Don’t expect Packers to trade for a wide receiver before deadline
While Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur will spend the bye week trying to figure out how to fix the offense, one ESPN analyst suggests that the team trade for a veteran wide receiver.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell proposed 15 hypothetical trades on Tuesday, and one of them involved the Packers swapping receivers and draft picks with a struggling Denver Broncos team.
Here is the proposed trade.
Green Bay receives:
WR Jerry Jeudy, 2024 fourth-round pick
Denver receives:
WR Romeo Doubs, 2024 second-round pick
Multiple reports have suggested that the Broncos might be sellers leading up to the NFL trade deadline on Oct. 31. Last week, they traded away defensive end Randy Gregory and could do the same with defensive end Frank Clark. Jeudy has also been included in trade discussions, according to NFL insider Matt Lombardo of FanBuzz.
However, this trade doesn’t make a ton of sense for the Packers. With one more game under his belt, Doubs is out-producing Jeudy in 2023 and is starting to develop into a solid receiver in his second season. He is currently leading the team in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Green Bay would also have to give up a second-round pick, while Denver is sending back a Day 3 pick and a former first-round pick who is having a quiet start to his fourth season. The Packers would also have to take on Jeudy’s contract, which includes guarantees just shy of $13 million in 2024 as part of his fifth-year option.
Any Packers fans hoping that the team will trade for a pass catcher should temper their expectations. In the past, Green Bay has been connected to multiple receivers ahead of the trade deadline but has yet to follow through. Right now, there’s nothing to suggest that this year will be any different.
When asked about adding a veteran wide receiver before training camp, general manager Brian Gutekunst said they were excited about their group of young pass catchers and suggested they didn’t want anyone getting in the way of their development.
Through the first five weeks of the season, the wide receivers and tight ends have experienced plenty of growing pains, but that was to be expected given their inexperience.
“We all knew there were going to be some growing pains along the way, but I haven’t lost faith or belief in the group that we have,” LaFleur said Tuesday. “I just think we can do things better. I think we can coach better, and I think we can execute better.”
The Packers (2-3) will head into the break needing to find ways to make their passing game more consistent. However, the answers will likely have to come internally rather than turning to a player on another team.
