The Green Bay Packers were considered to be one of the favorites to win Super Bowl 50 this season, but after seeing star wide receiver Jordy Nelson go down with a torn ACL many are changing their minds.
He has been their number one wide receiver over the past few seasons, and Aaron Rodgers is without question more comfortable with him than any other receiver on the roster. Seeing him go down with an injury completely changes the expectations that people have for the Packers. They went from being a championship contender to being a playoff hopeful.
While the injury was heartbreaking for the Packers and their fans, there is still hope for the team. Can they survive the Nelson injury and still compete for a championship during the upcoming 2015 NFL season?
Randall Cobb was re-signed by the Packers this past offseason after testing free agency. Bringing him back is an even bigger move now than it was then following this injury. He is more than capable of stepping his game up to help ease the pain of this injury, but he can’t take the entire role that Nelson had over.
Davante Adams is entering his second NFL season, and the expectations for him have risen dramatically in the last few hours. He went from being an excellent third receiver to take pressure off of Nelson and Cobb, to being a huge piece of the Packers’ 2015 offensive plans and one of the pieces that will decide how successful they are. That is a tough burden to shoulder for a young receiver, but Adams is more than capable of stepping up.
Green Bay also has this years third-round pick Ty Montgomery on the roster, while Jeff Janis is there as well to help out. Ted Thompson could look to bring in another receiver from outside of the roster, and both Reggie Wayne and Wes Welker could be potential targets in free agency.
There is a good chance that the Packers will pass on the free agent options, although they may regret doing so later on in the season.
Jeff Janis is the first player that will be looked at as a potential impact player to step up. He is in his second NFL season, and has shown some flashes of brilliance during the preseason action that he has seen over the past few years. At 6-foot-3 and 219 pounds, Janis has the size to be a very dangerous weapon for Rodgers.
Myles White is another player that could step up in a big way and earn a fairly well sized role for the Packers in 2015. He has the potential to be a big time playmaker for the Packers, but has to step up and prove himself throughout the remainder of the preseason.
To answer the question, there is no doubt that the Packers “can” survive without Nelson this season.
It isn’t going to be easy for them to compete for a championship this year, but they still have quite a bit of talent on the roster to sift through. Wayne or Welker could be a solid pickup for the Packers, but they will look at their current talent on the roster first.
Expect to see the Packers’ offense take a hit, but they will figure out a way to get back on track due to the presence of Rodgers.
