Getty Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers celebrates a touchdown during the third quarter in the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 11, 2022 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
The Green Bay Packers struggled mightily to move the ball in their season-opening loss to the Minnesota Vikings Sunday. One solution to that problem is to add more experience to the wide receiver room.
Free agent options are limited. Three-time Pro Bowler Odell Beckham Jr. is available and makes a ton of sense in Green Bay. But even if the Packers bring him in, it could be as late as Week 12 before he can get on the field. In the more immediate future, former Buffalo Bills starter Cole Beasley is arguably the Packers’ best option.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers appeared on the Pat McAfee Show Tuesday, September 13, and explained what his team is missing at the wideout position, despite adding dynamic rookie talents Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs via the most recent NFL Draft.
“Drops are gonna happen.. it’s the mental mistakes that we’re gonna have to clean up” ~@AaronRodgers12
“We need guys who are able to react in real time and to make adjustments on the fly. And some of that is experience, for sure, and some of that is just in the preparation,” Rodgers said. “It’s not just understanding what you need to do, but why you need to do what you’re doing and then what to expect.”
Beasley Has Been Staple of Successful Offenses With Bills, Cowboys
GettyFormer Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley celebrates a catch during an NFL game.
There is no world in which Beasley joins the Packers’ roster and instantly sets the league on fire. He’s simply never been that type of player. But the 10-year veteran is nothing if not durable and reliable, which he proved time and again as fixtures on dynamic offenses with the Bills and, before that, the Dallas Cowboys.
Nick Shook of NFL Network broke down Beasley’s tenure in Buffalo after the organization decided to release the 32-year-old pass catcher in March.
“Even as teammates came and went, Beasley remained incredibly consistent, appearing in at least 15 games in each of his three seasons with the Bills,” Shook wrote. “His age hasn’t been much of a deterrent. The only drop in production came in the touchdown department.”
Beasley was targeted more than 100 times per season in Buffalo and caught 82 passes each of the last two years, per Pro Football Reference. He amassed 1,660 receiving yards and five touchdown grabs over those two campaigns.
Beasley recently took to Twitter, where he declared he still has a lot to offer a contender.
“I’m not retiring,” Beasley tweeted on August 16.
“I still feel like I got a lot left in the tank man,” Beasley added later the same day.
Rodgers Forgiving of Packers’ Mistakes, Expect Receivers to Improve
GettyGreen Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson nearly caught a 75-yard touchdown on the team’s first offensive play against the Vikings.
Rodgers did the leader/veteran thing during Sunday’s postgame press conference and his appearance on McAfee’s show two days later, attempting to take some of the heat off of his rookie wideouts for their struggles against the Vikings by referencing errors across the board.
Mainly, the QB addressed the pass that Watson dropped on the offense’s first play from scrimmage, which would have been an easy touchdown of 75 yards had the receiver been able to secure a pass that hit him directly in the hands.
“Drops are going to happen,” Rodgers said. “They suck more when it would’ve been a walk-in touchdown, but the ones that are most frustrating are the mental mistakes, and we made way too many of those on Sunday, and that’s what we got to clean up.”