Packers’ Matt LaFleur addresses need for speed at WR: ‘We lost a guy that was pretty good at doing that’

Moving on from Davante Adams was one of the toughest decisions for the Green Bay Packers, knowing how dominant he and Aaron Rodgers were together. One half of the duo came back in Rodgers, making it an even bigger surprise Adams decided to depart. 

Rodgers lost Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling this offseason, two of the Packers’ top three pass catchers from last year. The Packers have a glaring need at wide receiver, specifically one trait that head coach Matt LaFleur had to point out. 

“Certainly, if you look at our roster right now, we definitely need to get some speed in that room,” LaFleur said Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. “We need a legit guy that can take off the top of the coverage. We lost a guy that was pretty good at doing that.”

Rodgers had 29 passing touchdowns to Davante Adams over the past two seasons, tied for the second most by a quarterback-wide receiver duo in NFL history. Adams had 123 catches for 1,553 yards in 2021, the most in any season in Packers history. He also finished with 11 touchdowns, including six in the final five games of the regular season. Adams is only the sixth player in NFL history to record 120 catches, 1,500 yards, and 10 receiving touchdowns in a season.