Packers Randall Cobb making the most of his opportunities

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb hasn’t seen an abundance of opportunities early on this season, but he has been opportunistic and efficient over the last two weeks when on the field.

Prior to the regular season beginning, Aaron Rodgers discussed with reporters how well Cobb had been playing during those final weeks of training camp. Unfortunately, we didn’t see that in Week 1, with Cobb totaling just 14 yards on two receptions while being on the field for 37 snaps, according to PFF ($$).

However, in these last two Packers games, we’ve seen a much more effective version of Cobb, even though he hasn’t a ton of playing time.

Of the Packers’ five receivers who have seen regular playing time this season, Cobb ranks fourth in snaps played, even with Sammy Watkins and Allen Lazard having each missed a game, and he’s only ahead of Christian Watson, who also missed a game. Overall, he has caught seven of his eight passes at 15.4 yards per catch.

Of his 108 receiving yards, 94 have come in the last two games, which includes a 20-yard reception against Chicago and a 40-yard catch and run against the Vikings. Cobb’s 3.13 yards per route run during that span ranks seventh among all wide receivers — showcasing his efficiency as a pass catcher — and he ranks third in YAC average with 11.0 yards.

Cobb has also been a very effective third down target this season — which shouldn’t come as a surprise — catching all three of those targets at 10.7 yards per catch, along with all three receptions picking up the first down.

Being a reliable third-down target isn’t anything new to Cobb. That trust and rapport that he has built with Aaron Rodgers over the years plays a critical role in that success. Last season, Cobb caught 12 of his 17 third-down targets at nearly 17 yards per catch, with 10 of those receptions moving the chains.

Through three weeks, this Packers offense has done a very good job of rotating their five receivers in and out–all having a fair share of playing time. Matt LaFleur is picking and choosing which receivers to put in the game based on the situation and what the play call is in order to maximize their respective strengths.

Cobb has very much benefitted from this approach, as the numbers illustrate, along with the Packers’ offense leaning on and leveraging the run game quite heavily the last two weeks, which has a positive effect to the rest of the offense, as well as the quick passing game.

We also can’t overlook the value that Cobb provides Rodgers as a go-to target in critical situations as the offense searches for continuity in the passing game early on this season.

Cobb is averaging fewer snaps per game compared to last season, but even over the same 12-game sample size, which is how many he played in during 2021 because of injury, Cobb is on pace for a more productive season in terms of receiving yards.

In the grand scheme of an NFL season, this has only been a few games, but Cobb has shown that he still has that playmaking ability — not to mention his reliability on third downs — and the Packers are finding ways to maximize it early on.