Aaron Rodgers made the rounds again for non-football-related reasons in the off-season. The often-controversial superstar called out his young receiving corps and criticized their effort and route-running before and after their preseason opener.
The Green Bay Packers brought in multiple young, promising wideouts to replace Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, which is way easier said than done. So, obviously, some growing pains are to be expected.
Moreover, Rodgers didn’t get to work with his young receivers right away. However, when asked whether his absence from OTAs may have had a negative impact on their development, he didn’t hesitate to shake off the blame.
Aaron Rodgers Says His Absence From OTAs Didn’t Impact Young WRs
“You know, not really,” Rodgers replied. “Training camp is a long experience. There’s plenty of time for conversations, for practice, for a lot of the things that expect them to do in the regular season.”
“I rely on the coaching staff to pass on the message as we’re learning the offense, and then I’m kind of the 202 professor,” he explained.“They’ve got to get kind of the base concepts, and when I come in, we have the offense outside of the paper offense. Obviously, (we have) some different players this year, but I feel like the offense, especially in the last week or so, has been clicking closer to where I think we should be trending.”
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He Holds The Young Stars To A High Standard
Rodgers then stated that he calls them out because he holds them to a high standard and thinks there should be an understanding of the bare minimum he expects from them. It’s not personal, it’s all about development:
“I think you have to be real about the expectations with all those guys, and at the same time, hold them to a standard of what they’re capable of at this time based on those expectations that are realistic,” Rodgers said. “The whole key is the consistency with what’s being taught. Consistency with seeing improvement each day and maybe just a reminder that every single one of those players, we’re watching.”
“I just think there needs to be an understanding of that and that’s what some of the conversations and film sessions have been about. We just want to see improvement from those guys, week-to-week,” the QB concluded.
The Packers will have little-to-no trouble ruling their division again, but that hasn’t been enough in the playoffs. So, if these young guns don’t catch up early, expect them to make some trades or work out veteran free agents.
