Randall Cobb’s Grand Finale

2018 could be the final season in a Packer uniform for Randall Cobb. Cobb, who will turn 28 this August, is entering the final year of a 4 year $40 million contract extension that will pay him just over $12.7 million in 2018.

Many believed that Cobb could be a candidate to have his contract restructured due to his declining production over the past couple of seasons.  However, instead of restructuring his contract, the Packers chose to release Jordy Nelson to alleviate some of their cap pressure at the wide receiver position.

This offseason, the Packers drafted three receivers and selected the contracts of other receivers from their practice squad to fill out their 90 man roster heading into training camp.  While all of these wide receivers will not make the fifty-three man roster in 2018, the Packers have sent a clear message to Randall Cobb; they are noncommittal at best about his future in Green Bay.

Don’t Sleep on Randall Cobb:

Despite the offseason moves, Randall Cobb will have a tremendous opportunity to reestablish his value throughout circles around the league and prove to Brian Gutekunst and other general managers that he is deserving of a long-term contract.  If the 2018 season does indeed spell the end of Randall Cobb’s tenure in Green Bay, there is hope that it will indeed be a grand finale.

In 2017, a season in which he played nine games alongside the backup, Brett Hundley, Cobb still managed to haul in 66 receptions for 653 yards, average 9.9 yards per reception and have 4 touchdowns.  In 2018, Randall Cobb figures to see more targets with the departure of Jordy Nelson and will hopefully have a healthy Aaron Rodgers throwing the ball his way.

In addition to having more targets coming his way, Cobb will be moving both inside and outside looking to exploit favorable matchups to consistently move the chains and provide the offense with continuity.  It will be a difficult task for opposing defenders to shut down the trio of Davante Adams, Jimmy Graham, and Randall Cobb for an entire game.

Randall Cobb may be the player that defensive coordinators and defensive backs lose in the shuffle because of their focus being set on shutting down Davante Adams and Jimmy Graham.

With that being said, I believe that Randall Cobb will be the key to the Packers offense being consistently productive and fluidly moving down the field possession after possession.  These factors could lead to Cobb’s production significantly increasing this season, more akin to his  2014 and 2015 numbers rather than his recent numbers from 2016 and 2017.

The familiarity with Cobb from seasons past will allow Rodgers to have a reliable target in the red zone as well as during key moments when the outcome of the game is in doubt.  I think that it is reasonable to be bullish this season on Randall Cobb because he will be motivated to earn what could be his final big contract and prevent the newly drafted receivers from taking his place in the future.

I think that Randall Cobb will do whatever it takes to remain in Green Bay long term, and I predict that he will have 85 receptions for 1,100 yards and 8 touchdowns.

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David Michalski is a recent college graduate from Princeton New Jersey who has been a life long Green Bay Packers fan. Like the great Vince Lombardi, he values God, family, and the Green Bay Packers in that order. You can follow him on twitter at @kilbas27dave

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