Could Green Bay Packers use Randall Cobb More out of the Backfield?

Randall Cobb and the Green Bay Packers are used to steering the boat themselves, but an exposing loss this past Sunday to the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson stadium saw them fail to adjust to adversity on offense.  Following a meeting with Tampa Bay this weekend, the Green Bay Packers will face the Detroit Lions at home in a game with significant playoff implications.  Against a strong Lions defense and into the playoffs, Green Bay could begin to use Cobb more heavily out of the backfield in an effort to diversify their attack.

Mike McCarthy has peppered in Cobb from the backfield throughout the season, but the role became most noticeable in Week 13 against the New England Patriots.  Despite rushing just twice for eight yards in that game, Cobb ran routes from the backfield with some success.  As Greg Cosell of Yahoo Sports details, the Green Bay Packers exploited a matchup brilliantly on Randall Cobb‘s 33-yard reception against the Patriots, where Linebacker Rob Ninkovich was forced to follow the speedster out of the backfield.

Again in Buffalo, with the Packers struggling greatly to produce through the air, McCarthy shifted Cobb into the backfield.  When forced to adjust in-game, which the Packers have not always been successful with, Randall Cobb’s role is often the first change made to the offense, which is why I expect to see more of this through late December and January.

Moving Randall Cobb into the backfield puts the Green Bay Packers into a position of control from which they can best exploit matchups defensively.  At the line of scrimmage, Aaron Rodgers is able to move Cobb to his left or right depending on coverages, or have him run a route from the backfield in hopes of drawing a much slower Linebacker.  Of course, the threat always exists of Cobb running the football, which he has done 26 times for 246 yards in his career (9.5 Yards per Carry).

The Packers offense may not be easy to shut down, but Week 15 proved that it is certainly possible to do so.  With Rookie Davante Adams as the third option in the passing game, the absence of Tight End Jermichael Finley as another quality option behind Cobb and Jordy Nelson cannot be understated.  This causes Randall Cobb’s versatility to be one of Green Bay’s most valuable weapons when their initial game plan is unsuccessful.

Already enjoying a career year as a receiver with his first 1,000 yard season and a shot at 90 receptions, Cobb’s return abilities and dynamic skill from the backfield represent that “something different” which Green Bay may need to push themselves over the top come playoff time.

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