Packers draft grade

[GBP4EVER]

maybe. but i think it's more likely the trevor davis experiment is over. janis has value on special teams. i think davis is gone, and they are hoping that one of these guys will stand out enough to replace him:

• dupre
• yancey
• mcaffrey

Janis had to many errors on ST last year and after 3 years has still not moved up the WR depth chart. Time to cut bait on a guy that is not improving at all. Can find cheaper guys with more upside then keeping Janis for another year.

 

[realitybytes]

Janis had to many errors on ST last year and after 3 years has still not moved up the WR depth chart. Time to cut bait on a guy that is not improving at all. Can find cheaper guys with more upside then keeping Janis for another year.

he's still on his rookie contract, so cheaper isn't really an issue. he's still the fastest receiver we have and he's still the best kick returner we have. i guess, he's expendable, but why would you cut him loose and hang onto a guy like davis, who hasn't done anything at all?

 

[rpiotr01]

he's still on his rookie contract, so cheaper isn't really an issue. he's still the fastest receiver we have and he's still the best kick returner we have. i guess, he's expendable, but why would you cut him loose and hang onto a guy like davis, who hasn't done anything at all?

Lot has to shake itself out in camp but I don't think you would. They both seem to be on the block.

 

[realitybytes]

Lot has to shake itself out in camp but I don't think you would. They both seem to be on the block.

i agree with that. but here's the thing. in yancey, they have drafted a slightly slower, somewhat watered down version of jeff janis. every write-up i've read (and every video i've watched) tells me that he only runs the deep routes, and he doesn't know the full route tree. he's also not known for his special teams prowess and isn't a very good blocker. so i doubt that the packers would keep him over janis if those things turn out to be true.

here's what i don't get about the packers' stubborn refusal to utilize jeff janis in the offense. he's got sub-4.4 speed and he can catch. in fact, he can go really high and catch. so what if he doesn't grasp the entire route tree? send him on deep routes all day just like yancey's team did with him. it seems to me that the defense has only two choices: ignore him and let him run down the sidelines, in which case rodgers will throw to him and the packers will gain lots of yards; or cover him. the obvious choice is to cover him. once you have made the choice to cover him, the questions become who and how? you can't cover hime with you slot corner who is 5'10" and runs a 4.5 40. even if you try to jam him at the line, he's big and strong and will most likely toss you aside. you could try to cover him one-on-one with your cornerback, but unless he's fast enough janis will eventually pull away. so you can either put a safety over the top or you can put your best corner on him. either option creates opportunities for other receivers.

it's not rocket science. but i've been saying the same thing for three years now, and clearly this is something the packers do not want to do. they were forced to do it in one game, and it worked extremely well, but that was the last time we ever saw jeff janis on the field.

 

[rpiotr01]

He can catch jump balls and Hail Marys but he can't track the ball in the air on time for squat. He fought the ball all last camp and was a big disappointment. Janis had his moment in the sun but consistency is everything. There's a reason he was a 7th round pick. If you can't be where you're supposed to be when you're supposed to be there with any regularity you're just not going to stick. It's why Janis won't get PT. The occasional flash play isn't enough, there's just too much more to being a professional in this system.

He has to kill it on ST and even that may not be enough. I go back and forth with him. Sometimes I consider him the new Jarrett Bush, an extra for his position kept around only for ST and well worth it. But Bush was widely known as the hardest worker on the team. Is that Janis? Don't think so. Unless he establishes that identity they're going to be looking to replace him.

 

[realitybytes]

i think it would surprise a lot of people to know that after jordy nelson, davante adams and randall cobb, jeff janis had the most offensive snaps of any receiver. and the main reason that it would surprise them is that he was only targetted by rodgers 19 times in 16 games (even though he played 233 snaps). and although he only had the ball in his hands 13 times on offense, he scored two touchdowns (one receiving and one rushing). how do you justify getting rid of a guy that scores touchdowns on one out of every seven plays that he is allowed to have the ball? he clearly is not being used properly by the packers. i'm convinced that almost any other team would be getting a lot more out of him.

 

[realitybytes]

Cobb had one good year in 2012, one great year in 2014, and the rest have been pretty disappointing, looking at the numbers. With Hyde gone now he's going to have to earn his keep on ST and return punts again, no more hiding behind starter status.

randall cobb was the only wr in the nfl who saw 50+ targets last season and didn't drop a single pass.

 

[rpiotr01]

Didn't he lead the team in drops the year before? Besides, even if he didn't drop a pass last year overall production hasn't matched what's expected at his salary.

Jordy plays the slot better than Cobb does and can still play outside. Cobb can't play outside. Packers are moving to more 2 WR/ 2 TE stuff, which you figure is Jordy and Adams. Writing is on the wall IMO for Cobb, I don't see how he fits what they want to do on O going forward.

 

[Dubz41]

Cobb is at his best when ARod is on the move. They seem to think alike when the scramble is on. Unfortunately, for ARod to extend his career he is going to have to start getting rid of the ball quicker with less scramble happening. The two TE set will limit the slot position, it won't eliminate it, but it will reduce it and consequently reduce the amount of $$$$ invested in a 'slot only' WR. I feel that Cobb's days are numbered.
With Yancey and Dupre being drafted I think that Janis, Davis and Allison have been put on notice. Those five guys are fighting for three spots? Remember how much TT loves his draft picks.
Lastly, I believe Monty will be a RB this year but not the next. TT will watch and see who develops at RB and Monty will return to slot/package WR with the Cobb's departure after this year. JMO.

 

[realitybytes]

Cobb is at his best when ARod is on the move.

i agree with that. and you're probably right about that not being as big a part of the offense going forward. i hope we see a lot more two tight-end sets. otherwise, why did we bring in two free agent tight ends? it will be interesting to see how this revamped o-line holds up. you may be correct that rodgers has to get rid of the ball faster. but it's also possible that they don't miss a beat replacing lang with evans. and with two tight ends, maybe there's even more protection?

if they're going to move away from the slot receiver sets, i really hope we see more of sending the big fast guys on deep routes to take the top off the defense and let the tight ends and running backs handle the underneath routes. especially since our primary running back is a converted wide receiver.