Green Bay Packers: WR Best and Worst Case Scenarios

Potential Breakout Players

All three of these guys have shown some reason for Packers’ fans to believe that they can be a valuable receiver for this team. Lazard showed the most consistency, but just didn’t really get his chance until a few games into the season. Valdes-Scantling has shown he can take the top off the defense, and Equanimeous St. Brown had a few nice plays in his rookie year to show enough to keep him here even after being out for the whole 2019 season.

Allen Lazard

Allen Lazard started 2019 on the practice squad, but by the end of the season, he was the Packers’ second option at wide receiver. At 6’5″ 227 pounds, he has great size for the position and can go up and get jump balls that a lot of other guys can’t.

When the Packers brought in Devin Funchess in the offseason, it seemed like they had very redundant skillsets that didn’t mesh well together, and this could have been a bad thing for Lazard as Funchess might have taken his role as a big-bodied receiver. Now, with Funchess opting out, he has that role all to himself again.

As the big man of the receiving corps, he’ll have plenty of chances in the red zone. That’s not the only time he’ll be involved, though. He is also a skilled possession receiver anywhere on the field. His blocking will also get him on the field quite a bit.

He probably has the highest floor of these three, as he has shown himself to be a consistent receiver in the NFL. His ceiling may also be the highest because he may be the most well-rounded, and if he can emerge again as the number two guy, his stats will look pretty nice by the end of the year.

Best Case Stats: 55 receptions, 800 yards, 10 touchdowns

Worst Case Stats: 30 receptions, 350 yards, 3 touchdowns

Marquez Valdes-Scantling

If you just look at Valdes-Scantling’s basic total stats from his first two years, it looks pretty good. 581 yards his rookie year and 452 in his second year, he is clearly a contributing receiver. However, that doesn’t show how up and down he’s been.

His rookie year, his total of 581 yards were mostly gained in just four games in which he had 68, 103, 101, and 75 yards. That’s a total of 347 yards in only four of the games, and the rest were all under 50 yards. In year two, he had 36 yards in the final 9 games of the season. 

He’s been extremely hit or miss, and I don’t know if that will change. Even if he’s not doing a lot every game, he needs to always be there as a threat to beat the defense deep. If he can even get most of his yards in 10 games instead of only four or five, that would be a huge step up.

Best Case Stats: 45 receptions, 700 yards, 7 touchdowns

Worst Case Stats: 20 receptions, 300 yards, 2 touchdowns

Equanimeous St. Brown

There isn’t much concrete evidence one way or another for St. Brown. The coaching staff and Aaron Rodgers have had great things to say about him, and he could be a sparkplug for this offense, but he sat out all last season, so it’s tough to say how he’ll perform.

He has a chance to compete for the Green Bay Packers’ slot receiver spot, and that might be where he can make the most impact. He has some speed and can turn on a dime and accelerate up the field quickly like on this play:

Best Case Stats: 50 receptions, 650 yards, 7 touchdowns

Worst Case Stats: 25 receptions, 250 yards, 1 touchdown