Speculation that the Green Bay Packers were shopping around wide receiver Randall Cobb shut down almost as abruptly as it arose.
Wednesday night, Mike Lombardi of The Ringer said on his podcast he caught wave of the Packers looking for a potential trade suitor for the 28-year-old receiver. However, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport quickly disputed the report stating teams had simply inquired about the pro-bowl slot receiver. A common practice in today’s NFL.
The initial report got a lot of attention and sent Packers nation into a frenzy. Fans were starting to come to grips with the possibility of their favorite team parting ways with both Jordy Nelson and Cobb only a few months apart, not realizing the move really wouldn’t have made sense in the first place. Green Bay’s primary slot receiver has one year remaining on his contract and is due $8.6 million. It would be foolish for any team to absorb that cap hit given the unpredictability of what to expect from Cobb this year.
He has in fact seen a sharp decline in production since his 2014 pro bowl campaign, however, now that Nelson is no longer with the team, Cobb is expected to have an increased role within the offense. He’s the no.2 receiver behind Davante Adams and remains their best weapon in the slot. Cobb is one of Aaron Rodgers most trusted assets and the MVP quarterback has already predicted a big year from his longest-tenured target.
Green Bay signed Jimmy Graham this offseason hoping to add a more potent passing threat over the middle. This move should help boost Cobb’s numbers with less attention from safeties and better matchups lining up inside. Graham commands heavily schemed defenses and often requires double teams which would in turn create more opportunities for Cobb.
Following the 2018 season, the Packers may indeed be ready to part ways with Cobb but now is not the time. He’s their most experienced receiver and the three rookie draft picks are not ready for an increased workload. Cobb could be a vital part of the Packers’ success this season.
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Brandon Carwile was a Cheesehead at birth. His dad grew up attending games at Lambeau and passed on the legacy. He has covered the Packers for over five years and currently works with packerstalk.com. Find him on twitter at @PackerScribe.
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3 responses to “The Packers Need Randall Cobb in 2018”
No other team would be dumb enough to take on Cobb’s ridiculous salary for this year with his limited production. The Packers will keep him this season and hopefully will be able to move on to more productive WRs moving forward. And with any luck, Ted will go with him.
Brandon, I think there’s a little flaw in the thinking about how ‘Graham would increase opportunities for Cobb’.
Essentially, we reorganized our passing game by replacing Nelson with Graham. Graham is going to be targeted a helluva lot more than Richard Rodgers was. Cobb is still the #3 guy you want to throw to after Adams and Graham.
Cobb, over the last two seasons, has been targeted 176 times in 28 games. That’s around six times each game.
Richard Rodgers was targeted 17 times last year, and Graham was targeted 96 times…..more than Jordy Nelson!!!
Add in that we might want to throw it to one of the other TEs and the proverbial promise to “run more” and I actually think Cobb will be targeted fewer times unless Adams or Graham is injured…
Cobb’s separation, production, and health have cost us during the long haul. Yes, he has made some good plays, as did Jordy who was willing to take a cut to stay with the Packers. So increased production and use this season? Who flipped the switch? Cobb? MM new scheme offense? You be the judge against the Bears and Queens in the first two games which are MUST wins in my book. Health first. I don’t think Cobb will make a full season. I can hardly wait to see if Cobb contributes, and MM can figure out the Queens defense after 12 years!