Packers: Dez Bryant isn’t the Answer at WR

Dez Bryant has made it known on Twitter that he is ready to return to the NFL, however, when it comes to the Green Bay Packers, he isn’t the answer at wide receiver.

Even before the season started, many Green Bay Packers’ fans were concerned about the wide receiver position outside of Davante Adams. And now that we are halfway through the 2019 season, those concerns still loom.

While the receiving core did have a fantastic game against Oakland – who does have one of the worst pass defenses in the league – they’re overall production has been sporadic. Without Adams against Dallas and Detroit, Green Bay’s receivers would catch just 16/31 passes for 226 yards. And if we take out Allen Lazard’s fourth quarter of the Lions’ game, in seven quarters Geronimo Allison, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Jake Kumerow, and at the time, Darrius Shepherd would catch less than 50 percent of their passes for a measly 161 yards.

Then during their game against the Kansas City Chiefs, running back Aaron Jones was the top receiver and has been for the most part during Green Bay’s stretch without Adams. Allison has had issues with dropping the ball this season, while MVS has just four targets and one reception over the last two games. Fortunately, Lazard has become a reliable option but this Packers’ offense could use more help.

With that said, I’m here to tell you that help at the wide receiver position won’t be coming from free agent, Dez Bryant. Around this time a year ago, Bryant signed with the New Orleans Saints but shortly after, he’d rupture his Achilles in practice. But now he has taken to Twitter and announced that he is ready to return to the NFL.

There’s no questioning that when Bryant was at his best, he was one of the top receivers in the NFL. From 2012 to 2014 he was a three-time Pro Bowler and a first team All-Pro. He averaged 91 receptions per season, with over 1,300 yards at 14.4 yards per catch and nearly 14 touchdowns per year. However, the issue is that since then, Bryant has suffered a couple of injuries and those numbers I just mentioned were from a handful of years ago.

After being bitten by the injury bug a few times in 2015 and 2016, Bryant would play in just 22 out of Dallas’ 32 games. Although he would bounce-back and play a full 16 game schedule in 2017, he wasn’t the same Dez Bryant we had seen in previous seasons.

His yards per catch would drop to 12.1, nearly two full yards less than his career average, and he’d catch just 52 percent of his passes which included 12 drops according to Pro Football Focus. Then as I previously mentioned, as he was looking for a fresh start in New Orleans, Bryant would suffer the Achilles injury.

Now, if Bryant does land on a new team, they won’t expect him to be the Dez Bryant of 2014 but rather they’ll need him to be a contributor and I imagine that’s all the Green Bay Packers would ask of him as well. But Bryant is coming off of a major injury and hasn’t played in a football game in nearly two full years. Yes, there are videos posted of him working out, but as we all know there is a major difference between being in shape and being in football shape.

Second, his reliability is a concern as well, both in terms of his health and production on the field. We’ve already discussed his injury issues since 2015 and in his last three seasons combined (2015-2017), he’s caught just 50 percent of his passes and when targeted, the quarterback rating is only 68.4 over that span.

To put it simply, at this point in his career, I just don’t see him being an upgrade over what the Green Bay Packers already have on their roster. Their current wide receiver group is who they will play with the rest of the season and despite many wanting an addition, I don’t believe GM Brian Gutekunst will do so. And I highly doubt that if he did, it would be Dez Bryant.