Amari Rodgers is Slot Receiver Packers Offense Has Sorely Missed

There is a ton of talk about former Clemson players Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne but there is another former Tiger to keep in eye on during his rookie season as well.

Don’t sleep on Amari Rodgers who continues to turn heads in Green Bay after being taken by the Packers in the third-round.

“From Day 1 [Amari Rodgers] is their No. 2 WR” @PFF_Mike with the 2021 bold prediction 👀pic.twitter.com/GWHZIcFlIx

— PFF College (@PFF_College) June 19, 2021

The Packer offense was a formidable one to say the least last season. But one area of their offense they would love to get better is one that Rodgers has been very good at.

A huge part of Rodgers’ career at Clemson was his ability to make plays with the ball in his hands. Of his 1,020 total receiving yards in 2020, 613 came after the catch. This was the second-most in college football that season behind only Heisman Trophy Winner DeVonta Smith.

Rodgers 8.0 YAC average ranked fourth out of 46 eligible receivers and was ahead of players like Kadarius Toney and Elijah Moore, who averaged 6.8 and 5.9 yards after the catch, respectively. Rodgers was also able to force 17 missed tackles. The seventh most in all of college football.

In 2019, Rodgers was able to tally 335 yards after the catch and his average YAC of 11.5 ranked as the fifth most that year. The year before, he had 405 yards after the catch, giving Rodgers a total of 1,353 YAC in his final three seasons.

Even more impressive is the fact that they came after Rodgers’ recovery from a torn ACL that he suffered during Clemson’s Spring practice in 2019. An injury that usually takes at least nine to twelve months to recover from, took him less than six.

The Packers have not had a true slot receiver since Randall Cobb left following the 2018 season and it’s absolutely had an effect of the production of the offense. From 2011-2018 Cobb was pretty much the favorite target of Aaron Rodgers. Over that span, he caught 470 passes for 5,524 yards with 41 touchdown receptions. During the early part of his Packers career, he was also Green Bay’s primary kickoff and punt, something else Rodgers can excel in at the next level.

The Packers are hoping Rodgers can develop into a similar type of weapon for Rodgers in the explosive Green Bay offense, and from what he showed during his Clemson career, Rodgers is certainly capable of filling the role.