The Green Bay Packers have a long road ahead to repairing their wide receiver corps after trading Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders and watching Marquez Valdes-Scantling walk in free agency.
They took one small step forward by signing Sammy Watkins to a one-year deal. While the former first-round pick is highly unlikely to fill the void Adams left behind in Lambeau, the Packers believe there’s still some untapped upside.
When speaking to reporters during Monday’s pre-draft press conference (h/t Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk), Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said he thinks Watkins has more in the tank.
“I think, obviously, Sammy’s had a pretty good history in this league,” Gutekunst said. “He’s got some juice still left in him, I think. Adding a veteran receiver was just kind of something we wanted to do.”
Gutekunst delivered a diplomatic response when asked if he’s still looking for more receiving help.
“I think across the board at every position, I think we’re kind of looking at everything right now,” Gutekunst said. “So I think this draft’s going to be really important and then we’ll see where we sit after the draft and we’ll move forward at that point.”
Aaron Rodgers also appeared to give Watkins his seal of approval. According to Pat McAfee, the quarterback talked to Watkins and is “excited about the signing.”
Watkins has tallied just nine touchdowns over the past four seasons since finding the end zone eight times for the Los Angeles Rams in 2017. After three unspectacular seasons in Kansas City, he settled for 394 yards on 27 catches with the Baltimore Ravens last year.
It’s nevertheless a low-risk, high-reward swing for Green Bay, as Watkins will make $1.85 million before accounting for incentives that could bump his total earnings to $4 million. Watkins could help, but Rodgers will still need more help to maintain his MVP production without Adams.
The post Packers GM Makes Opinion On Sammy Watkins Very Clear appeared first on The Spun.
Leave a Reply