Packer Receivers: The Fearsome Five?

[mnkcarp]

Cobb is probably the better Reed comparison, just from the eye test. Not sure what the measurables say.

[Yoop]

I miss the old slant fade. That was mine and @NCF’s go-to red zone play when we were slinging it in the backyard

and who ran that slant/fade better then Antonio Freeman, to me Wicks reminds me of Freeman, both are faster then there profile suggest, both can run precise routes, there about the same size, always felt Freeman was a under rated receiver

[MY_TAKE]

I miss the old slant fade. That was mine and @NCF’s go-to red zone play when we were slinging it in the backyard

and who ran that slant/fade better then Antonio Freeman, to me Wicks reminds me of Freeman, both are faster then there profile suggest, both can run precise routes, there about the same size, always felt Freeman was a under rated receiver

Jerry Rice had a crap 40 time and rarely did I ever see him get caught from behind in his prime. I guess my point is that you might not be great at 0 to 40 yards but really fast 30 to 70 yards.

[NCF]

Side note: I was waiting for somebody to suggest one of these guys compared well to Sterling Sharpe. I have my daggers sharpened and ready to pounce should one of you be fool enough to utter the words. Sharpe is, by good measure, the best WR the Packers have had in the SB era. Fair warning!

Best WR in Packers history, IMO.

[NCF]

I miss the old slant fade. That was mine and @NCF’s go-to red zone play when we were slinging it in the backyard

F-a-D.

[MY_TAKE]

Side note: I was waiting for somebody to suggest one of these guys compared well to Sterling Sharpe. I have my daggers sharpened and ready to pounce should one of you be fool enough to utter the words. Sharpe is, by good measure, the best WR the Packers have had in the SB era. Fair warning!

He was the strongest and I always heard a high football IQ. He could run over you like Deeboo Samuel. I remember him having good hands. HIs brother Shannon is just the bigger version that translated to tight end.

[APB]

Side note: I was waiting for somebody to suggest one of these guys compared well to Sterling Sharpe. I have my daggers sharpened and ready to pounce should one of you be fool enough to utter the words. Sharpe is, by good measure, the best WR the Packers have had in the SB era. Fair warning!

Yeah I'm too young for Sterling but my god the highlights I watch of that guy is insane.

He was as tough and talented a WR as Favre was a QB. That's surely part of why they shared so much success.

[texas]

I didn't watch Sharpe but I have heard that Davante has a slight edge.

As for the Fearsome Five, are we just giving up on Malik Heath? Whatever name we come up with needs to use the number 6, not 5. Heath is just as interchangeable as the other 5.

[Pckfn23]

I didn't watch Sharpe but I have heard that Davante has a slight edge.

As for the Fearsome Five, are we just giving up on Malik Heath? Whatever name we come up with needs to use the number 6, not 5. Heath is just as interchangeable as the other 5.

He was a healthy scratch last week, so kinda the odd man out right now.

[texas]

I didn't watch Sharpe but I have heard that Davante has a slight edge.

As for the Fearsome Five, are we just giving up on Malik Heath? Whatever name we come up with needs to use the number 6, not 5. Heath is just as interchangeable as the other 5.

He was a healthy scratch last week, so kinda the odd man out right now.

I suppose with as many guys as we've got, one or more of them will always be inactive one way or another

[Scott4Pack]

I may be showing my age here but...

I don't really see any Jordy in Watson, like at all. Jordy was so smooth and had that deceptive speed that caught many defenders off guard. Watson isn't near as deceptive or shifty and certainly doesn't have Jordy's hands. He's got speed and is a playmaker, sure, but it's not in the ways Jordy did it.

If I were to make a comparison to a former player, I think I'd go James Lofton.

Lofton was a long strider with burner speed but was also shifty enough to make plays over the middle or on the boundary. James was a threat to score from anywhere on the field and just his presence made the rest of the offense better.

Christian Watson = James Lofton with a little health luck and a little more consistency. And that's saying something.

Jordy was not “sneaky fast.” He was FAST.

And Jordy OWNED the sidelines like few WRs ever do. He mastered the back-shoulder catches with Rodgers. And he made dozens of catches reaching over the sideline where no defender could reach it.

[RingoCStarrQB]

Side note: I was waiting for somebody to suggest one of these guys compared well to Sterling Sharpe. I have my daggers sharpened and ready to pounce should one of you be fool enough to utter the words. Sharpe is, by good measure, the best WR the Packers have had in the SB era. Fair warning!

In the Super Bowl era, yes Sterling Sharpe is the best. There's at least a half dozen close and non-close 2nds including Dowler, Dale, Lofton. Brooks, Driver, Adam's, Jordy and Jennings. Packers Hall of Fame is a good place to start for finding these guys.

[MY_TAKE]

Jordy was not “sneaky fast.” He was FAST.

Yes. One of them long strider guys who may not have had a blazing 40 time but generally would never get caught by almost any DB once past him. Lost a step after injury unfortunately .

[texas]

I may be showing my age here but...

I don't really see any Jordy in Watson, like at all. Jordy was so smooth and had that deceptive speed that caught many defenders off guard. Watson isn't near as deceptive or shifty and certainly doesn't have Jordy's hands. He's got speed and is a playmaker, sure, but it's not in the ways Jordy did it.

If I were to make a comparison to a former player, I think I'd go James Lofton.

Lofton was a long strider with burner speed but was also shifty enough to make plays over the middle or on the boundary. James was a threat to score from anywhere on the field and just his presence made the rest of the offense better.

Christian Watson = James Lofton with a little health luck and a little more consistency. And that's saying something.

Jordy was not “sneaky fast.” He was FAST.

And Jordy OWNED the sidelines like few WRs ever do. He mastered the back-shoulder catches with Rodgers. And he made dozens of catches reaching over the sideline where no defender could reach it.

When the TV announcers say "deceptive speed", they usually mean white lol. And then the label just sticks. Pretty sure opposing defenses weren't caught off guard by Jordy's speed

[williewasgreat]

Side note: I was waiting for somebody to suggest one of these guys compared well to Sterling Sharpe. I have my daggers sharpened and ready to pounce should one of you be fool enough to utter the words. Sharpe is, by good measure, the best WR the Packers have had in the SB era. Fair warning!

In the Super Bowl era, yes Sterling Sharpe is the best. There's at least a half dozen close and non-close 2nds including Dowler, Dale, Lofton. Brooks, Driver, Adam's, Jordy and Jennings. Packers Hall of Fame is a good place to start for finding these guys.

Sharpe and Lofton were really great receivers, probably the best in my years watching the Packers (better than Adams in my mind). But we can't forget Don Hutson. He was so far superior than any other receivers of his era.

[go pak go]

The one piece about Jordy Nelson and his "sneaky fast" is yes...he was white and fast lol

But another thing about Jordy was he was fast top end speed but not necessarily a fast accelerator. He took time to get going. Nelson wasn't a bad option for a kick returner but he was a bad option for punt returner for that very reason. And thus the "sneaky fast" did have some merit.

[Yoop]

The one piece about Jordy Nelson and his "sneaky fast" is yes...he was white and fast lol

But another thing about Jordy was he was fast top end speed but not necessarily a fast accelerator. He took time to get going. Nelson wasn't a bad option for a kick returner but he was a bad option for punt returner for that very reason. And thus the "sneaky fast" did have some merit.

don't ever remember Jordy being used on a end around, I agree Jordy needed space to build his speed, your right, I agree with others, Watson isn't a good comparison

I also remember those stupid white speed jokes, and still tire of them just as much now.

[YoHoChecko]

Sterling Sharpe was in the conversation as the best WR in the NFL while playing at the same time as prime Jerry Rice. Sharpe is the best Packers receiver. He had a chance to be one of the 2 or 3 best NFL WRs of all time if he had stayed healthy. It was that good.

He broke an 8-year old record for receptions in a season two years in a row before the run-and-shoot took off and guys started putting up stupid numbers on the regs (iirc the record got broken by like 8 guys in 1994-6 alone)


Anyway, I like out guys. I'm not sure there are great comps for them, nor do I really understand the desire to find them. I like comps for draft prospects because you're trying to figure out who in the NFL looks and plays like this ato measure if they can succeed. But for NFL players? Like, Watson is a blend of MVS and Lazard. he's both of them, combined. That's not a player comp, because there are two. I don't know if we've ever had anyone remotely like him. That's why he's rare. But it also doesn't mean he's better; he just has an extremely rare set of traits and tools.

Reed is pretty much like a lot of guys; it's not hard to find a comp, which also makes comps not particularly useful. Cobb but a little faster. Deebo Samuel but a little thinner. Steve Smith. He's a tough speed slot. They're incredibly useful and fun to watch and also not altogether uncommon.

Doubs and Wicks don't really remind me of anyone. They're guys who are steady and good. Their traits and measurables don't match up with the play style. When I see Wicks, I get that some people see Davante, but I also see a little Driver ion his wiggle. But he's bigger and slower than both of those guys. So


My main takeaway of this group is that I REALLY like them all. I like them cumulatively. They offer a variety of skillsets and body types and allow us to create matchup problems for different guys in different weeks. And the relatively even playing field of all these guys being young and developing and the same level of no-name with star potential.... there's no forcing anything.

Which is why I made this post. There's some chatter about Davante returning after he posted a video about how nice Love looks. I loved Davante. I do. not. want.

When Love started his first game in 2021 against the Chiefs, Love targeted Adams 14 times. He was forcing the ball to his elite #1 the same way Rodgers did, but without the supernatural mental connection. Adams, while not a diva, has talked openly, especially in Vegas, about wanting more targets. He's an alpha and he deserves all the targets, But our offense is clicking on ALL cylinders without that. I don't want it. I couldn't want anything less.

[MY_TAKE]

Sterling Sharpe was in the conversation as the best WR in the NFL while playing at the same time as prime Jerry Rice. Sharpe is the best Packers receiver. He had a chance to be one of the 2 or 3 best NFL WRs of all time if he had stayed healthy. It was that good.

He broke an 8-year old record for receptions in a season two years in a row before the run-and-shoot took off and guys started putting up stupid numbers on the regs (iirc the record got broken by like 8 guys in 1994-6 alone)


Anyway, I like out guys. I'm not sure there are great comps for them, nor do I really understand the desire to find them. I like comps for draft prospects because you're trying to figure out who in the NFL looks and plays like this ato measure if they can succeed. But for NFL players? Like, Watson is a blend of MVS and Lazard. he's both of them, combined. That's not a player comp, because there are two. I don't know if we've ever had anyone remotely like him. That's why he's rare. But it also doesn't mean he's better; he just has an extremely rare set of traits and tools.

Reed is pretty much like a lot of guys; it's not hard to find a comp, which also makes comps not particularly useful. Cobb but a little faster. Deebo Samuel but a little thinner. Steve Smith. He's a tough speed slot. They're incredibly useful and fun to watch and also not altogether uncommon.

Doubs and Wicks don't really remind me of anyone. They're guys who are steady and good. Their traits and measurables don't match up with the play style. When I see Wicks, I get that some people see Davante, but I also see a little Driver ion his wiggle. But he's bigger and slower than both of those guys. So


My main takeaway of this group is that I REALLY like them all. I like them cumulatively. They offer a variety of skillsets and body types and allow us to create matchup problems for different guys in different weeks. And the relatively even playing field of all these guys being young and developing and the same level of no-name with star potential.... there's no forcing anything.

Which is why I made this post. There's some chatter about Davante returning after he posted a video about how nice Love looks. I loved Davante. I do. not. want.

When Love started his first game in 2021 against the Chiefs, Love targeted Adams 14 times. He was forcing the ball to his elite #1 the same way Rodgers did, but without the supernatural mental connection. Adams, while not a diva, has talked openly, especially in Vegas, about wanting more targets. He's an alpha and he deserves all the targets, But our offense is clicking on ALL cylinders without that. I don't want it. I couldn't want anything less.

Good stuff

When I first posted this topic, my main reason in short was we have a bunch of guys that are pretty good but not a "alpha " as you stated. Any given game day it could be a different guy having a big day. My thought also was that was a good thing.

Interesting that the topic went to some comparisons which is cool. I love hearing other people's takes. I remember Sterling well too. Haven't thought about him much for awhile. I still remember how excited I was when they made him their first round pick. It took a couple years for him to take off, but when he did he was many times the best player on the field for either team.

[Yoop]

When Love started his first game in 2021 against the Chiefs, Love targeted Adams 14 times. He was forcing the ball to his elite #1 the same way Rodgers did, but without the supernatural mental connection. Adams, while not a diva, has talked openly, especially in Vegas, about wanting more targets. He's an alpha and he deserves all the targets, But our offense is clicking on ALL cylinders without that. I don't want it. I couldn't want anything less.

I never did, maybe I didn't explain myself well enough, and I like Tae as much as anyone here, but the situation we have now is what I prefer over Tae, Lazard, MVS a old Cobb etc. it's a numbers thing, more quality skill position players makes it doubly hard for defenses to cover them all.