Tag: Jordy Nelson

Is Allen Lazard following Jordy Nelson’s path to No. 1 WR for Packers?

Comparing the early-year numbers for Allen Lazard and Jordy Nelson is an interesting exercise when considering Lazard’s opportunity as the Packers’ No. 1 WR in 2022.

There is organization-wide confidence in Allen Lazard ascending to become the No. 1 receiver for the Green Bay Packers during the 2022 season. The general manager, coach and quarterback all believe in him. Lazard’s path, especially as an undrafted free agent entering the NFL, is a relatively uncommon one. But veteran Randall Cobb made an interesting comparison when talking about Lazard’s new role as the top receiver this week.

He was specifically reminded of Jordy Nelson’s ascension during the early years of Aaron Rodgers’ tenure as the Packers starting quarterback.

“I think he was trending towards the end of the season on a level that we saw Jordy in 2010, you know, on the Super Bowl run. And he followed that season up in 2011 with a big year,” Cobb said. “So, I look forward to seeing the way Allen carries himself and continues to make plays throughout this training camp and into the season.”

Over the final five games of 2021, Lazard emerged from a mid-season slump and caught 21 passes for 290 yards and five scores. In 2010, Nelson had a 124-yard game in Week 16 and then exploded for 21 catches, 286 yards and two touchdowns over four playoff games.

Let’s do another comparison. Nelson’s first three seasons (2008-2010) look a lot like Lazard’s last three seasons (2019-21). (Note: This takes out Lazard’s 2018 season, in which he played just one game as an undrafted rookie.)

Take a look:

Nelson (2008-10) Lazard (2019-21)
Games 45 41
Pass snaps 833 1,053
Catches 100 108
Targets 149 158
Catch % 67.1 68.4
Yards 1,268 1,441
Yards/catch 12.7 13.3
Yards/target 8.5 9.1
TD 10 14

In 2011, or Nelson’s fourth season in Green Bay, he ascended to the No. 1 receiver role and caught 68 passes for 1,263 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Can Lazard follow the same path as Nelson, who used a terrific end to his third season and a bigger opportunity in Year 4 to transform himself from an efficient form of Robin in the Packers offense to a deadly version of Batman?

It’s difficult to say. In a complementary role, Lazard has been incredibly efficient, but there’s no guaranteeing he’ll be just as good when he’s the No. 1 receiver and more attention is on him on every snap. Nelson was probably the better receiver entering his fourth season. At the peak of his powers, No. 87 was an elite playmaker. No one really knows if Lazard can reach those levels.

But more targets are coming Lazard’s way, and the four-time NFL MVP at quarterback has unwavering trust in his ability. Mix more opportunities for a receiver with the trust of Rodgers, one of the greatest distributors of the football in history, and Lazard has a true chance to create a big season.

Let’s say Lazard’s targets simply double in 2022, going from 60 in 2021 to 120 this year. Reasonable. While not a perfect extrapolation, given all the unconsidered variables, including the rippling effect of losing a generational talent like Davante Adams, let’s also say Lazard plays at a statistical level equal to his last three seasons – meaning the same catch percentage, yards per target, etc.

Lazard’s past numbers extrapolated out over 120 targets would equal 82 catches, 1,092 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Not crazy numbers over a 17-game schedule for Aaron Rodgers’ No. 1 receiver.

Don’t sleep on Allen Lazard in 2022. Even if he’s not the next Jordy Nelson, the stats paint the picture of a player ready for a bigger opportunity, and the franchise’s unrelenting confidence in him should have Lazard well-positioned for a breakout season as the new No. 1 in Green Bay.

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Packers WR Davante Adams to get opportunity to pass Jordy Nelson’s single-season yardage record

Packers WR Davante Adams needs 22 yards to pass former teammate Jordy Nelson’s team record for receiving yards in a season.

After the Green Bay Packers clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC in Week 17, many assumed receiver Davante Adams would not get the opportunity to pass Jordy Nelson for the franchise single-season yardage record. That was until Matt LaFleur revealed Monday that the starters will get some playing time in Week 18 against the Detroit Lions.

Adams, who has a career-high 1,498 receiving yards, needs only 22 yards to pass the mark (1,519) set by Nelson in 2014.

“That’s why I want to play,” Adams said jokingly after the Packers’ clinching win over the Minnesota Vikings. “Nah, that’s not why, but I’d like to think playing a half or whatever it is, whatever we decide, I’ll be able to take care of that.”

Usually, teams will rest their starters when a game has no bearing on seeding to prevent injury. However, Green Bay would be risking the side effects of a long layoff, which could lead to a flat performance in their eventual playoff game. The Packers are aiming to avoid that altogether.

“Right now, the mindset is going into this that we’re going to play our guys and we’re going to approach it like every other game,” LaFleur said.

“I just think the reason behind that is I’m not comfortable having essentially a three-week layoff for our guys.”

Adams, who is not partial to taking time off, has no objections.

“Having two weeks off is, to each his own, but I wouldn’t want to do it. I want to play next week, at least some,” Adams said.

Adams already broke his own single-season record for catches. He’s at 117 entering Week 18.

Ultimately, his playing time on Sunday will be LaFleur’s decision, but it sounds like Adams will have a chance to make more history. Of course, his numbers are already flashy enough, but passing Nelson will prove how incredible his 2021 season was.

Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb produced one of the decade’s top seasons by WR duo

The 2014 season was special for Packers WRs Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.

At least one metric highlighted the work of Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb during the 2014 season as one of the top seasons by a receiver duo during the past decade.

Pro Football Focus’s “PFF WAR” metric attempts to replicate the wins above replacement metric from baseball. In the simplest terms, the stat measures a player’s contribution to a team relative to the average player. By PFF WAR, the Green Bay Packers duo produced the top season by a pair of receiver teammates in the NFL between 2010 and 2019.

The 2014 season was the height of both player’s individual powers. Nelson caught a career-high 98 passes for a career-high 1,519 yards. Cobb caught a career-high 91 passes for a career-high 1,287 yards. Together, they caught 189 passes for 2,806 yards and 25 of Aaron Rodgers’ 38 touchdown passes for the 12-4 Packers, a team that led the NFL in scoring at over 30 points per game and came within one successful onside kick defense away from playing in the Super Bowl.

Nelson and Cobb both made the Pro Bowl, while Rodgers went on to win NFL MVP.

Together, Nelson and Cobb were a dynamic receiving duo, with Nelson creating big plays at the intermediate and deep levels while Cobb dominated underneath and after the catch. And both receivers enjoyed telepathic connections with Rodgers in big moments and in the scoring area.

It was just never as good as it was in 2014.

Nelson tore his ACL during the next preseason and missed the entire 2015 season, robbing the Packers of a year of connections between Rodgers and Nelson. He returned in 2016 and caught 97 passes for 1,257 yards and a league-high 14 scores. The Packers released him following the 2017 season and he officially retired before the 2019 season.

Cobb caught 79 passes the next season but never again approached the kind of dominant numbers he produced as the game’s top slot receiver in 2014. He left the Packers following the 2018 season.

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When was it? Packers’ last 200-yard receiving game

The Packers haven’t had a receiver go over 200 yards receiving since the 2014 season, when Jordy Nelson accomplished the feat.

Only six receivers in Green Bay Packers history have ever produced a game with 200 or more receiving yards.

The last came in 2014.

During a September afternoon at Lambeau Field, Jordy Nelson joined Billy Howton, Carroll Dale, James Lofton, Don Beebe and Javon Walker as the only receivers in franchise history to go over 200 yards receiving in a single game.

In the last five years, no other Packers receiver has reached 200 receiving yards.

Nelson caught nine passes for a career-high 209 yards – including the go-ahead 80-yard touchdown in the third quarter – during the Packers’ 31-24 win over the New York Jets in Week 2 of the 2014 season.

Here’s the touchdown:

Nelson beat cornerback Dee Milliner with a double move, and Aaron Rodgers hit him in stride down the sideline, allowing Nelson to cut back to the middle of the field and past the approaching safety. Once in the open field, Nelson sprinted into the end zone to give the Packers a 31-24 lead.

The 209-yard game helped spark Nelson’s 1,519-yard season in 2014.

Before Nelson’s big day against the Jets, the Packers’ last 200-yard receiving game came from Walker, who caught 11 passes for 200 yards and three scores during a shootout against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in 2004. In 1996, Beebe stepped up after injuries decimated the Packers receiver position during a Monday night showdown against the San Francisco 49ers and had a 220-yard game, the second-most receiving yards in a game in team history.

Billy Howton set the team record with 257 receiving yards during a 1956 game.

Davante Adams had a chance to crack the 200-yard club during Week 4 of last season, but a toe injury cut his night short against the Philadelphia Eagles. He had 10 catches for 180 yards before the injury.

When was it series

Last punt return for touchdown
Last interception return for touchdown
Last kickoff return for touchdown
Last 90-yard touchdown pass
Last fumble return for touchdown
Last 90-yard touchdown run
Last blocked punt for touchdown

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The under-appreciated decade of former Packers WR Jordy Nelson

There is more evidence that Jordy Nelson was one of the NFL’s top WRs of the decade.

Earlier this month, we revisited the two dominant seasons by former Green Bay Packers receiver Jordy Nelson, who was excellent during both the 2011 and 2014 seasons. We framed the two seasons – both in the top 10 among receivers in DYAR (defensive-adjusted yards above replacement) for the decade spanning 2010 to 2019 – as evidence for the underappreciation of Nelson’s overall body of work over the last 10 years.

Now there is more evidence to add to the pile.

Football Outsiders, the developers of the DYAR metric, tallied total DYAR and DVOA for all receivers during the decade. Nelson, who only made one Pro Bowl before retiring before the 2019 season, finished third in DYAR – trailing only Julio Jones and Antonio Brown – and fourth in DVOA between 2010 and 2019, cementing his place as one of the top pass-catchers of the last decade, at least from an analytics viewpoint.

Despite missing the entire 2015 season and not playing at all in 2019, Nelson still finished the decade ranked 11th in the NFL in receiving yards and fifth in receiving touchdowns.

Playing eight of the 10 years between 2010 and 2019 wasn’t the biggest driving factor for Nelson, who still finished fifth in total DYAR per game, trailing only Michael Thomas, Calvin Johnson, Jones and Brown.

He was buoyed by a few elite seasons. According to Football Outsiders, Nelson finished in the top three of DYAR three times during the decade. His 2011 season was the fifth-best season by a receiver between 2010 and 2019 according to DYAR.

Had Nelson remained with the Packers over the final two years of the decade – he was released before the 2018 season and retired in 2019 – it’s possible he could have threatened Jones and Brown for a top-two spot in DYAR.

This offseason, the NFL released its 2010s All-Decade Team. Four receivers made the team: Jones, Brown, Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald. All were worthy of selection, but Nelson has a strong argument for being in that very next tier. He was underappreciated throughout the decade, likely due to Aaron Rodgers being his quarterback. Nelson was terrific as a standalone player.

Note, teammate and former Packers receiver Randall Cobb finished 12th overall in DYAR during the decade.

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When was it? Packers’ last 90-yard touchdown pass

The Packers’ last passing touchdown of at least 90 yards came during the historic 2011 season.

The Green Bay Packers have seven touchdown passes of at least 90 yards in the team’s history.

Future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers and current Hall of Famers Brett Favre, Bart Starr and Arnie Herber all threw one. Rodgers’ 93-yard touchdown was the last, and he threw it to arguably his favorite target during a historic season of offense in Green Bay.

The last Packers’ touchdown pass of at least 90 yards: Jordy Nelson’s 93-yard score from Rodgers during Week 6 of the 2011 season.

Nelson’s touchdown, the longest of his career, gave the Packers a 17-0 lead over the St. Louis Rams at Lambeau Field on Oct. 16, 2011.

Packers.com has video of the play.

Nelson beat former Packers cornerback Al Harris on a stop-and-go, caught Rodgers’ pass in stride and split a pair of tackle attempts before racing into the open field for the 93-yard score, the fourth-longest passing touchdown in team history.

The touchdown is Rodgers’ only completion of at least 90 yards. He has seven total touchdowns of at least 80 yards, including four scores to Nelson.

Favre’s 99-yard touchdown pass to Robert Brooks in 1995 was the Packers’ last touchdown pass of at least 90 yards. It is tied for the NFL record for the longest touchdown from scrimmage. Starr threw a 91-yard touchdown pass to Boyd Dowler in 1960, while Herber hit Don Hutson for a 92-yard score in 1939.

Rodgers threw 45 touchdown passes and led the Packers to 14 wins over his first 15 starts during the 2011 regular season. He later won the league’s MVP award. Nelson caught a career-high 15 scores, including 12 from Rodgers. The Packers scored a franchise-record 560 points.

When was it series

Last punt return for touchdown
Last interception return for touchdown

Revisiting Jordy Nelson’s two truly dominant seasons

Retired Packers WR Jordy Nelson was a dominant receiver during the 2011 and 2014 seasons.

Former Green Bay Packers receiver Jordy Nelson might be one of the most under-appreciated players of the last decade. Despite making only one Pro Bowl team, Nelson finished the decade (2010-19) ranked 11th among all players in receiving yards, fifth in receiving touchdowns and sixth in yards per target.

Nelson also produced a couple of the most dominant seasons by a receiver during the decade.

According to DYAR, a metric developed by Football Outsiders, Nelson had two of the top seasons by a receiver between 2010 and 2019.

Aaron Schatz of Football Outsiders put together a list of the best teams and players from the last decade. Nelson’s 2011 and 2014 seasons both cracked the top 10 at the receiver position. Antonio Brown is the only other receiver to have two top-10 seasons by DYAR during the last decade.

Nelson’s 2014 season ranked 10th, while his 2011 season ranked fifth.

In 2011, Nelson caught 68 passes on only 96 targets (70.8 percent catch rate) for 1,263 yards (18.6 per catch) and 15 touchdowns. He averaged 13.2 yards per target and turned 22 percent of his catches into scores. According to Schatz, Nelson’s catch-to-touchdown ratio was the highest of any receiver with at least 50 catches in a season during the decade. Aaron Rodgers’ passer rating when targeting Nelson was 155.2.

In 2014, Nelson set career-highs with 98 catches and 1,519 receiving yards. He was one of just 15 players to produce a season with 1,500 or more receiving yards in a season during the decade. He averaged over 15 yards per catch and over 10 yards per target on 151 total targets.

Interestingly enough, Rodgers won NFL MVP during both the 2011 and 2014 seasons.

Nelson made the Pro Bowl during the 2014 season but wasn’t awarded in any way for his dominant 2011 season.

Overall, the Packers’ 2011 offense was ranked as the seventh-best of the decade, while Rodgers’ 2011 season was ranked as the third-best by a quarterback.

A second-round pick of the Packers in 2008, Nelson officially retired from the NFL as a member of the franchise in August of last year.

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Former Packers WR Jordy Nelson has no interest in return to NFL: ‘We’re done’

Former Packers WR Jordy Nelson is happily retired and won’t be coming back.

Jordy Nelson, who officially retired from the NFL as a member of the Green Bay Packers last summer, has no interest in returning to the game, even if the Packers come calling.

“We’re not coming back. There’s no doubt about that. We’re done,” Nelson told Jason Wilde of ESPN Milwaukee and the Wisconsin State Journal.

Nelson revealed to Wilde that he would have considered re-joining Aaron Rodgers and the Packers after being released by the Oakland Raiders following the 2018 season, but general manager Brian Gutekunst – who cut Nelson in March in 2018 – never showed any interest. Instead of playing for another new team in 2019, Nelson retired, returning home to Kansas and leaving football behind once and for all.

The Packers signed veteran Devin Funchess and former CFL star Reggie Begelton but still have one of the NFL’s most unproven group of receivers entering the 2020 season. Bringing back Nelson, who is now 35, is no longer an option, not that Gutekunst would have even considered it.

Over nine seasons with the Packers, Nelson caught 550 passes for 7,848 yards and 69 touchdowns. He ranks third in team history in catches and second in receiving touchdowns.

Nelson said he believed he could’ve helped the Packers over the last two seasons. Gutekunst used the money saved by cutting Nelson to sign veteran tight end Jimmy Graham, who mostly bombed in Green Bay. He caught 93 passes in 32 games and scored only five touchdowns.

Nelson hauled in 63 passes during a productive 2018 season in Oakland.

“I think the track record between Aaron and I, I think we could have been productive no matter what year it would have been,” Nelson told Wilde. “I think we proved it over the time, year-in and year-out. We were both very productive. And until proven otherwise, I would say yes, I would have been able to.”

Nelson, a second-round pick of the Packers in 2008, officially retired from the NFL as a member of the team on Aug. 4 of last year.

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Texans’ Randall Cobb credits former Packers WR Jordy Nelson for having big impact on his career

Houston Texans receiver Randall Cobb says that former Green Bay Packers and Oakland Raiders receiver Jordy Nelson had a profound impact on his career.

Randall Cobb seeks to play in his 10th NFL season with his third team, the Houston Texans.

Having such longevity in the NFL, and a Pro Bowl selection at that, doesn’t come easily. Often times, it takes another leading by example to help athletes along in their careers.

For Cobb, he knows who has had the biggest impact on his career.

“I would say, probably the player was Jordy Nelson when I was up in Green Bay, just looking at the way that he approached things,” Cobb told the Houston media on a conference call on March 27.

When the former 2011 second-round pick from Kentucky arrived to the Green Bay Packers, who were coming off of a win in Super Bowl XLV, the receiving corps was stacked. Nelson was just one of a plethora of receivers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had to choose from, including Pro Bowlers Greg Jennings and Donald Driver along with James Jones.

“Watching the way that they went about their business, watching the way that they communicated with each other, it was all about the team and how they can make each other better, because they know at the end of the day, the more reps that we had on the field, the better that would be overall,” Cobb explained.

Cobb highlighted Nelson particularly because the former 2008 second-round pick from Kansas State was consistent in all of his endeavors.

Said Cobb: “He was the same every day, practiced the same every day. He ate the same meals every morning. He went into the weight room and did what he needed to. Before practice, after practice, throughout. Going into the training room and getting everything that he needed. He made sure he took care of his body and he was very, very good with his communication skills about teaching young guys and helping young guys understand what we were trying to accomplish.”

The Packers never accomplished that in Cobb’s time: adding the franchise’s fifth Super Bowl win. However, with such a consistent approach from Cobb, it should help ease the burden of developing chemistry with Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson and his new-look receiving corps.

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