In Contested-Catch Opportunities, Packers Aren’t Helping Jordan Love

While Jordan Love hasn’t been good enough, he hasn’t exactly gotten a lot of help from his friends. These gruesome numbers paint a painful picture.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers’ passing game has been painful to watch, with inaccurate throws, shoddy pass protection and dropped passes providing the stubbed toes, hammered thumbs and skinned knees to a disappointing start to the season.

While there’s been plenty of “ow,” there hasn’t been much “wow.”

The best receivers don’t just get open and catch the ball. They make the highlight-reel plays – the diving grabs on third down, the toe-tapping plays at the sideline and the leaping catches in the end zone.

The Packers haven’t made many of those, which is a big reason why they’ve lost four in a row entering Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams.

In data provided to Packer Central by Pro Football Focus, Jordan Love has given his pass-catchers 47 opportunities in contested-catch situations. They’ve caught 10.

That contested-catch rate of 21.3 percent is by far the worst in the NFL. The only other teams at less than 30 percent are the Tennessee Titans (28.6 percent) and Kansas City Chiefs (29.7 percent).

Every other team is at least 10 percent better. Right in the middle of the pack, the Carolina Panthers have caught 41.2 percent of their contested-catch chances. The Rams are 10th at 43.3 percent. The Detroit Lions are No. 1 at 59.0 percent.

Romeo Doubs is Green Bay’s best, catching 5-of-13 (38.5 percent). The other starting receivers have been horrendous. Christian Watson is 0-for-8 and rookie Jayden Reed is 0-for-7. Watson has the most contested-catch chances in the NFL without a reception. Reed has the second-most.

“I think No. 1, that starts with the attitude of the guy going up for the ball. ‘It’s either mine or nobody’s,’” offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said. “And then, we practice that a lot actually where we’re working on fades and stuff like that. I think Romeo’s done a really good job in those situations. It all starts with a mindset of just going up there and attacking that ball.”

Packers WR Christian Watson can't come down a pass vs. the Vikings :: Photo by Benny Sieu/USA Today Sports Images

Watson’s 0-for-8 is stunning. As a rookie last year, of all receivers with at least 10 contested-catch chances, Watson’s 9-of-12 for 75.0 percent was tied for the best in the NFL. With his superior blend of height and athleticism, a 50/50 ball should slant in his direction. Instead, it’s been 0/100 in his four games.

“With Christian, we’ve had a couple of those moments where we wish we would’ve come down with it,” receivers coach Jason Vrable said. “I think last year coming back against Tennessee, he made a big one in the end zone and it was contested. We ended up being behind the guy and pulled the ball away.

“When you’re going up and getting it, it’s not just getting your hands on it and clinging it. You’ve got to be able to get the ball away and hopefully get it tucked before you hit the ground. Last week, I think there were two of them. We would’ve loved for him to make them. He’s going to continue to grind and work and his practice habits and just build confidence.”

Watson, like everyone on a struggling offense, knows he needs to do more. Entering the season, the hope – no, not the hope, the expectation – was Watson was on the verge of becoming Green Bay’s next second-round star receiver. During the final eight games of last season, he caught seven touchdown passes and had three 100-yard receiving games.

This year, he missed the first three games of the season with a hamstring injury, though he wouldn’t use the injury as an excuse.

“I’ve got to find a way to have it not be a 50/50 ball, have it be a 60/40 or 80/20 and just come down with it. Because I’m trying to be great,” he said. “I’m not trying to be just a guy who makes plays here and plays there. I’m trying to be a guy who can be relied on. ‘When we need to make a play, let’s throw it to No. 9.’

“So, it’s definitely something I need to be better at this year, more conscious of it. Obviously, there’s a lot of things that go into it. It’s easy to turn on the film and say, ‘Oh, he should have done this’ or ‘He should have done that.’ It’s different when you’re in that moment. But, at the end of the day, it’s a production-based business, so I’ve got to find a way to produce a little bit more.”

Against the Vikings, according to PFF, the Packers were 0-for-7 in contested-catch situations. Four were judged as drops and one was the deep interception intended for Reed.

“All our guys were crushed after this game,” Vrable said. “We didn't play good enough in our room and we all know that. [Dontayvion Wicks, who had a goal-line drop] was devastated, J-Reed was crushed. If he makes that play, Jayden makes that play, we come down with one of those balls, maybe we can change the outcome of the game.

“So, I told those guys, ‘We're this close, man.’ We're winning on some routes. We're starting to play cleaner. We're starting to play faster, more confident. And we've got to come down with the rock. Like I said, I'm feeling full confidence in our group going forward.”

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