Packers with ‘high hopes’ for Samori Toure following offseason programs
By Paul Bretl
There has been a lot of buzz around second-year wide receiver Samori Toure this offseason, a player whom the Green Bay Packers have “high hopes” for with his ability to create separation.
During OTA and minicamp practices, Toure was often the fourth receiver behind Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, and rookie Jayden Reed, but he still saw his share of reps with Jordan Love at quarterback and consistently had a target or two throughout the open practices. Although Reed was getting a number of reps ahead of Toure, during the 7-on-7 drills that featured Rasul Douglas and Jaire Alexander in the secondary, of the two, it was Toure who was the more consistent target, perhaps showing the value that even a year of experience within the offense can have.
"“Samori has had his moments and has to continue to build upon those to become more and more consistent along the way. But he’s a guy we definitely have high hopes for. He has the things, the tools necessary that you look for in terms of being able to separate. He has them in his body. He possesses those. It’s just continuing to get more and more reps.”"
Wide receivers coach Jason Vrable would say before OTAs began that Toure had put on 8-10 pounds over the offseason and that “you wouldn’t even recognize the guy” with the growth he has had. When asked about this, Toure said the primary reason for bulking up was to help with his durability through a long NFL season, although a positive side effect could be the additional physicality he brings to the run game.
Toure finds himself in a unique situation as a former seventh-round pick in only his second NFL season as one of the more experienced players within his position group and someone who we know will be relied upon somewhat heavily. Over and over again, LaFleur has shown, especially early on in a season, that he values experience.
The majority of Toure’s 112 offensive snaps in 2022 came from the slot, but he has the versatility to line up outside as well–which we know is an important skill set to have in LaFleur’s offense, as we will see a lot of movement. From the slot, Toure can be a threat over the middle of the field, an area that Jordan Love was targeting heavily during offseason programs, providing him – and the other pass catchers – with catch and run opportunities in the open field. In his final college season at Nebraska, Toure ranked eighth among receivers, averaging 7.6 yards after the catch (YAC), according to PFF.
When on the boundary, he can create separation to win downfield. Of his nine targets last season, four came 20 or more yards downfield. At Nebraska, Toure was one of the more efficient deep-receiving targets in all of college football, ranking 10th in total downfield yards. Christian Watson will, of course, still fill this role as well, but this season, there may be more opportunity for others with Watson taking on a greater variety of route-running responsibilities, something LaFleur discussed during the NFL Owners’ Meeting.
Given the makeup of the receiver room, Toure will factor into this Green Bay Packers offense, but just like any other inexperienced player, he is going to have to continue to make plays once the pads come on if he wants his role to continue to expand. It’s not only Year 2 leaps from Watson and Doubs that can impact the Packers’ offense, but the development of Toure will go a long way toward helping this unit as well.
"“I feel like I’ve made a big jump,” said Toure via Packers.com. “I feel like that’s been something that’s been consistent with me, even throughout college. I’ve been able to make a lot of progress throughout each year. It’s a matter of being comfortable with the system, the playbook, all of that. It’s really just about learning from your mistakes from the previous year, and I feel like I can build on last year.”"