The Green Bay Packers finished 13-3 in 2019 and found themselves in the NFC Championship Game. Despite the successful season, this is a team that has some work to do on both sides of the ball. Most importantly, at wide receiver.
Davante Adams continued to be a bright spot in the Packers' offense but he was on his own on the outside. Green Bay needs to use a first-round pick on a wide receiver during the 2020 NFL Draft. That should be fairly obvious. This would leave players like Marquez Valdes-Scantling in an awkward position.
Valdes-Scantling was not good in 2019. He finished the season with 26 catches for 452 yards and two touchdowns. He totaled just five catches for 36 yards from Week 7 and on. Valdes-Scantling has just one catch in the postseason and was not even targeted during the NFC title game against the San Francisco 49ers.
The reason for his magical disappearing act is unknown, but the Packers should look for takers on him in the offseason.
Why should the Packers trade a young wideout?
Valdes-Scantling is only 26-years old. He has been in the league for two years and some would say that it is too early to give up on him. Those people would be wrong.
This is one of the deepest wide receiver draft classes in a very long time. The Packers could get a great prospect with a high ceiling near the end of the first-round such as Jalen Reagor, KJ Hamler, or Justin Jefferson. This would be an immediate upgrade from Valdes-Scantling and give Aaron Rodgers another weapon.
If the Packers decide to go this route, Valdes-Scantling might not make the team. He had a strong camp last year and that landed him No. 2 on the depth chart out of a weak group of receivers. If Green Bay upgrades, that will not be the case this time around. So that leaves the Packers with a choice, cut or trade Valdes-Scantling.
Despite his mediocre 2019 season, the Packers might be able to turn the South Florida product into a late-round pick. Teams could look at Valdes-Scantling's age and think that a change of scenery could spark some success. This would be in the cards for an up-and-coming team looking for young talent.
That is not Green Bay. The Packers are a team that has arrived and is ready to win now. To do so, they need to get their superstar quarterback a stud in the draft and improve their defense.
If they do that, Green Bay could find themselves back in the title game in 2020.
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