The Amari Rodgers Thread

[Heyjoe4]

This is true. You say why are rookies Watson and Doubs now being a solid piece of the offense but second year Amari is not. That tells you something. At least with Ty Montgomery MM turned him into a RB. I doubt they can turn Amari into Desmond Howard.

Amari Rodgers and Desmond Howard are on different ends of the pole.

 

[PikeBadger]

At some point I expect to see one of the backup DB's to be returning both punts and kicks. Maybe after Alexander has played a game injury free. I don't think they'll use Watson because of ball security concerns. Belichick got the guy I was hoping the Packers would draft in the 3rd or 4th round. Barnaby Jones, and he looks very good from what I've seen.

Edit: Wrong Jones.

 

[milani]

Amari Rodgers and Desmond Howard are on different ends of the pole.

And it is a long pole.

 

[Schultz]

At some point I expect to see one of the backup DB's to be returning both punts and kicks. Maybe after Alexander has played a game injury free. I don't think they'll use Watson because of ball security concerns. Belichick got the guy I was hoping the Packers would draft in the 3rd or 4th round. Velus Jones, and he looks very good from what I've seen.

You may want to edit this.

 

[PikeBadger]

You may want to edit this.

?

 

[swhitset]

?

I believe he is referring to the fact that Velus Jones plays for the Bears… and he muffed a punt in the Bears Giants game… late that played a big part in the Giants’ victory.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Pats returner is 3rd round rookie cornerback Marcus Jones. He wasn't even the starting returner at the start of the season, which was Myles Bryant. Also, the Pat's other rookie CB, 4th round pick Jack Jones looked pretty solid. Neither of those 2 guys should be confused with Pat's QB, Mac Jones or Bears WR Velus Jones...singer Tom Jones or TV detective, Barnaby Jones, for that matter.

 

[Sunshinepacker]

I just gotta applaud all the fans who have created an 11 page thread based upon a 3rd round pick who has shown no relevance at any position other than kick catcher (I'll consider him a kick returner when he actually shows ability at running with the ball).

 

[PikeBadger]

I believe he is referring to the fact that Velus Jones plays for the Bears… and he muffed a punt in the Bears Giants game… late that played a big part in the Giants’ victory.

My bad. Yeah, the Jones that played for Univ. of Houston was the guy I was interested in. The Velus Jones guy is too small. I think he's a one trick pony.

 

[PikeBadger]

Pats returner is 3rd round rookie cornerback Marcus Jones. He wasn't even the starting returner at the start of the season, which was Myles Bryant. Also, the Pat's other rookie CB, 4th round pick Jack Jones looked pretty solid. Neither of those 2 guys should be confused with Pat's QB, Mac Jones or Bears WR Velus Jones...singer Tom Jones or TV detective, Barnaby Jones, for that matter.

Good one! We were definitely having trouble keeping up with the Patriots' Joneses. They both gave us problems

 

[PikeBadger]

I just gotta applaud all the fans who have created an 11 page thread based upon a 3rd round pick who has shown no relevance at any position other than kick catcher (I'll consider him a kick returner when he actually shows ability at running with the ball).

We got a long way to go to get into Jeff Janis territory. His thread was completely bizarre in length.

 

[Magooch]

Week 4:

3 kickoff returns / 66 yards / 22 yards per return
2 punt returns / 11 yards / 5.5 yards per return
0 offensive snaps

Season:
5 kickoff returns / 104 yards / 20.8 yards per return
8 punt returns / 64 yards / 8.0 yards per return
4 offensive snaps

Again I hate to sound like I'm just trying to bash the guy but I'm just really struggling to see the point. Zero impact whatsoever on offense and next to zero impact on special teams. Is it really that inconceivable to think we could find someone else to average 20 / 8 yards on kickoff / punt returns and...more than absolutely nothing on offense?

 

[Arod2gjdd]

I don't understand how we have yet to try Watson. Isn't returning supposed to be part of his skillset?

We are barely using him as a receiver, so shouldn't we employ his explosiveness somewhere? Like the run yesterday, find ways to get him involved. I've seen enough of Rodgers.

 

[kevans74]

So I get "training wheels" and being easier on rookies to a certain time frame. But ultimately it is their JOB to produce, catch balls, etc.

So if you can't, you should be cut.

Good example is Richard Rodgers...he is/was not the most athletic or talented guy, but he could catch enough and block enough to PRODUCE. Was he a star? Will he ever be a star? No and no. But he did his job and earned/played out his contract

 

[Spanky]

Has anyone with the Packers coaching staff or front office ever explained what the problem is with Amari Rodgers? Why he has nearly zero role in the receiving game even when he is healthy and rest of the receiving corps is decimated with injuries? How do you get drafted in the 3rd round and produce like an UDFA? What's the problem here?

Here's a short list I came up with off the top of my head as to why/how highly drafted WR's end up becoming busts:

- Can't learn the playbook
- Lack of speed
- Lack of size
- Poor route running
- Poor hands/drops
- Bad attitude/worth ethic
- Skills are a bad fit for offensive scheme

There's obviously more, but that's what I came up with on the spot.

So I'm wondering where Amari is failing.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Has anyone with the Packers coaching staff or front office ever explained what the problem is with Amari Rodgers? Why he has nearly zero role in the receiving game even when he is healthy and rest of the receiving corps is decimated with injuries? How do you get drafted in the 3rd round and produce like an UDFA? What's the problem here?

Here's a short list I came up with off the top of my head as to why/how highly drafted WR's end up becoming busts:

- Can't learn the playbook
- Lack of speed
- Lack of size
- Poor route running
- Poor hands/drops
- Bad attitude/worth ethic
- Skills are a bad fit for offensive scheme

There's obviously more, but that's what I came up with on the spot.

So I'm wondering where Amari is failing.

Interesting. My answer - all of the above. He needs to go and find a job outside of football. Or at a minimum, trade him or cut him and let him see if he can play somewhere else. He's doing nothing for the Packers.

 

[red4tribe]

Has anyone with the Packers coaching staff or front office ever explained what the problem is with Amari Rodgers? Why he has nearly zero role in the receiving game even when he is healthy and rest of the receiving corps is decimated with injuries? How do you get drafted in the 3rd round and produce like an UDFA? What's the problem here?

Here's a short list I came up with off the top of my head as to why/how highly drafted WR's end up becoming busts:

- Can't learn the playbook
- Lack of speed
- Lack of size
- Poor route running
- Poor hands/drops
- Bad attitude/worth ethic
- Skills are a bad fit for offensive scheme

There's obviously more, but that's what I came up with on the spot.

So I'm wondering where Amari is failing.

I don't think it's about his size or speed, but the rest of those all probably play a role. Aaron doesn't trust Amari, which to me sounds like Amari doesn't know the playbook well enough and probably doesn't run routes adequately. Either way, he's been a disappointment. Doubs, who was drafted a round lower and a year later, already has four times as many career receptions as Amari, in just 4 games.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I don't think it's about his size or speed, but the rest of those all probably play a role. Aaron doesn't trust Amari, which to me sounds like Amari doesn't know the playbook well enough and probably doesn't run routes adequately. Either way, he's been a disappointment. Doubs, who was drafted a round lower and a year later, already has four times as many career receptions as Amari, in just 4 games.

Yikes. Well the Packers should know that talent doesn't always correlate to draft position. What surprises me is that they don't make changes when things clearly aren't working.

I think it is true that players develop a great deal in their first two years and the improvement is clearly seen in year three. But along the way, incremental improvement should be seen.

That's not the case with Amari Rodgers. He's stuck in neutral (sometimes reverse). So why not make a change and move on? I don't get paid enough to answer that question.

 

[Mondio]

IF there was someone obviously better, I think they'd be here already. I think with what's likely available at this pint, they know they don't bring more to the table athletically so they're giving a guy they believed in enough to draft in the 3rd, more time to figure out. I'm not completely against it, I think Amari has enough talent to be pretty decent. But he's certainly not near that yet.

 

[OldSchool101]

I know this might sound odd, but he Amari’s 8.0 is ok+ for PR. However his 20.8 KR average leaves something to be desired. Couple that with 4 Offensive snaps in 4 games and there’s more than meets the eye. It’s like he cussed someone’s Momma

 

[Heyjoe4]

IF there was someone obviously better, I think they'd be here already. I think with what's likely available at this pint, they know they don't bring more to the table athletically so they're giving a guy they believed in enough to draft in the 3rd, more time to figure out. I'm not completely against it, I think Amari has enough talent to be pretty decent. But he's certainly not near that yet.

Good assessment Mondio. Yeah it's hard sometimes to remember how young these guys are coming out of college. I guess on some level I expect more from them considering what they're paid, but that's not right. And physically, these guys are still changing and growing.

And you're right about available talent. I have enough faith in Gluten and in this case, Bisaccia, that they're putting the best guys they can out there. Every team would love a punt returner who can produce two or three TDs/season. That don't hang on trees.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I know this might sound odd, but he Amari’s 8.0 is ok+ for PR. However his 20.8 KR average leaves something to be desired. Couple that with 4 Offensive snaps in 4 games and there’s more than meets the eye. It’s like he cussed someone’s Momma

I don't know that anyone is punishing him. It has more to do with what the coaches think he can do. He's a very average PR, and that's fine for now. As for KR, opponents will start dropping the kickoff inside the 5 so he has to return it. That's hard to do, but the risk is minimal.

What about Watson on KRs? He doesn't have sure hands, but should be able to learn how to catch a kickoff consistently. His speed alone makes it intriguing.

 

[milani]

Good assessment Mondio. Yeah it's hard sometimes to remember how young these guys are coming out of college. I guess on some level I expect more from them considering what they're paid, but that's not right. And physically, these guys are still changing and growing.

And you're right about available talent. I have enough faith in Gluten and in this case, Bisaccia, that they're putting the best guys they can out there. Every team would love a punt returner who can produce two or three TDs/season. That don't hang on trees.

And today's game is so full of touchbacks and fair catches. I guess in the era of smaller and slower players we got to see a lot more football even though the skill and talent did not match today's.

 

[Heyjoe4]

And today's game is so full of touchbacks and fair catches. I guess in the era of smaller and slower players we got to see a lot more football even though the skill and talent did not match today's.

Interesting point. Yeah I'm old enough to remember when almost all punts and kickoffs were returned. It made for a more interesting game. Today, the kickers and punters have refined their work, making returns much less frequent.

 

[OldSchool101]

I don't know that anyone is punishing him. It has more to do with what the coaches think he can do. He's a very average PR, and that's fine for now. As for KR, opponents will start dropping the kickoff inside the 5 so he has to return it. That's hard to do, but the risk is minimal.

What about Watson on KRs? He doesn't have sure hands, but should be able to learn how to catch a kickoff consistently. His speed alone makes it intriguing.

I think Watson would give us a spark at KR, but they might not see extra 4-6 yards gained as a worthy risk. He’s barely used on Offense so it’s a worthy short-term scenario. Once he’s performing at WR regularly we can always revert back to whoever.

As far as dropping a ball. A player standing on the field at KR all by their lonesome isn’t going to drop the same rate as being a moving target chased by a competitor imo.
All that said, I seriously don’t think Watson fumbling Kickoffs is an issue to begin with. He did it quite often in College and never had an issue that I saw.
I believe the reason they wouldn’t put Watson back there is they want him to be a regular part of the Offense and he might be more susceptible to serious injury (as opposed to being a passing deep threat). You could kiss your two 2nd rounders away (draft spent) pretty quickly might be a plausible risk that they are looking at.

Also. We might start seeing more and more packages using #9 in our Offense as the season wears on. They also might be thinking it’s too much to put on his plate this early. Let him concentrate and not wear too many hats if you will?