Jordy Nelson Would Help Aaron Rodgers and Packers, But It Ain't Happening

Jordy Nelson is in the news cycle because he told the Dan Patrick Show that if Aaron Rodgers called and asked him to come back it’d be hard to say no. While the Packers in my opinion definitely would’ve been better if they’d kept the receiver around last season and from a forward-looking perspective I believe that’s true next year as well, that ain’t happening.

Nelson, by his own admission, would have been willing to take a substantial paycut to remain with the Packers last offseason. Nevertheless, general manager Brian Gutekunst moved on from the veteran, who wound up signing with the Raiders.

In the eight games that Nelson played in but Rodgers was out in 2017, he had just 25 catches, accumulated zero touchdowns, and never had more than 35 receiving yards in a game. Obviously, some of this is attributable to the fact that Brett Hundley was responsible for throwing him the ball — in the first six games of that season, Nelson had 50 or more receiving yards four times and caught six touchdowns.

You might ask what would be the harm in bringing Nelson into camp, evaluating if he’s still got it, and moving on before the regular season if he does not. This, however, would disrupt Aaron Rodgers’ equanimity to a point where I can see why Packers brass wouldn’t believe this particular scenario were worth the gamble.

That being said, at this juncture the Packers do not have an inspiring list of pass catchers after Davante Adams. Jimmy Graham didn’t look especially great last season. Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Equanimeous St. Brown both showed glimpses of promise in their rookie campaigns, but neither was a consistent threat. Even if they add more receivers via the Draft, it generally takes a bit of time for young pass catchers and Rodgers to click.

One would think that Rodgers and Nelson would even to this day have a chemistry that can in part reconcile some of Nelson’s diminished physical capabilities, but if the Packers front office didn’t think so a year ago it’s hard to fathom they’d have changed their minds right now.