Green Bay Packers: 5 X-Factors for a Deep Playoff Run

Tyler Ervin

GM Brian Gutekunst continues to add to his eventual Executive of the Year resume with the mid-season addition of Tyler Ervin who has provided the special teams unit with a spark, as well as a gadget player for Matt LaFleur on offense.

I’m sure as you will all remember, the Green Bay Packers’ punt return team was on a historically bad pace before Ervin’s arrival. But since then, he has turned what was once a huge liability, into a legitimate threat. As a Packer, Ervin is averaging nearly 26.7 yards per kick return as well as 9.6 yards per put return.

And over the last two weeks, we’ve seen Ervin taking snaps with the offense. Against Minnesota we saw him get the ball from Aaron Rodgers while he was in motion, then in Detroit he had a 10 yard carry and would have found the end zone on a sluggo route had he not been overthrown.

Now with the playoffs just about here, Ervin gives Green Bay a reliable return man who can flip the field at any time, as well as a weapon for LaFleur on offense that can catch defenses off guard and potentially lead to a big play.