Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay Packers/Facebook
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay Packers/Facebook
Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur is approaching the team's offseason of change by anticipating even more of it.
Whatever decisions the defending NFC Central champions come to, LaFleur knows replacing top-flight wide receivers Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling won't come easy.
"Every year's a new challenge," LaFleur said in a video posted on Twitter. "There's a lot of unknown out there, but again there's a lot of time between now until when we kick off in about six months, so I'm sure there's going to be even more change that will take place."
With Adams now in Las Vegas after the two sides failed to reach terms on a new deal and Valdes-Scantling having signed with Kansas City as a free agent, the rush is on to find new targets for MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the NFL reported on their site.
"Certainly, if you look at our roster right now, we definitely need to get some speed in that room," LaFleur said during an NFL meeting. "We need a legit guy that can take off the top of the coverage. We lost a guy that was pretty good at doing that."
As it is, the team's receiver depth chart only counts fifth-year pro Allen Lazard, 31-year-old Randall Cobb and second-year pro Amari Rodgers, the NFL reported.
While trades are always a possibility and free agents such as Will Fuller and DK Metcalf have also been mentioned, chances are the team will use the two first- and second-round picks it has in the upcoming draft to address the shortage, ESPN reported.
"It's like putting a puzzle together; you've got to find those pieces that you're missing and put it all together," LaFleur said during the meeting. "How that's going to look in the end? I have no idea right now."
Brian Gutekunst, general manager for the Packers, is also busy trying to figure it all out, especially when it comes to replacing Adams, who is widely viewed as the league's best receiver, ESPN reported.
"To replace a guy like Davante Adams is gonna be kind of a multifaceted approach," Gutekunst told ESPN. "It won't be like a singular guy. And it might not be a singular approach."
As for Rodgers, LaFleur said he's ecstatic to have the 38-year-old quarterback back in the fold after the team recently inked the veteran to a three-year, $150 million extension, ESPN reported.
"I think he'll go as long as he wants to go," LaFleur said during the meeting. "Those aren't conversations that we have regularly. So we're just going to take advantage of the time that he is with us and continue to try to work and grind to hopefully someday be able to get a Super Bowl."