Green Bay Packers: Does a Trade for WR John Ross Make Sense?

It’s been reported that the WR John Ross of the Cincinnati Bengals has requested a trade. Could the Green Bay Packers be a landing spot?

The NFL’s trade deadline is now just a few weeks away – November 3rd – and the latest player to reportedly demand a trade is wide receiver John Ross of the Cincinnati Bengals. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported earlier today that Ross approached the Bengals about being traded after being unhappy with his playing time.

As I’m sure you all remember, Ross was the ninth overall pick out of Washington in the 2017 NFL Draft by Cincinnati after running a record 4.22 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. Unfortunately, injuries and inconsistent play have prevented Ross from living up to that draft position.

In his first three seasons, Ross had only appeared in 24 out of a possible 48 games, battling various injuries. On top of that, when he is on the field, he’s been wildly inefficient, catching only 41.5 percent of his targets and recording 14 dropped passes between just the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

I know the prospect of landing a new receiver is enticing, but there are several red flags in Ross’ case, which is why he hasn’t seen the field much. And in 2020 specifically, he’s been active for only two games.

Now, having said all of that, last season, we did see flashes of what Ross could be. In his first two games of that year, we would see Ross post 158 and 112-yard performances. He would also total 84 yards in Week 16 against Miami. When it was all said and done, Ross only appeared in eight games, but he still had over 500 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Not too bad.

So with Ross potentially on the trading block, does this move make sense for the Green Bay Packers?

Well, I have to say that he would be an interesting reclamation project for Matt LaFleur, given his skill set and speed. This is a Packers’ receiving corps that, outside of Marquez Valdes-Scantling, is lacking speed. However, Ross would give them another vertical presence. Of course, the big question in regards to Ross isn’t his speed, but rather, how reliable would he be?

In addition to being a downfield threat, the LaFleur offense uses plenty of pre-snap motion and jet sweeps, which would be a good way to get the ball in Ross’ hands, take advantage of his speed while also keeping defenses honest. Similarly to how Green Bay currently uses Tyler Ervin.

While, yes, I do see there being the potential for Ross to add some playmaking ability to this offense under LaFleur, as I’ve said, he’s potentially being shopped around for a reason. As upset as Packer fans get with Valdes-Scantling’s ups and downs, Ross has been even more volatile during his career.

Ultimately, and as is always the case, cost is going to be the biggest determining factor. Ross is in the final year of his rookie deal and comes with a cap hit in 2020 of $5.45 million, along with a fifth-year option for 2021. As far as what the Packers would have to send to Cincinnati, a Day 3 pick should do the trick, and considering the compensatory draft picks that Green Bay will be netting in 2021 after the departures of Bryan Bulaga, Blake Martinez, and Kyler Fackrell in free agency, it’s certainly a price that they can afford.

In the end, I just don’t see this being a move the Green Bay Packers make. As we’ve seen from GM Brian Gutekunst all offseason long, he is confident in their current group of receivers. And even though Ross’ salary will be pro-rated since we are a third of the way through the season, for a Packers team with limited cap space and several high-profile free agents of their own in 2021, that price tag may be too steep for an unknown player such as Ross.

However, if I do end up being wrong, I would understand the move. Parting with a Day 3 pick for someone of Ross’ skill set and potential isn’t a make or break trade by any means. Not to mention that his ability to stretch defenses both vertically and horizontally could be another nice element added to this offense.

For the time being, we will play the waiting game and see how this all plays out with Ross and Cincinnati. But I’m going to stick to my original prediction, which is that the Green Bay Packers don’t make the trade.