Thats not entirely true. Some of the best receivers in recent years have been on the slower side. Adams, Cooper Kupp, Michael Thomas, Mike Evans, Deandre Hopkins, Keenan Allen, Tee Higgins, Doug Baldwin, JuJu Smith-Schuster (has fallen off in recent years but exploded early in his career), etc. Not one of them ran sub-4.5 40 yd dash times. With the exception of Baldwin, they all have good size, but none have elite speed.

Long speed isn’t everything. Wicks, for example, has elite burst. He excelled at getting behind coverage at the line. He’s not going to win a level foot race with most corners, but neither will Adams. What he does do is separate consistently through burst and, surprisingly for a long strider, a very sudden cut.

What matters in football is not whether you can run faster than everyone, but whether you can get open consistently, make the catch and then add some yards. Wicks can do 2 of those very well. The catching is going to be the thing he has to show he can do consistently. I am not convinced he can, I didn’t like the pick, but if (a big one in his case) he does catch consistently I believe he has more than enough talent to be a good X. Melton too has to show he can catch.

Of course, if another receiver of similar size has that ability to get separation and speed on top of that, then if all other things are equal, he will likely out play Wicks. And that’s the point. It doesn’t matter how a guy gets it done, as long as he does. That won’t be seen until the pass come on and contact starts. But it’s why good athletes often don’t make good players in real games.

For what it’s worth, my tip for the biggest impact at WR outside of Watson and Doubs this year remains Toure. Not because of his long speed, but his combination of incredible short area agility and resulting catch radius for an 6’3 guy and good hands, helped by the 8 pounds of muscle he added this off season.

Hahaha! You do, Nick!

I’m right with you too! Those first 4 picks were stellar, in my eyes. Pre-Combine, I think all of Van Ness, Musgrave & Kraft were ranked between 18-25 by Athlon’s. Kraft was #18… Musgrave was #23.

Both those making a Reed sandwich? Reed was my top choice for the Packers at WR.

Opposing defenses won’t know what hit ‘em. I have no fear in stating that this early in the process either.

Kraft & Musgrave are nearly identical in terms of speed (4.62/4.61 respectively) but their games are so different, and are perfect complements to each other.

My mind’s eye envisioning Reed & Watson with both? Wow.

Keep on keepin’ on, Nick!

Have you seen the new WR they just added? Sure handed is his thing. This could get interesting! Competition, depth, depth, and more depth :)

First step is admitting it, Nick!
There are eleven more, but danged if I don’t know what they are! 😉
GPG!

"Further complicating everything for Wicks/Doub is with Reed at slot & the occasional rotating of Musgrave & even Tucker there"

Lazard was the real slot-snap hog in 2022. Tonyan did run quite a few out of the slot, though. You're right: the Packers seem to favor the 'big-slot' type, which opens play time for guys like Musgrave or Kraft right off the bat. Wicks isn't a smurf, though, so he might compete there. I'm hoping that LaF will get a little more creative with how he runs his offense and groups his personnel, though

I could see some really fun 2 TE formations out of the Packers this year. Out wide line up Watson and Doubs, Reed in the slot next to Doubs, Musgrave in the slot next to Watson, and Kraft inline. That gives you 4 receivers that are 6'2+ with 3 of them 6'5+. Not to mention you have a crazy amount of speed on the field which will make DC afraid of what you want to do. Sure teams will know it is a pass but how do you cover that much size AND speed. Alternatively you could motion Reed into the backfield for a possible handoff or replace Reed with Jones.

I could see another setup with Watson and Doubs out wide and Kraft and Musgrave inline on opposite sides with Jones or Dillion in the backfield. Have a passing play where your WRs run posts at different depths and your TEs run corners. Hopefully LaFluer is able to come up with some creative ways to use these guys together.

I don't think this bevy of top talents (as I see them to be, the entire group of Watson, Doubs, Toure, Melton, Reed, Wicks, DuBose) fighting for reps & opportunities as "complicating" anything, Knock, other than opposing DC's underwear laundering...

Seems it would be best for LaFleur to lay down the law that he's looking more for team contributions rather than individual achievement as a focus, and for every player to be ready to contribute at any time, because the whole playbook not only expanded, but is -entirely - OPEN FOR BUSINESS.

That's a lot of different touches, by a lot of other talented players to spread big plays around to in 2023. Keep opponents guessing continuously throughout the 2023 schedule and beyond. WRs, TEs, RBs... that's probably about 14 different players off the top of my head, and each capable of a big play, an explosive play, a chain moving play, or simply a positive play made to get us closer to our goals..

Team goals. Team achievements. One week at a time.

There is ONE MVP TROPHY that everybody can win together in 2023, and it's called THE LOMBARDI TROPHY.

Totally agree, Guam!

Can easily see Kingsley Enagbare & Devonte Wyatt making the biggest Year 2 jumps of our 2022 draft class on D. Sheesh! Can't leave out Quay Walker, who was a destroyer last season...

One other sneaky one on D is Jonathan Ford, who didn't see a single snap in 2022. The only place to go is up for the enormous NT (6-5 338) who came in very, very raw in his technique.

The fact that Gutekunst didn't take a single NT with 13 picks tells me the Packers are happy with Ford's development thus far.

Depth :)

Nice to have it. Hope they make the best of the off-season developing all 90 + PS.

My wishes: 100% effort from every player, every play. In game adjustments being part of the skill set of our coaches, including talent evaluation that puts the best man on the job. Superb play calling.

If the talent is utilized properly, I don't see individual players being the limiting factor. The yutes can become a core for a decade or more.

Let’s see where things are in November. By then we will know know who LaFleur is in terms of how well camp prepares the players individually and as a team, how sound his coaching choices are and if he really had a leading offensive mind and ability to adjust now Rodgers has gone.

The problems didn't go away just because Rodgers was traded.

Sometimes, when you get rid of the biggest problems, the smaller ones find a way of fixing themselves 🤷‍♂️

Don’t let your thoughts of Love to turn to Fancy.
Pepe Le Pew; fits you more than me.

He's been doing all the OTAs for a couple years now. They weren't important to the previous QB1.

Aaron jones comes from a military family so its hardly surprising he grew to be a man of such character. I remember reading about him before he was drafted and how he had to deal with moving around a lot due to his father's nature of work. That type of situation forces a kid to grow up fast. Its one of the reasons I absolutely loved him and I was doing carthwheels when they drafted him lol.

Pete! All I see is: ONE. MASSIVE. 3 DAY. TAILGATE.

Everybody’s gonna be just fine.

😂🤣😆

Forget Milwaukee, Appleton is half an hour away.

Guam, I think LaFleur will be 2023’s greatest surprise.

That offense Aaron Rodgers kept running against his HC’s intentions was an abysmally tired contraption spanning close to a decade back in time.

His own QB1 subverting his wishes & direction had to have been immensely stressful. I do believe that’s what has been happening since LaFleur was hired.

Not a recipe for success when one of your main ingredients goes bad.

His removal via trade? Brilliant. The positive impact will be felt team-wide, but, maybe nowhere greater than at HC.

I wouldn't make too much of this in OTAs and how the play-calling is going. When was the last time 12 took a snap in OTAs? If LaF was scripting plays in OTAs and wasn't happy with it, it's on him. I'll agree with you, though, in saying that this change could be very liberating for LaF.

Thanks dobber.

Is it just me, but that kind of reporting seems unusually hard to find this year? Lots of opinion and very little factual info on what happened. Personally that’s what I want to see.

dobber, I think this is the way it'll be. IF HEALTHY, Watson and Doubs start. Toure and Reed will initially be competing for the third spot. At some point during the season, when guys get hurt, I think we'll see Wicks. Our top 3 WRs get the targets, and the rest....not so much.

Those OL players you mentioned, plus Bakhtiari and Jenkins, are our top 8 offensive linemen. Newman #7, Rhyan #8. We'll be fine if people don't miss much time with injuries.

I liked Enagbare last year, and I think that he'll be on the field for us plenty.

Not sure about Rudy Ford at Safety.

This is what we want to see! Facts. Thank you Sir!

Lots of names, develop all 90 + PS

Totally agree. If you watch the OTA video on packers.com, you can see the youthfulness and the players working hard and having a good time. Obviously these are random and limited clips, but the culture looks good at this point. Waaaaay early, but good first steps for sure!!

It was like a f@$king nightmare that would never end! It has finally ended and I feel like I can truly enjoy GBP football once again.

AMEN!!!

RCP Fan, Jordan Love got from Tom Clements and MLF instructions on what traits he need to work to be better (not rising his front foot to fingers when he throw the balls is one thing what was pointed out). Jordan Love has his personal QB coach (who also have QB School for young QBs) with whome he is working on the requests made by his team for off season. Team can not direct or suggest players what they will do in their free time. Only what they can is tell the players what to improve before next season starts officially. How player will do that, it is his voluntary right.

Remember Mike McCarthy QB School that helped ACR to develop himself better? That school was shut down on NFL request as some other team camps or open camps organized by different teams.

"but you can really see his arm strength. And how he is leading the ball to the receiver."

...to the middle of the field, in most of those throws. Will be good to see the Packers utilize the whole field in the passing game.

What impresses me the most is his footwork. Everything starts from the ground up. Many years ago, Bill Walsh was asked about what he saw in Joe Montana and the very first thing he mentioned was his quick feet. Cant survive in the pocket if you cant move your feet with grace and balance.

The note on thinking of the whole Fox Valley is a good one. I went to college up there (St. Norbert) and whenever I've flown into the Fox Valley for an event, I've flown into Appleton, anyway. Much easier to get in and out of than Austin-Straubel. They've got two years to figure out the capacity issues (if any) and late April in GB is NOT a high tourism time of year.

I'm sure there will be people staying in Milwaukee for the draft as well. Also could see the bars in Milwaukee having fan shuttles to the draft.

I plan on staying at a friends house which is like 10 minutes from the stadium and bringing my moped so I don't have to worry about parking.

PEO-
I think one thing that's going to happen this year, is we're going to see the play calling be more creative, simply because Rodgers saw his reading of the defense as the "solution."
With a less experienced QB, the "solution" will need to be in the CALL, not the analytical implementation of the call.

The "solution" will be in the EXECUTION.

Every play can work if the players on the field EXECUTE to their best ability. The rules favor the offense so much that executing with enthusiasm and talent will carry the day.

Sometimes under AR the defense knew what he wanted to do, from the snap count to the routes he favored to the players he tunnel-visioned. AR "out-thinking" the DC and defense on the field was HIS idea of the only thing that could bring success.

There are many paths up the mountain and MLF needs to vary his approach to the summit to attain it.

Im thinking about making the trek to Green Bay for that draft weekend. Not gonna attend the draft, but Id love to watch it from the local bars with all the other cheeseheads lol.

"Im going to be very hard on MLF this year, and rightfully so"

Who was it who said that NFL stands for "not-for-long"? Teams have very short memories, especially if they start to lose.

I think 2020 was the best year for the LaFleur offense and the last real missed-chance at a SB. I think it's clear that there will be a cumulative exhale across the organization, really starting this week with OTAs. Whether it turns into better offense and better team play in general remains to be seen.

Excellent post! (But you wanted to say “Prima Donna” (or “First Lady of the opera/theatre), a spoiled superstar.

REBELGB!!!! Hells to the YES!!!!

I feel exactly the same. ACR spelled "Career Cock Block" for MLF. Talk about a prickly situation to be stuck with!

What were LaFleur's options? His QB1 he dreamt of coaching was having none of it. One compromise after another compounded upon more, more and more. Murphy stuck LaFleur with him for additional years well after we all witnessed two different offenses in GB. One our HC intended, and the one AR ran.

MLF had zero options but to wait it out. To stall. You could see his heart left him at times trying to coach AR. You know what he did, though? MLF always kept his composure on the sidelines and in public.

Unlike AR.

Personally, I think this entire Packers team saw it the way kids see way more than we might think. They know, and I believe we will see them all respond as if a collective weight of obstruction has been lifted off their shoulders.

Anyone who wants to argue this, all we have to do is point to AR throwing away our playoff hopes in our last appearance to a triple covered Davante Adams EXCLUSIVELY, for an entire 3Q.

We hadn't witnessed our Packers completely co-opted like that since Favre airmailed multiple playoff hopes away...

Ahman Green... Aaron Jones... AJ Dillon... Jamaal Williams... I'll bet they've all got some interesting collective takes. I had the opportunity to speak with Ahman about this very thing when he visited my studio about 8 or 9 years ago.

I don’t recall reading this much over exaggerated excitement about the first day of OTAs (open to the media). That people are this excited by guys in shorts catching passes in non contact etcetera is as ridiculous as it is revealing.

The level of excitement heading into this season is palpable, and, it seems to me, not because of some dreamy belief that we are world beaters in 2023, but because of the possibilities of individuals and this roster moving forward. That’s really good to see and sends a very strong message for me.

Isnt it refreshing?

Absolutely, PewAuKeeFan! Can't be understated, really. This could prove to be a very, very special season with all the talent added to all 3 phases of the game for our Packers.