The Green Bay Packers found themselves staring at a 16-7 halftime deficit against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night before quickly flipping the script with a masterful second-half performance to improve their record to 5-1-1. While the defense shut down former Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers offense in the second half, it was the offense that made the strongest statement.
Jordan Love was sensational with 360 passing yards and three TDs, but the continued ascension of third-year tight end Tucker Kraft once again provided a huge spark to the offense. Kraft had seven catches for a career-high 143 receiving yards and two TDs, giving him at least one TD in five of Green Bay's seven games this season.
According to Ryan Wood, Packers beat writer for USA Today, Kraft has 30 catches for 469 yards and six TDs, and is averaging 15.6 yards per catch. He is the only TE in the league with at least 450 yards and five TDs, without a doubt earning him his first career Pro Bowl nod when the time comes. With the Nov. 4 trade deadline approaching, Kraft is too important to the offense for the Packers not to utilize, and carrying more wide receivers than they should is only going to get in the way. After all, head coach Matt LaFleur loves having a committee, but that also means finding ways to get the receivers touches and keep them happy, which is going to prove challenging with only one ball to go around.
Tucker Kraft Has Become Green Bay's Top Receiver
Kraft currently leads the team in receptions (30) and is second to WR Romeo Doubs (42) in targets (41), so it is clear how much the passing attack is focused on him. According to Pro Football Focus, Kraft's overall grade (68.1) ranked 16th out of 36 qualified TEs entering Week 8, while his receiving yards ranked seventh and his TDs were third. That was before his career performance on Sunday night, so his reliability as one of the league's top receivers has been on display all season.
Only Doubs (350 yards) and rookie Matthew Golden (253 yards) have more than 200 receiving yards on the team besides Kraft, and Green Bay might have a problem with its first-round draft pick after he only had three catches for four yards and was rarely a part of the pass game on Sunday night. Despite his 16 receptions for 234 yards entering Week 8, LaFleur once again neglected to utilize him down the field. That was the most obvious late in the fourth quarter when Love threw an incompletion to running back Emanuel Wilson instead of hitting a wide-open Golden in the middle of the field for what could have been a TD.
No other receiver on the team has more than 134 yards (Dontayvion Wicks), and only four have played in every game this season. Jayden Reed (collarbone/foot) has been out of action since getting injured in the Week 2 win over the Washington Commanders, and Christian Watson recorded four catches for 85 yards in his first game back from suffering a torn ACL in his right knee. The injuries have allowed players like Kraft to step up and shine, and his career year could easily pave the way for Green Bay to make a trade at the upcoming deadline.
With so many pass catchers on the team, it is going to prove extremely difficult to get each of them the touches they expect going forward, with Kraft becoming such a focal point. Whether the receiving corps likes it or not, Kraft has asserted himself as arguably the best receiving TE in the NFL and one of Love's top targets, making for an interesting lead-up to the trade deadline in Green Bay's receiving room.