Green Bay Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard pointed to the loss of Davante Adams, newcomers at wide receiver, the departure of offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and a lack of overall chemistry as the reasons why Green Bay’s offense struggled at times in 2022, especially during the first half of the season.
Lazard explained his thoughts in an answer to Bruce Murray and Rich Gannon of SiriusXM NFL Radio on Wednesday.
“First thing to point out, that’s obvious, is that we lost Davante Adams. Losing a player of that caliber, you’re going to have a setback regardless. Having him the previous three or four seasons, sets a high expectation and standard for our offense,” Lazard said. “For us, I think having new faces, losing coach Hackett, and not building that chemistry throughout the season rather than building it during training camp and during the offseason held us behind the eight ball the first half of the season.”
The Packers averaged only 21.8 points per game and quarterback Aaron Rodgers labored through one of the worst statistical seasons of his starting career as Green Bay finished 8-9 and missed the postseason.
Lazard, the assumed No. 1 receiver, caught 60 passes for 788 yards and six touchdowns but didn’t come close to replacing Adams’ incredible blend of production and play-making ability.
Rookies Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs flashed but were inconsistent overall throughout the full 17-game season, and veteran addition Sammy Watkins wasn’t nearly good enough – or available enough – to fill in the gaps.
Hackett, who left to be the Denver Broncos head coach in 2022, was replaced as the offensive coordinator by offensive line coach Adam Stenavich, producing a talent drain and the introduction of inexperience at the top of the offensive coaching staff.
Lazard held out during the offseason workout program. Rodgers showed up for mandatory minicamp but was otherwise absent during the offseason. Watson had a knee injury and missed training camp.
Injuries also played a factor. Rodgers dealt with a fractured thumb and a ribs injury. At receiver, Lazard, Watson, Dobbs, Randall Cobb and Watkins all missed games due to injury.
Combine all of the factors and the margin for error became razor-thin for the Packers offense. Oftentimes, the group wasn’t able to overcome the thin margins and failed in big situations.
Did the Packers need to do more to replace Adams? Did the quarterback need to be around during the offseason workout program? Was the loss of Hackett a bigger deal than realized on the outside? Were the injuries just too much to overcome? All appear to be legitimate questions coming out of a highly disappointing 2022 performance from the Packers offense.
