Team news: Green Bay Packers | Page 3

The 65-yard touchdown pass that Dontayvion Wicks caught in stride on the third play of Saturday's preseason opener at the Cleveland Browns was reminiscent of the 17 deep balls that Jordan Love connected on last year.

Only two quarterbacks hit on more throws of 25 or more air yards last season: New Orleans' Derek Carr and Miami's Tua Tagovailoa with 19.

As perfect as that throw looked against the Browns on Saturday as it floated 27.7 yards in the air, according to NFL Next Gen Stats tracking, it's easy to forget that even with 17 deep-throw connections last season, Love's completion rate on those passes was no better than 15th among all quarterbacks.

Working to improve Love's 34.7% success rate on throws of 25-plus air-yards has been a focus in training camp, the story said. So even though it was a preseason game, it was Love's first deep attempt in live action - and it was a success. The story added last year Love struggled to hit his speed receivers on deep throws, many of which were under thrown. Love's fantasy value seems to be on the rise and he's surrounded by a ton of talent on the offensive side of the ball. Success on deep throws will only help continue his climb. Love is currently ranked 10th on our QB list.

Sources: Packers rookie RB MarShawn Lloyd suffered a hamstring injury on Saturday afternoon.

Related players: Josh Jacobs, A.J. Dillon

The injury is not considered serious and he's expected to be fine for the season. However, we all know hamstring injuries can be tricky, so the team will be cautious with him, the post said. His time missed could set him back a bit on the depth chart, possibly making Dillon the RB2 to open the season behind Jacobs. Given Dillon's struggles last season, though, many feel Lloyd has a chance to earn the RB2 job at some point.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur on Christian Watson getting banged up yesterday: "That was a big time scare. He seems to be doing well."

LaFleur said he believes Watson will practice today.

Related Players: Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Bo Melton

If he is indeed already back to practice today, there shouldn't be much to worry about. A report from yesterday had Watson saying his knee was just "sore and bruised." Continue to draft him as a low-floor/high-ceiling play in this ascending offense.

Jordan Love and the Packers have agreed to a 4 year $220M contract, that makes him the highest paid QB in NFL history. He also gets a record $75M Signing Bonus plus $155M in new full guarantees.

The Packers offensive ascension went into overdrive in the second half of last season and now Love feels like a locked-in QB, regardless of what WR rotations they decide on. Nearly everyone on that side of the ball is young, making the sky the limit for the Franchise QB.

Matt LaFleur said he didn't think rookie RB MarShawn Lloyd (hip) would be out too long. He said probably would miss the next couple of days.

Related players: Josh Jacobs, A.J. Dillon

Lloyd has impressed in spring and it appears he'll be the team's RB2 behind Jacobs once the season gets started. Dillon is likely the third option and while reports say he's in great shape, Lloyd looks like the back you want to own as a backup to Jacobs.

Jordan Love will not practice until he has a new deal, Brian Gutekunst says.

Love’s camp informed Packers of that decision Saturday, the tweet went on to say. The move makes sense from Love's side of things, as he's poised for what many think is a huge year after turning the corner last season. The good news, according to the tweet, is Gutekunst says a deal could get done in the coming days. However, that's not a lock as big deals take time. Gutekunst added, “I feel we’re close.”

Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed was placed on the Non-Football Injury list Sunday.

The Packers reported for camp Sunday and will hold their first full practice Monday but Reed will not be among those participating. There wasn’t much in terms of an injury for Reed and this could just be a precautionary move by the Packers. Reed is coming off an impressive rookie season with almost 800 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. Reed is currently going in the first round on average in 12-team drafts.

The Packers placed Zach Tom and Tucker Kraft on the active/PUP list to begin training camp. They both tore pectoral muscles in the spring, but Matt LaFleur didn’t expect them to miss much of training camp, if at all.

Related Players: Luke Musgrave

It doesn't seem like this will keep Kraft off the field by the time the regular season rolls around, but Musgrave may have already taken over the TE1 role by then. With how many young, ascending wide receivers Green Bay has, this tight end competition is likely to negate either TE for fantasy purposes, though each will be on streaming radars if the other misses any time.

Free-agent RB AJ Dillon is expected to re-sign with the #Packers pending a physical.

Related Players: Josh Jacobs

The Packers opted to bring in Jacobs to replace Aaron Jones but are keeping Dillon, who finished 2023 as one of the least efficient running backs in football. Dillon has become an afterthought for fantasy football and should likely remain there.

The Packers are releasing star RB Aaron Jones. A three-time 1,000-yard rusher, Jones missed time with injuries last season and was due $12 million in 2024. Instead, he hits the market at age 29.

Related Players: Josh Jacobs

This is huge news for Jacobs, as he will likely only be competing with Patrick Taylor for touches as it stands, unless the team is contemplating keeping an under-performing A.J. Dillon. Jones will definitely land somewhere, so we'll be keeping an eye out.