ABOUT THE PACKERS
Packers scouting report: Something old, something new in Green Bay offense
Two-time defending MVP Aaron Rodgers is back, with the same lofty goals but a very different group of receivers.
September 10, 2022 at 9:20PM
- The Packers renegotiated quarterback Aaron Rodgers' contract this offseason, keeping the NFL MVP in Green Bay while reworking the pieces around him. The departure of receiver Davante Adams, who was traded to the Raiders, leaves a big hole in the offense. Marquez Valdes-Scantling also departed in free agency for the Chiefs.
- Green Bay's new receiving corps includes holdovers Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, and newcomers in Sammy Watkins and rookies Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs. Adams and Valdes-Scantling accounted for 39% of targets last season.
- Running backs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon form one of the NFL's best tandems. They were joined by Denver's Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon as the league's only backfield duos to each reach 1,100 yards from scrimmage last season.
- The Packers' ninth-ranked defense was reinforced this offseason by the return of cornerback Jaire Alexander, who missed much of the year due to a shoulder injury, and two first-round draft picks — defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt and linebacker Quay Walker.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT | QB Aaron Rodgers
- Rodgers, 38, has won back-to-back NFL MVP awards and has a newly signed three-year extension worth more than $150 million. He doesn't have his longtime favorite target in Adams, leaving questions about how the passing game will evolve without the connection that produced 69 touchdowns over eight seasons.
- Rodgers enters his 18th NFL season seeking an elusive return to the Super Bowl. The Packers have lost four straight trips to the conference title game since winning the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the 2010 season. Green Bay lost in the NFC's divisional round for a fourth time in that span last year vs. San Francisco.
- Rodgers on the Packers defense: "You look at our interior D-line, I mean that's a really impressive group. I think the way Dean [Lowry] has progressed as a big-time player in this league, obviously Kenny [Clark] is understated but a top-two or -three guy at his position. … I love the defense and the way they're playing."
COACH SPEAK | Matt LaFleur
- LaFleur, 42, enters his fourth season as Packers head coach with a 39-10 record [.796] in the regular season and 2-3 in the playoffs. LaFleur's 39 wins are the most by any head coach during the first three seasons in NFL history.
- LaFleur has worked with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and Rams head coach Sean McVay at past stops, making him a branch of the same coaching tree as the Vikings' Kevin O'Connell.
- LaFleur on ex-Gophers linebacker De'Vondre Campbell, who is a first-time team captain for the Packers: "It's been fun to watch, especially seeing him as a rookie to where he is today, not only a as a football player but a man and a leader on this team. Obviously, the captain thing is a big deal, and he's earned it."
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
