Packers Sign WR Sammy Watkins to One-Year Deal

With Aaron Rodgers back in the fold and Davante Adams in Las Vegas, Green Bay has made a key addition to its passing game.
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After losing his favorite target in Davante Adams this offseason, Aaron Rodgers will have another pass-catcher to throw to.

The Packers have agreed to a one-year contract with wide receiver Sammy Watkins, the team announced on Thursday. News of the deal was first reported by Jordan Schultz. The contract will pay $4 million, per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network.

Watkins, who was the No. 4 overall pick in 2014, spent last season with the Ravens. In 13 games, he caught 27 passes for 394 yards and one touchdown, the lowest marks of his career. He had spent the previous three seasons with the Chiefs. The Packers will be his fifth team during his nine-year career.

Rodgers and the Packers will have a re-tooled passing game after Adams’s departure. The five-time Pro Bowler set career highs in receptions (123) and receiving yards (1,553) in 2021, hauling in 11 touchdowns. Adams had 169 targets last season, 109 more than the next-leading receiver (Allen Lazard with 60). Over the past four years, Adams has averaged 108 catches, 1,328 yards and nearly 12 touchdowns per season.

Watkins will join Lazard and Randall Cobb in Green Bay’s receivers room, along with Amari Rodgers, Juwann Winfree, Malik Taylor, Chris Blair and Rico Gafford.

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Nick Selbe
NICK SELBE

Nick Selbe is a programming editor at Sports Illustrated who frequently writes about baseball and college sports. Before joining SI in March 2020 as a breaking/trending news writer, he worked for MLB Advanced Media, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. Selbe received a bachelor's in communication from the University of Southern California.