Three Packers Make PFF’s All-Breakout Team

Among the Green Bay Packers selections to PFF’s All-Breakout Team for the 2023 season: second-year receiver Christian Watson.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – With Aaron Rodgers leading a veteran exodus, the Green Bay Packers are going to need several breakout performances to beat the odds and win the NFC North.

That’s just what Pro Football Focus is projecting, with three members of the Packers selected to its All-Breakout Team.

As one of three receivers on the PFF squad, Christian Watson is the obvious selection. From Game 10 (Watson’s breakout performance against Dallas) through Game 17 (Watson topping 100 yards in the finale vs. Detroit), he led all NFL receivers with seven touchdown receptions.

Of the 50 players with at least 30 receptions during that span of games, Watson’s 10.1 yards per target ranked fourth.

During those final eight games, he topped 100 yards three times but fell short of 50 yards in the other five games. Still, his eight-game totals of 31 receptions for 523 yards and seven touchdowns turn into a 17-game projection of 66 receptions for 1,111 yards and 15 touchdowns.

One of PFF’s advanced stats is particularly noteworthy: Of the 68 receivers that were targeted at least 60 times, Watson’s contested-catch rate of 75.0 percent was tied for No. 1 in the NFL.

“Christian, you can feel his speed out there,” coach Matt LaFleur said last week. “Just where he is at just in terms of his knowledge of the offense is night and day. He’s a real leader in that room.”

As one of two defensive tackles, Devonte Wyatt is another rather obvious selection. The second of the team’s first-round picks last year, Wyatt through 12 games had only one game of 15-plus snaps – 20 at Philadelphia in Week 12. With veteran Dean Lowry out with an injury, Wyatt finished the season with games of 24, 34 and 32 defensive snaps.

His potential jumped to the forefront with the extended playing time. Of his season-ending totals of 1.5 sacks, three quarterback hits and eight quarterback pressures, Wyatt had one sack, two hits and four pressures during the final three games.

His four tackles for no gain or negative yardage came during the final four games.

With Lowry and Jarran Reed exiting in free agency, a starting job has been dropped in Wyatt’s lap.

“Devonte, Year 1 to Year 2, I expect a massive jump for him,” defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery said at the start of OTAs.

The surprise inclusion was center Josh Myers. While Myers took all the first-team reps during the three OTAs that were open to reporters, the coaches have said Zach Tom could challenge him for the starting job. That the first center selected in the 2021 NFL Draft is anything but a stone-cold lock to start has to be a disappointment, no matter the spin.

“I don’t think anybody works harder than Josh. He just needs to keep working, just like everybody else,” offensive line coach Luke Butkus said at the start of OTAs. “We’re going to get better and we’re going to push each other to get better every single day. He’s not meeting our expectations – that’s not what we’re talking about. He just needs to keep working to get better, just like everybody else in that room.”

PFF noted Myers’ graded better as a run blocker and pass protector in Year 2.

Click here for the full team.

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Even with an 8-9 record last year, #Packers coach Matt LaFleur's winning percentage ranks among the best in NFL history. No wonder why he's PFF's "reason for optimism."https://t.co/cnH0PsUqER

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) June 11, 2023

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