Different Circumstances in 2022 for Packers Rookie WRs & Aaron Rodgers

For any Green Bay Packers’ pass-catcher, having Aaron Rodgers’ trust is a must–and we all know this.

Rodgers is very demanding; in part, it’s one of the many things that makes him as great as he is. He expects receivers to know Matt LaFleur’s offense inside and out–which means being able to recognize and make adjustments at the line of scrimmage even as the play clock is about to hit zero.

Receivers also need to be precise route runners, ending up exactly where they need to be, depending on what the route calls for and how the defense is defending them. And, of course, if all of that takes place and Rodgers throws the ball their way, catching it is a requirement.

Earning Rodgers’ trust by doing these things correctly — along with the many other aspects that come with playing the receiver position — begins in practice. If Rodgers can’t trust a receiver there, how is he going to trust them in crunch time?

However, although the path to gaining Rodgers’ trust is somewhat known, it’s not as if doing so is as easy as snapping your fingers–otherwise, everyone would do it. But with young receivers, there is a learning curve, which can lead to ups and downs, along with Rodgers shying away from throwing in their direction.

Recently, Wendell Ferreira of Cheesehead TV tweeted out the Green Bay Packers rookie receiving yards leaders since 2008 when Rodgers took over–and the production is fairly underwhelming.

581 yards – Marquez Valdez-Scantling (2018)
446 yards – Davante Adams (2014)
375 yards – Randall Cobb (2011)
366 yards – Jordy Nelson (2008)
328 yards – Equanimeous St. Brown (2018)
202 yards – Geronimo Allison (2016)
136 yards – Ty Montgomery (2015)

As we all know, the Packers have three rookie receivers who they selected in this year’s draft, and at least two of them, Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs, are expected to be fairly big contributors this season.

Watson can make an impact right away as a deep threat, as well as a gadget player and motion man where designed plays get him the ball in space. Doubs, meanwhile, created plenty of big plays of his own at Nevada and brings a polished skill-set to Green Bay.

While history suggests that Watson and Doubs will have a difficult time getting on the same page as Rodgers and earning his trust in the process, the circumstances this season are a bit different than in years past.

With each of those rookie receivers listed above, there has always been at least one, and oftentimes two, not only established but very good veteran receivers on this roster alongside them.

When Nelson arrived to Green Bay, the Packers had Greg Jennings and Donald Driver to lean on. As time went on, Nelson, along with Cobb, became those go-to options for Rodgers, and then eventually Adams.

If a rookie receiver was struggling in practice, whether it be grasping the offense or simply making plays, Rodgers probably didn’t look in his direction all that much–and truthfully, with the players just mentioned, he didn’t have to.

However, I’m not so sure that luxury exists this season.

While a veteran, Sammy Watkins is still new to the team and has battled injuries over his career, playing a full 16-game slate only once, which occurred during his rookie season.

Cobb can still have his moments, often coming up big last season in high leverage situations such as on third downs and in the red zone, but he is not someone who is going to carry this passing attack. Meanwhile, I do believe that Allen Lazard’s production could really take off this season, but again, he isn’t someone who can do it all on his own.

So unlike in previous years, if Watson and Doubs are taking their lumps early on — which they will, they are rookies after all — Rodgers doesn’t necessarily have the option to look the other way for an extended period of time.

In fact, in those instances early on in the season, Rodgers should be going right back to them fairly quickly. It’s likely that if this Green Bay Packers team is going to make a deep playoff run, they’ll need either Watson or Doubs to emerge as a reliable pass-catching option and working through any issues early on in the season so that they are better prepared in December and January should be the preferred approach.

Now, with all of that said, gaining Rodgers’ trust is still a must, and the high expectations that he has for his receivers won’t change. But just because past rookies haven’t had a ton of success right away doesn’t mean Watson and Doubs won’t either–as we just discussed, the comparison between this year and previous ones is quite different, given the makeup of the wide receiver room.