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Rodgers wants Cobb

Rodgers returning, but wants veteran receiver back

Aaron Rodgers is close to an agreement that will bring him back to Green Bay for the 2021 season, but as part of the deal, he wants the team to trade for Randall Cobb. What the … ?

Cobb signed with the Cowboys two years ago, and they traded him to the Texans. He had a decent season in 2019 but became expendable when Dallas drafted CeeDee Lamb. They were able to get Bill O’Brien to take him off their hands.

Cobb wasn’t much of a factor in Houston last year, catching 38 passes for 441 yards and 3 TDs. Five years in a row he’s caught 2-4 TD passes, and he’s finished with fewer than 700 yards in all but one of those seasons.

Cobb is 30 and has a base salary of $8.2 million. He’s not worth that. If the Texans were to release him, he probably wouldn’t be able to find a team that would pay him half as much.

But Trey Wingo writes on Twitter that Rodgers during talks with the team is lobbying to get Cobb brought back to Lambeau. That’s odd. Rodgers and Cobb are apparently friends, but Cobb’s days of being a relevant NFL receiver are in the distant past. If the Texans were able to get the Packers to that that $8.2 million base salary off their payroll, they’d be excited.

This might be little more than Rodgers having the itch to exert some control over the roster. In the past, he’s expressed frustration about the Packers getting rid of Jake Kumerow.

The Packers look pretty set at wide receiver already. Davante Adams is one of the best in the game, and they like Allen Lazard and Marques Valdez-Scantling. They drafted Amari Rodgers in the third round, and the hope is that he’ll develop into a Cobb kind of weapon in the slot.

When Cobb was last playing with the Packers, he wasn’t effective. In his last three years with them (in 2016-2018) he averaged only 4.4 catches for 45 yards in 37 games, with 10 touchdowns. When compared to other wide receivers who played at least half the time in the 2016-18 seasons, that’s below-average production.

WIDE RECEIVERS PER GAME (2016-18)
PlayerStNoYdsTDPPR
Antonio Brown447.193.5.8321.4
Odell Beckham326.385.0.6118.8
Tyreek Hill405.175.8.7518.3
Julio Jones466.298.5.3718.3
DeAndre Hopkins476.183.1.6018.0
Michael Thomas476.880.6.4917.8
Davante Adams455.872.6.7917.8
Mike Evans475.481.8.5717.0
Keenan Allen336.280.4.4016.9
JuJu Smith-Schuster305.678.1.5116.6
A.J. Green355.378.2.5116.2
Julian Edelman286.169.9.3315.8
Stefon Diggs426.066.0.4815.7
Adam Thielen485.775.3.3815.6
T.Y. Hilton464.980.1.3615.0
Jarvis Landry486.064.6.3915.0
Brandin Cooks484.672.1.4414.8
Larry Fitzgerald485.960.7.4014.4
Robert Woods394.966.1.3314.0
Doug Baldwin454.960.8.4713.7
Amari Cooper454.663.1.4413.6
Golden Tate475.561.2.3013.5
Alshon Jeffery404.361.1.4513.1
Emmanuel Sanders404.961.4.3113.1
Jordy Nelson464.653.9.5113.1
Marvin Jones403.863.5.4512.8
Dez Bryant294.156.3.5112.8
Demaryius Thomas474.957.6.3312.7
Rishard Matthews303.958.0.4312.3
Allen Robinson304.355.1.3411.9
Sterling Shepard434.453.2.3311.9
Michael Crabtree464.448.4.4311.8
Kenny Golladay263.859.2.3111.6
Tyler Boyd304.354.4.2711.6
Will Fuller303.551.5.4711.5
DeSean Jackson413.659.7.2911.5
Jamison Crowder404.150.6.3311.2
Mike Wallace323.955.2.2611.1
Mohamed Sanu464.247.7.3311.0
Robby Anderson433.652.2.3511.0
Pierre Garcon324.557.1.1310.9
Marqise Lee304.051.8.2710.9
Randall Cobb374.444.5.2810.7
Ted Ginn363.448.6.2910.5
Sammy Watkins333.246.7.3910.4
Tyrell Williams483.250.8.3310.3
Kenny Stills472.945.2.4710.3
Tyler Lockett473.045.0.3310.0
Brandon LaFell363.642.9.319.7
Adam Humphries474.144.0.189.6
Devin Funchess413.142.1.379.6
Quincy Enunwa273.648.4.199.5
Nelson Agholor473.439.8.339.5
Kelvin Benjamin423.247.3.269.5
Corey Davis273.746.9.159.4
Jordan Matthews253.943.4.169.2
Cole Beasley473.738.7.269.2
Taylor Gabriel393.339.4.269.2
Dontrelle Inman333.343.9.249.1
DeVante Parker383.645.3.169.1
Paul Richardson242.841.9.339.1
Travis Benjamin302.741.5.319.0
Marquise Goodwin392.845.8.238.9
Danny Amendola304.041.1.118.8
Jeremy Maclin243.540.7.218.8
Chris Hogan402.741.3.308.7
J.J. Nelson262.339.3.358.6
Donte Moncrief372.836.9.328.4
Allen Hurns283.140.0.218.4
Zay Jones282.933.7.338.3
Willie Snead423.439.0.138.1
Kendall Wright273.338.1.158.0
Albert Wilson282.933.2.257.9
Josh Doctson272.835.4.267.9
Jermaine Kearse453.237.6.167.8
John Brown412.537.3.247.7
Terrance Williams323.036.3.137.5
Ryan Grant292.731.1.176.9
Seth Roberts462.729.3.196.8
Torrey Smith332.226.3.226.1
Chris Conley372.428.1.146.0
Tajae Sharpe302.227.9.135.9

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index