Packers WR Allen Lazard won’t practice again on Wednesday
By Paul Bretl
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard has been sidelined for the last few practices.
That will continue on Wednesday, per head coach Matt LaFleur. However, we did learn a little bit about the injury–which up until this point was unknown.
LaFleur would tell reporters on Wednesday that Lazard was “stepped on” last week during practice.
Given how the injury occurred, Lazard may be suffering from either an ankle or foot injury–although that has not been disclosed. But if you’re looking for some positive news, Rob Demovsky of ESPN would mention that Lazard has really been testing his foot/ankle area by running hard on Monday as well as last week.
Lazard’s status for Sunday when the Packers play in Minnesota is unknown at this time.
Without Davante Adams, Lazard is expected to be Aaron Rodgers’ top receiving target. He has been very effective over the last few seasons on third downs and in the red zone. Now, he will have to maintain that level of efficiency — or close to it — with more opportunities and attention from opposing defenses.
As I wrote recently, we can expect the Packers to lean heavily on their veteran wideouts early on, even with the emergence of Romeo Doubs, because of the trust factor with quarterback Aaron Rodgers. This also means that Lazard will likely line up on the boundary more often, with Cobb presumably in the slot.
Just under half of Lazard’s offensive snaps over his career have come from the slot, where he has found success. In 2021, he ranked 30th out of 119 eligible wide receivers in yards per route run, according to PFF ($$).
If Lazard can’t play in Minnesota, that means the Packers will likely be relying more heavily on Doubs and potentially Christian Watson.
Doubs certainly flashed often during training camp, doing an excellent job of creating space by getting on top of the cornerback quickly. However, we also saw several drops as well as times where he didn’t run the correct route or wasn’t in the right place at the right time.
These are miscues that may still take place early on this season as he continues to get acclimated to the Green Bay offense, Aaron Rodgers, and the NFL as a whole.
For a Packers team with question marks on offense, specifically at wide receiver, potentially not having Lazard on Sunday will be a big loss and leave Rodgers with one less trusted target.
The first official injury report will be released on Wednesday afternoon.