With Davante Adams onwards to Sin City, and Aaron Rodgers vying for another Lombardi. There’s a player that the Green Bay Packers need to target right now.
Not only is Aaron Rodgers’ favorite target, Davante Adams, reuniting with his former Fresno State quarterback, Derek Carr, in Las Vegas. But the Green Bay Packers also missed out on the Tyreek Hill sweepstakes and have yet to sign a single receiver in free agency. So, there’s a fairly substantial hole that still needs to be filled right smack dab in the middle of Green Bay’s offense.
While they could just move forward with Randall Cobb, Allen Lazard, and Amari Rodgers, it would be wise for Green Bay to invest what assets they have left in a true number one receiver. They do still have enough money to bring in a talented free agent like Julio Jones, Jarvis Landry, or Odell Beckham Jr., and could easily use a first-round pick on an elite receiver as well.
But the odds of anyone in the draft or free agency producing even half of what the Packers are losing in Davante Adams feels extremely unlikely. This leaves Green Bay with one option; trade away for a top-tier receiver.
Obviously, there are a number of talented pass-catchers scattered across the NFL, but who actually has the best chance of being traded away from their respective franchise? And who can the Green Bay Packers actually afford to bring in?
It’s important to note that one of the driving forces behind the Davante Adams trade was his dissatisfaction with being franchise-tagged, and the team’s unwillingness to sign him to a long-term deal. With Adams and the Packers reportedly being ‘nowhere close’ in terms of negotiations.
So, it feels pretty safe to assume that the only trade the Packers would be able to pull off is for a player that is either currently still on their rookie contract or is worth less than Davante Adams. And while superstar wideouts like Michael Thomas, Keenan Allen, and Tyler Lockett are all viable trade targets, and are currently under contract for less than Davante Adams.
There’s another name that Green Bay could trade for, and wouldn’t have to pay right away. Somebody that is still on their rookie contract, and could break out in 2022 as the best receiver in football, especially with a future Hall of Famer like Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback.
That player is DK Metcalf.
How would the trade go down before the NFL Draft?
Replacing Adams’ 123 receptions, 1,553 receiving yards, and 11 touchdowns last season is certainly not going to be easy. But with the most talented quarterback in the NFL under center, Metcalf is probably the best option to replace Adams and has serious potential to put together a truly legendary season in Green Bay.
In his first three years with Seattle, Metcalf accumulated 3,170 yards and 29 touchdowns on 216 career receptions, averaging nearly 15 yards per catch. He also has yet to miss a single game, and nearly put up three back-to-back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons with and without Russell Wilson as his quarterback.
In fact, despite Wilson missing a large chunk of the 2021 regular season, Metcalf still managed to finish 4th in the NFL in touchdowns (13) and ranked in the top 10 in red-zone targets (19). He was also 5th in the league in % of team targets, making up for over 27% of the Seahawks’ offense, and finished the year with just 4 drops on the season. Tied with Davante Adams.
That being said, for the Green Bay Packers to acquire one of the top up-and-coming young receivers in the game, they are also going to have to give up quite a bit. They would probably need to part ways with one of their two first-round draft picks (likely No. 28), as well as one of their fourth-round picks in this year’s draft. Potentially even one or two of their depth players as well.
Although, if it means acquiring one of the deadliest deep threats and most physical wide receivers in football, it could be a price worth paying. The mere thought of pairing up Aaron Rodgers with a 6’4″, 230-pound receiver with a 40″ vertical would have any NFL GM licking their chops.
And while this may seem like an unlikely scenario, a similar situation took place in 2017 with the eventual Super Bowl Champion, New England Patriots.
New England went out and traded for Brandin Cooks when he was in the final year of his rookie contract with New Orleans. Playing just one season with the Pats, Cooks tallied over 1,000 receiving yards and played a pivotal role in the Pats winning the Super Bowl that year. Then he was traded away the following offseason to the Rams for a first-round draft pick.
So, Green Bay might be able to pull off the same sort of deal, especially with Rodgers still playing the best football of his career, and the team seemingly one or two pieces away from winning a Super Bowl.
It might only be a one-year rental, but it could be more than enough to get the Green Bay Packers over the hump and hoisting another Lombardi. They can also try again with the franchise tag next year on Metcalf, who likely wouldn’t garner as much attention as Adams to justify a max deal anyway.