WR Notes: Packers, Brown, Agholor, Bucs

The Packers have had a more eventful offseason than nearly every other team in the league. One of the results of their moves is a decided lack of proven commodities at the receiver position, something which sparked quarterback Aaron Rodgers‘ recent comments about the improvement which needs to be made amongst some of their new pass-catchers.

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“The young guys, especially young receivers, we’ve got to be way more consistent,” the reigning MVP said, via PFF’s Doug Kyed. “A lot of drops, a lot of bad route decisions, running the wrong route. We’ve got to get better in that area.”

Per Kyed, Rodgers has stated they he wants Allen Lazard to operate as the “top option,” something which doesn’t come as much of a surprise given his NFL resume. Rodgers’ preference would be for Lazard to be joined as a starter by veterans Sammy Watkins and Randall Cobb – a trio which would include, by far, the most experience available. However, rookies Romeo Doubs (who has seen first-team reps) and Christian Watson (whom the Packers traded up to select in the second round) could unseat Watkins and/or Cobb, leaving the team with more upside – but less certainty – at an important position as they look to contend for a Super Bowl.

Here are some more WR notes from around the league:

• Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was asked about the possibility of signing Antonio Brown yesterday. The former All-Pro hasn’t generated much interest since his colorful exit from the Buccaneers in the middle of a game last season, but would add experience to a banged-up Dallas receiver room. Instead, Jones replied “we want to give these young guys a real chance to make this team” (Twitter link via Jon Machota of The Athletic). A number of inexperienced wideouts are competing for depth spots behind the likes of CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup, James Washington and Jalen Tolbert, and will be allowed to continue doing so for the remainder of the preseason.
• Kyed tweets that one of the surprise omissions from the Patriots’ depth chart, according to some, could be Nelson Agholor. However, he notes that cutting him would not be financially viable (doing so would incur a dead cap charge of $10MM), and adds that teams which could be interested in trading for him are not willing to do so at his current salary of $9MM. More to the point, the team’s new offense could allow the 29-year-old to enjoy a bounceback season from the underwhelming 37-473-3 statline he produced last year.
• The Buccaneers are set at the top of their depth chart, but also have a number of intriguing wideouts competing for rotational roles. As a result, veterans like Scotty Miller, Cyril Grayson and Breshad Perriman could find themselves on the roster bubble. Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times notes that a trio of UDFAs – Jerreth Sterns, Deven Thompkins and Kaylon Geiger – have stood out in camp so far, to the point where head coach Todd Bowles said “those guys are making a case” for spots on the 53-man roster. Several noteworthy cuts will be made in Tampa by the end of August, but who will be among them remains very much up in the air.