Every season we see breakout stars come out of nowhere in the NFL. Here are five Green Bay Packers players set to shine in 2019.
The 100th NFL season is finally upon us, and the Green Bay Packers have the pleasure of kicking off the year against the Chicago Bears on Thursday night. The Packers finished the preseason with a record of 3-1 and largely avoided any major injuries. Aaron Rodgers didn’t log any snaps in the preseason, but Green Bay’s franchise quarterback assured fans he’d be ready to run the offense in Week 1.
The Packers also finalized their 53-man roster on Saturday, and there were little surprises to be had. Overall, Green Bay’s roster is extremely young, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The Packers’ receiving core is also young, with Davante Adams being the oldest of the group at 26 years old.
Speaking of Adams, the star receiver broke out in a big way in 2018. Could there be another receiver on Green Bay’s roster to break out in 2019? Adams exploded for 111 receptions, 1,386 yards and 13 touchdowns last season, largely carrying the Packers’ passing attack. In fact, 13 of Rodgers’ 25 touchdown throws went to Adams. The Packers will need another receiver to step up this season for Rodgers to rely on.
On defense, Green Bay sports a young but promising secondary. Kevin King, Jaire Alexander, Josh Jackson, Darnell Savage Jr., Tony Brown and Ka’dar Hollman are all 24 years old or younger. Among those, Alexander and Savage were first-round selections, while King and Jackson were each a second-rounder. The potential is there on the backend, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see a breakout from one of these players.
One thing’s certain, the Packers will need a huge leap from several young players after missing the playoffs the past two seasons. Here are five players set to break out in a huge way in 2019.
5. Robert Tonyan, TE
If you don’t know Robert Tonyan‘s name yet, you better get to know it now. In case you don’t remember, Tonyan had a beautiful 54-yard touchdown grab from Aaron Rodgers against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 11 last season. A former undrafted free agent out of Indiana State, Tonyan is now entering his second year as a pro. As a rookie in 2018, he recorded just four receptions for 77 yards and one touchdown.
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But don’t let those numbers fool you. Tonyan is primed for a huge leap in Year 2 in new head coach Matt LaFleur’s offense. We saw during the preseason how LaFleur’s passing attack worked to scheme open tight ends. And Tonyan is an athletic specimen who effectively serves as an oversized wide receiver.
He’s also improved in his run blocking based on what we saw in training camp and preseason. In fact, he’s probably the most complete tight end on the Packers depth chart, all things considered.
Tonyan may not usurp veteran starter Jimmy Graham, but the snap counts between the two could be closer than we think by midseason. Graham has never been adept at run blocking and he’s another year older. Set to turn 33 years-old in November, Graham will likely serve exclusively as a red zone threat.
The Packers could work to give Tonyan the majority of his reps in between the 20s, perhaps to the tune of 15-20 snaps per game. It’ll be up to Tonyan to take advantage of his opportunities.
4. Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR
The Packers haven’t had a true deep threat at wide receiver since Jordy Nelson was in his prime — a prime which abruptly ended due to a torn ACL in the 2015 preseason — but Marquez Valdes-Scantling appears to be next in line to take on that role. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers had no problem talking up Valdes-Scantling earlier in the offseason, noting his clear rise in confidence and ability to stretch the field.
Valdes-Scantling put together a nice rookie campaign in 2018, racking up 38 receptions for 581 yards and two touchdowns. His whopping average of 15.3 yards per reception ranked 16th-best in the NFL in 2018. Overall, Valdes-Scantling produced 10 catches of at least 15 yards, including two games with over 100 yards.
It’s unclear at this point who the Packers’ No. 2 receiver will be entering 2019. Veteran Geronimo Allison is a likely candidate due to his experience and rapport with Rodgers, but Valdes-Scantling has the higher upside. It wouldn’t be shocking to see Allison and Vales-Scantling be 2A and 2B as options at receiving threats; of course, Davante Adams is No. 1.
Valdes-Scantling may not have a ton of receptions in 2019, but his receiving yardage and yards per reception should be extremely healthy. He may not top 1,000 yards, but his presence as a field stretcher will be a valuable asset for Rodgers and the Packers offense.
3. Jaire Alexander, CB
After a promising rookie season in 2018, cornerback Jaire Alexander looks poised to take the next step in Year 2 of his young NFL career. Just ask Alexander himself, who said this earlier in the offseason he envisions himself as an All-Pro and Pro Bowler in 2019 (per Packers Wire):
"“I just want to have a good year. I see myself in the Pro Bowl. I see myself as an All-Pro. I’ve got all the confidence in the world. Last year was a great starting point for me, but this year is going to be my dog year. I’m ready to put my stamp on this.”"
The former 2018 first-round selection has never lacked confidence, as evidenced by his bold prediction of that he’ll be an All-Pro caliber player in 2019. It’s not just confidence in himself, either.
Alexander has been one of the clear-cut leaders on defense over training camp and the preseason. With the surprise departure of Mike Daniels right before training camp began, Alexander has stepped into the role of leading by example.
Still just 22 years old, the sky is the limit for Green Bay’s young, No. 1 cornerback. Alexander will be counted on to take away opposing teams’ No. 1 receivers all season long, many times without any safety help. One-on-one man coverage is a staple part of Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine’s attacking 3-4 scheme and Alexander is an ideal fit for the job.
2. Aaron Jones, RB
This guy might be the most obvious breakout candidate for the Packers in 2019. Running back Aaron Jones has the potential to be a top-five player at his position. He just needs two things to go his way: 1. Opportunity and 2. Stay healthy.
For starters, the Packers ran the ball the least amount of any team in 2018 (only 333 rushing attempts) and were last in overall run percentage (32.5 percent), as highlighted by The Athletic’s Ben Fennell. If that wasn’t bad enough, Green Bay also finished last in first-and-10 run percentage (39.2 percent). Only the Atlanta Falcons have had fewer attempts (321) since 2013.
Aaron Jones led the league with 31% of his carries going for a first down or touchdown in 2018. pic.twitter.com/V8ksl1cZE6
— PFF (@PFF) March 23, 2019
It didn’t take a genius to realize former head coach Mike McCarthy wasn’t giving the ball to Jones enough last season. But even with his limited touches — only 133 rushing attempts in 12 games — Jones was hyper-efficient, finishing the season with a league-leading 5.5 yards per attempt. He also holds the record for highest yards per attempt in NFL history at 5.5 yards per attempt (min. 200 attempts).
Giving Jones only 11 rushing attempts per game seems like a crime based on his production, but there’s one thing that’s held him back over his short three-year career: injuries. Jones has dealt with three separate knee injuries in his first two seasons and was sidelined for two weeks during training camp this season with a hamstring issue.
If Jones can stay healthy, it seems inevitable that he’ll reach his first 1,000-yard season.
1. Za’Darius Smith, OLB
Even though outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith is being paid a handsome sum after signing a lucrative four-year, $66 million contract this offseason, he still isn’t a household name. That should change based on what we saw in training camp and preseason, though. Smith was unstoppable in summer practices against the NFL’s best pass protector, left tackle David Bakhtiari, so imagine what he might do to lesser competition.
Smith was never a regular starter for his former team, the Baltimore Ravens, but was still a key cog for defensive coordinator Wink Martindale in 2018. He finished last season with 60 total pressures, 25 quarterback hits and a team-leading 8.5 sacks.
Perhaps most impressively, Smith did so on only 690 defensive snaps, meaning he generated a pressure on the opposing team’s quarterback on 8.7 percent of his snaps.
There’s a case to be made that Smith is the Packers best player on defense entering 2019. Depending on your standards, you might even believe Smith has already broken out as an NFL star.
He should blow his previous numbers away, though, especially if he performs anything like we’ve seen this summer. Smith is the perfect pass rusher in Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine’s system. Expect big things for ‘Z’ in 2019.