Davante Adams was as shocked as anyone that the Green Bay Packers didn’t use a draft pick at wide receiver in April, but he still likes where the Packers are at with the position as training camp opens.
During a Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday, Adams said he senses tangible maturity in the young players behind him, motivating his belief that the Packers are in “a really good spot” at receiver entering the season.
“A lot of the (young) guys we have now are starting to come into that,” Adams said, moments after listing all the things – such as improving physically, getting comfortable in the offense, mastering the finer details and getting on the same page as Aaron Rodgers – that once helped fueled his rapid progression as a young player.
“We’re going to be in a really good spot going into the year.”
The Packers didn’t draft a receiver and even Adams admitted shock when the team traded up to take a quarterback instead of a pass-catcher.
“It’s no secret, we were all expecting a receiver to be drafted, but that wasn’t the case,” Adams said.
The Packers traded up in the first round for Jordan Love, then picked a running back and tight end on Day 2 of the draft. By the end of the three days, almost 40 receivers had been selected, but none by the Packers.
Asked to pick one receiver capable of breaking out in 2020, Adams instantly gravitated towards Allen Lazard, who caught 35 passes for 477 yards
“Allen Lazard is one of the guys that, he’s shown he’s a really talented player on the field and he’s coming into his own confidence-wise,” Adams said. “Once you start to have that true confidence, once you start to believe you’re a really, really good player, and you know your role on the team and all of that. That’s when you start to have an Allen Lazard. He’s a lot more confident. The coaches have obviously shared that with the media, the rest of the team. I’m really excited to see that.”
Lazard was praised by Aaron Rodgers, Matt LaFleur and Brian Gutekunst at one point or another during the offseason. He’s the favorite to be the No. 2 receiver, especially after Devin Funchess opted out of the 2020 season.
Adams also said he’s excited to have Equanimeous St. Brown back in the fold after missing the 2019 season and believes Marquez Valdes-Scantling has taken “the right steps” to bounce back from an up and down second season.
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