The Green Bay Packers were in the market for more than just wide receiver help at the NFL’s trade deadline on Tuesday. According to Rob Demovsky of ESPN, the Packers also “explored” their options in terms of trading for a tight end.
It’s fairly clear the Packers wanted to acquire a new weapon in the passing game.
In the end, the Packers got neither a new receiver nor a new tight end at the deadline, although Chase Claypool ended up in Chicago and T.J. Hockenson moved from Detroit to Minnesota.
The team’s interest in a wide receiver was well-reported. And the need at the position was obvious given the talent drain from last year and the injuries currently piling up this year.
However, the Packers also searching for help at tight end is something new.
Through eight games, starter Robert Tonyan leads the team in catches with 35 and is second in targets with 42. But Tonyan is also averaging only 8.2 yards per catch with one touchdown, and the Packers haven’t gotten much production out of veteran run-blocker Marcedes Lewis (one catch) or H-back Josiah Deguara (six catches).
Per Demovsky, it’s “unclear” if the Packers were in on Hockenson, the ninth overall pick in the 2019 draft and a 2020 Pro Bowler. He went to the Vikings in exchange for a swapping of future picks, including a second-rounder in 2023 going to Detroit.
The Packers were in on Claypool but lost out to the Bears. Did Brian Gutekunst also lose out on Hockenson to another NFC North rival?
It’s possible the team called about Miami’s Mike Gesicki or Tennessee’s Austin Hooper, but both players will be free agents after the 2022 season.
No deal was found, so the Packers – now 3-5 after losing four straight games – will go into the second half of the 2022 season without the spark of a new weapon in the passing game.
