Key Packer Players Missing Practice - Panic Meter:

By: Bryant Barstad

David Bakhtiari - Medium-High: First, I believe this injury needs to be put in perspective as there are fans calling for him to be cut or traded. Fans and media get hung up on the fact that Bakhtiari has been out for 570+ days, but in reality, he missed essentially a season with a torn ACL. He originally tore his ACL on December 31st 2020, and attempted a comeback less than a year later on December 15th 2021, which is a relatively normal time-frame for players his size. Unfortunately, the knee didn’t respond as Bakhtiari and the medical staff had hoped and he had to be shut down for the playoffs; the time missed seems longer because he has missed two playoff runs.

The reason I have listed Bakhtiari as Medium-High is because he had to have a third procedure on the knee, and now his timetable for return is up in the air once again. (Brian Gutekunst and Matt LaFleur declined to put a set date on his return). Each week he misses, this meter will move higher and higher. However, there has been some encouraging news this week as the organization is “cautiously optimistic” and Bakhtiari himself said, “What I can say is I do feel really good. I really like – I feel normal. My knee feels normal, and that's the biggest plus. Now it's just getting that normal feeling again when I play football. So, that's what it is: the load, stress, strength, but we're not really in an ACL issue. That's actually been a long time ago that we put that chapter to bed. It's just there's other issues.” It’s possible at this point the Packers are holding him out to allow him to weight train and rehab his knee behind the scenes, and although it would be nice for him to see some action in preseason after missing so much time, it isn’t necessary as David has plenty of experience. Ultimately, if David was to return week even late in the season, say between weeks 8-10 and be 90-95% for the playoff push, the Packers would take that in a heartbeat as he is an all-pro player that can significantly improve Green Bay’s chances to reach the Superbowl. Not to mention newly promoted Offensive Coordinator Adam Stenavich has done a fantastic job developing depth on the Green Bay Packers offensive line.

Mason Crosby - Medium: The panic meter for Crosby is a medium simply because of the atrocious special teams performance last year. Crosby had a knee scope on his kicking leg, which isn’t ideal for a soon to be 38-year-old kicker, but isn’t the main concern for panic as Crosby said that he will be ready by the start of the season at the very latest. The panic lies in the fact that the entire kicking operation was heavily blamed last year for the kicking issues, not just Crosby (outside of the weird Bengals game), and now Crosby will likely miss the opportunity to fully get comfortable with the new long-snapper and holder before the start of the season. With two of the first three games being at Minnesota and at Tampa Bay, points will come at a premium and it’s possible those games will come down to a field goal; hopefully all three members of the operation are fully comfortable and ready to execute if called upon.

Elgton Jenkins - Medium: It sounds like Jenkins recovery from his knee injury is going extremely well. In fact, Packers GM Brian Gutekunst gave a positive update when he said, “Elgton is doing great. We’re excited. We’d like to get him back out there. Hopefully that will be soon. He’s certainly ahead of schedule.” It’s great that Jenkins is ahead of schedule, but with his injury occurring in November of 2021, it’s likely he will miss at least the first four to six games of the season. With Bakhtiari also being out, and the uncertainty of his return, it's possible Green Bay will be without their top two lineman for the start of the season against some really good pass-rushing defenses. However, the long-term outlook for Jenkins is very positive. Also imagine say week 8 both Bakhtiari and Jenkins return and a formidable Packers team adds two All-Pro offensive linemen to their team.

Sammy Watkins - Medium-Low: The initial injury concern for Watkins is low as it sounds like he will return relatively quickly, but I listed Sammy as medium-low on the panic meter due to his injury history. Watkins hasn’t played a full season since his rookie year, so the fact that he started the season injured is somewhat worrisome. Although Watkins may not be expected to come in and put up 1,000 yards, it sounds like the coaching staff believes he will be an important part of the offense, so the sooner he returns to practice and can get comfortable with Aaron and learn the offense, the better.

UPDATE: The day of writing this, Watkins is coming off the non-football injury list and practicing. His long-term health will remain something to keep an eye on, but this is a perfect example of why panicking too early in training camp isn’t worth the energy.

Christian Watson - Low: The main concern for Watson isn’t his injury, as it sounds like he could have played through it, but more so the fact that he is missing valuable time as a rookie and adds a dynamic to the Packers offense that no one else can. With the loss of Adams and MVS, the Packers group of wide receivers lack a true explosive option. Watkins had that ability, but is older now and Allen Lazard is more of a possession receiver (still very valuable, just not a big Yards After Catch threat). With Watson’s size and speed (6’4'' and 4.36/40-yard dash), he has the most ability among the group to take the top off the defense, or take a drag route or jet sweep to the house, so getting him on the field as soon possible will open up the offense and give the Packers a true home run threat. During his media availability on Thursday Matt LaFleur did praise Watson, saying he was impressed with how quickly he got up to speed on his offensive responsibilities.

Robert Tonyan - Low:  There has been confidence that Tonyan will return from his injury by the start of the season since early March when the Packers re-signed Tonyan, with Brian Gutekunst saying Tonyan is ahead of schedule on his recovery. Additionally, in late June, Tonyan attended “Tight End U'' and ran on the sidelines during drills. Tonyan’s role seemed to diminish for the first half of last year before his injury compared to his breakout 2020 campaign, but if Tonyan can return by the start of the season, it will give Rodgers another trusted pass catcher and big target to turn to in pivotal situations like third down and in the red zone.

Overall Panic Meter - Medium-Low: A few days into training camp, the panic level should be medium-low. Around the league, teams like Tampa Bay have already lost key players along the offensive line while Green Bay is just waiting for them to return. There is some panic along the offensive line because it’s possible Green Bay will be looking to use the run game more this year, and when you are missing two all-pro level players, there is bound to be a drop off in production. Fortunately, Green Bay has a great front office and they have continued to pump draft picks into the offensive line, so the team should be able to stay afloat waiting for Jenkins and Bakhtiari’s return. As for the pass catchers on this list, it sounds as though all of them will return relatively quickly. It’s never great for a rookie to start behind the curve, but Watson had some time with Rodgers during OTAs and Head Coach Matt LaFleur will undoubtedly have a plan to get him involved upon his return. 

What can Eric Stokes do to build on his successful rookie season?

    A lot of fans expected the Packers to select a wide receiver early in the 2021 draft, but like every other year since 2002, they deviated from that fan expectation and selected a cornerback, Eric Stokes, out of Georgia. A familiar feeling of early Green Bay draft picks over the years, this player wasn’t on a lot of fans or the media's radar as a pick that was possible. In spite of not being on the radar, he has really shown that he belongs in the league.     

    Due to an injury to Jaire Alexander, Stokes was thrust into action early as a starting cornerback. Along with a blazing speed of 4.24 40 yard dash, Stokes excelled in coverage. Here are some of Stokes' key stats: 16 games, (14 starts), 645 coverage snaps, 48 tackles, 49 receptions allowed on 96 targets for 568 yards, 14 passes defensed, 4 touchdowns allowed, 78.7 passer rating when targeted and one interception.

    After having a tough outing vs Justin Jefferson in week 11, he had an unreal end to the season. Stokes finished the season only allowing 19 catches for 157 yards on 41 targets. Looking at the above stats, this is some solid cornerback play, especially for a rookie. The Packers managed to grab him at the end of the first round, but he performed like one of the best defenders of the 2021 class.

    Despite his rookie success there is some room for improvement in his game. One thing of note is, Stokes needs to trust his instincts and technique more than relying on his speed to make plays. We saw in a couple games, namely at Arizona and vs. Minnesota, there were times he lost track of the ball. Stokes also tallied four dropped interceptions. I believe with more reps and coaching from Jerry Gray, he can really take that next step to leveling up and toward becoming an elite defender in this league.    

    So, what can we look forward to in his sophomore campaign? In the 2022 season, Stokes will be a critical piece in a very loaded starting secondary. I suspect Joe Barry will move him, Alexander, and Rasul Douglas around and put them against receivers that fit their skill set. With the right coaching and improvement, we could see a potential Pro Bowl selection.

What does having Robert Tonyan back week 1 mean for the Packers?

By: Jake Nett

Reports came out recently that Robert Tonyan is looking to return to the Green Bay Packers by week 1. Tonyan had his 2021 season cut short when he tore his ACL week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals, really horrible timing because it happened in the middle of his best game of the season. It was a huge blow to the Packers offense, who were already without Davante Adams, Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling in that game. No, he wasn't setting the league on fire with his stats 18 receptions/204 yards/2 TDs but he was showing promise that he was heating up back to his 2020 production. Also, little did we know as Packers fans that we would be without two of the three previously mentioned wide receivers (Adams, MVS) for the 2022 season, we might've just gotten a glimpse of what is to come from Tonyan in this offense.  

2020 was when Tonyan showed the NFL that he was a force to be reckoned with, he finished with 52 receptions, 586 yards and 11 touchdowns. His 11 touchdowns ranked tied for 5th most in the entire league, first among all tight ends, impressive considering teammate Davante Adams led the league with 18.This was also the first of back to back MVP seasons for quarterback Aaron Rodgers. 

Tonyan became a free agent after the 2021 season but is betting on himself and also chose to stay with elite quarterback play. He is sticking around in Green Bay for one more season, signing a one year $3.75 million dollar deal, the deal can be worth up to $5.5 million, the extra $1.75 million can be earned through playing time incentives and making the pro bowl. That's really a great deal for a guy with Tonyan’s skill set. Watching his highlight video from 2020 you can visually see how he makes an impact on the field, commanding the middle, in the red zone, and coming off of play action. He routinely beats linebackers, corners and safeties in man coverage and has a knack for finding the soft spot against zone defense. 

 On top of his pass catching ability Tonyan has developed into one of the best run blocking tight ends in football. Against the 49ers in 2021 he pancaked Nick Bosa three times! With his blocking ability really being underrated he fits perfectly into Matt LaFleur’s offense which is predicated on ball control and play action passing. It also helps when you have some of the best hands in the league, in 2020 tonyan posted a 88.1 percent catch rate, 0.0 drop percentage and 148.3 passer rating when targeted, all ranked number one for tight ends.

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As the above points have demonstrated Robert Tonyan has proved to be a great playmaker for Aaron Rodgers and this Packers offense. He checks every box that you want in a tight end in today's NFL. For all of us cheeseheads, let's hope with all the targets left behind from Davante Adams that Tonyan can return to 2020 form. Having him back for week one would be a huge boost to a Green Bay Packers offense that is full of question marks for pass catchers heading into 2022.