To say the Green Bay Packers boast a young receiver room would be an understatement.
The Packers currently have 10 wideouts on their offseason roster. Of the 10, only one didn't come out of the last two drafts -- Jeff Cotton, a 2020 undrafted free agent out of Idaho who has played a grand total of one offensive snap in his NFL career.
General manager Brian Gutekunst drafted Christian Watson (second round), Romeo Doubs (fourth round) and Samori Toure (seventh round) last season. He added three more wideouts this year: Jayden Reed (second round), Dontayvion Wicks (fifth round) and Grant DuBose (seventh round). Green Bay also signed undrafted rookies Malik Heath and Duece Watts after the draft and has Bo Melton (a 2022 seventh-rounder by Seattle) on the roster.
Coach Matt LaFleur noted that the club could add a veteran presence at some point, but for now, they're comfortable letting youth reign and allowing the group to develop at its own pace.
"I think time will tell, but it's certainly a very talented room," LaFleur said Saturday. "It's going to be a hell of a competition in terms of who's getting the snaps, because just at first glimpse at some of these young guys that just were in here, there are some talented guys. So they're going to be exciting to work with. ... I'm sure it's going to be a very fluid situation in terms of just how much we throw at them and, if need be, I know Gutey is going to do whatever we can to help us field the best possible team.
"If need be, I think we would turn that way, but right now I think we're going to just let those guys compete."
The Packers plan to allow the young wideout corps to grow together with quarterback Jordan Love, who enters his first season as the full-time starter. That strategy might come with some growing pains but would allow for the best long-term future.
