The entire New York Jets organization will be under pressure in 2024, as the current regime will most likely get canned if they do not make the playoffs. However, veteran wide receiver Allen Lazard will be especially under the microscope.
Lazard had several issues with his game last season that caused him to flounder, via Jets X-Factor's Andrew Fialkow.
“After [Aaron] Rodgers went down in Week 1, it was clear that Lazard lacked juice in almost every important area, especially areas where he looked decent in the past,” Fialkow said. “Among 81 qualifying wide receivers, Lazard ranked last in drop rate (17.9%) and yards per route run (0.68) while placing 75th in YAC per reception (2.5). All three were easily the lowest in his career.”
With Rodgers now back on the field, Lazard will have no excuse not to be an average NFL wideout at least. However, he needs to prove that he can once again come down with catches in traffic.
“Another area of decline was contested catches, something the 6-foot-5 receiver was previously decent at,” Fialkow continued. “Before 2023, Lazard’s career contested catch rate was 46% (23-of-50). In his first season with the Jets, he ranked 75th at 23.5% (4-of-17).”
With Mike Williams now in New York, and Xavier Gipson and Jason Brownlee still around as high-upside young players, Lazard could tumble down the depth chart fast.
How will this year play out for the former Green Bay Packer?
Allen Lazard will be a background character on the Jets' offense
There have been conflicting reports on how Lazard did in OTAs and minicamp. Head coach Robert Saleh sang the 28-year-old's praises after he caught a touchdown from Tyrod Taylor in a situational drill on June 12th, newyorkjets.com's Ethan Greenberg.
“I feel like Allen has come in with a renewed mindset,” Saleh said. “I think he's attacked the heck out of the offseason. He's showed up in tremendous shape. He's like a second coach on the field and in that receiver room. He's been awesome, so I'm grateful that he's here. I think he's going to have a really nice bounce-back year.”
While Saleh's kind words can't hurt, the veteran coach is known for putting a positive spin on struggling players for the media. The most famous example of this is with Zach Wilson, who Saleh would constantly try to find a silver lining with last season despite his clear struggles.
What's troubling, though, is Lazard's lack of chemistry with Rodgers on May 29th's OTA practice, via The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt.
“There hasn’t been evidence yet of a resurgence for Lazard with Aaron Rodgers back,” Rosenblatt reported. “The $44 million receiver had a rough day on Wednesday. During seven-on-seven drills, Lazard dropped a pass from Rodgers at the sideline. In 11-on-11 drills in the red zone, Lazard was one-on-one with fifth-round rookie cornerback Qwan’tez Stiggers — who didn’t play in college and spent last year in the CFL — and Stiggers got the better of him. Lazard failed to properly position himself on a back shoulder throw from Rodgers. All told, Rodgers was 1 of 5 when targeting Lazard in seven-on-seven or 11-on-11 drills — and 8 for 10 when targeting anyone else.”
Rodgers skipped June's minicamp, so the pair have yet to rekindle the magic they had together in Green Bay. In 2022, Lazard recorded a career-high 60 catches for 788 yards with the future Hall-of-Famer slinging him the rock. His six touchdown grabs that season were second only to his eight scores in 2021, Rodgers' fourth MVP season.
If Lazard doesn't get back to his Green Bay form, then this will undoubtedly be his last year with the Green and White. The offense has plenty of mouths to feed between Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, and Williams, along with rookie tailbacks Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis. Of course, that's not including a possible trade for Las Vegas Raiders star Davante Adams, which has been one of the NFL's hottest rumors.
Lazard is unlikely to get cut this summer due to his contract, as he'd have an $18.7 million dead cap hit. The Iowa State alum does have a potential out on his deal next season, though, with his 2025 dead cap hit only valued at $6.6 million and no guaranteed money owed past 2024.
Lazard was handed a hefty four-year, $44 million deal last summer thanks to his Rodgers connection. While Wilson and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett did him no favors last season, his lack of production was still too harsh of a pill for New York to swallow on his current salary. The 6-foot-5 target has a crucial training camp ahead of him as he tries to stand out amongst a quality crew of skill-position talent.
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