The 2023 season for the Green Bay Packers was one filled with unpredictability and unknowns. They traded their hall of fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets during the off-season and that left his replacement, Jordan Love to take the reins.
Green Bay was the youngest team in the entire league last year. Through all the ups and downs, they went a respectable 9-8 and got hot in the back end of the season winning six of their final eight regular season games to get in the playoffs. The postseason started with an upset win over the Dallas Cowboys in dominant fashion, 48-32.
The Pack lost in the divisional round to a very familiar foe, the San Francisco 49ers, 23-20 but it was clear the future was bright given the talent on the team. But question marks still remain, the biggest being: who on the team needs to step up in the 2024 season? I have a few answers.
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Christian Watson, wide receiver
Christian Watson is coming off a season filled with hamstring issues, which is unfortunate because the season prior saw him record seven touchdowns in an 11-game stretch as a rookie. His best attribute is his speed as a deep threat receiver. When healthy, he adds a different dimension to the Packers offense. Key words: when healthy.
Josh Myers, center
One of the most consistent things about Green Bay in 2023 was the play of their offensive line for the most part. Josh Myers started all 17 games for the second consecutive season and is entering the final year of his rookie contract.
The issue with him is consistency with good snaps. A lot of them last year were just too low for quarterback Jordan Love to get a handle on. If he wants to keep that position, he’s gonna need to show vast improvement.
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Eric Stokes, cornerback
To say the very least, Stokes was unavailable for the majority of the season due to injuries. He only played in three games all season. He’s entering the final year of his rookie deal and the Packers are forced to make a decision about whether they want to pick it up or not.
His career as a whole has not been great up to this point. His rookie year, he led all first-year cornerbacks in passes defensed with 14 but ever since it’s been an up and down rollercoaster. If he wants to be back in Green Bay beyond 2024, he will have to play like he has something to prove. Let’s see if he can do it.
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Rashan Gary, EDGE
Gary was coming off an ACL tear he suffered in 2022. Although no one knew what to expect, he started the first half of the year strong, including two games recording three sacks. But after Thanksgiving, he really was just quiet the rest of the season which was surprising.
I look for him to bounce back next year and be one of the top linebackers in football and wreak havoc.
Anders Carlson, kicker
Where do I start? Oh boy. (Deep breath) Carlson was not very good last season to put it kindly. He missed a total of 11 kicks, five extra points and six field goals. His weakest point was from 40-49 yards as he only made 50% of field goals from that range (4 out of 8). Extra points? Meh.
34 out of 39 on extra points is not very good. Missed kicks do happen but consistency is the name of the game. Special teams came back to bite Green Bay in the postseason against the San Fransisco 49ers as Carlson missed a kick from 43 yards in the fourth quarter with the Packers leading 23-20 at the time. San Fransisco would capitalize and go down the field and score a game winning touchdown on the following drive.
Because of Carlson’s constant struggles throughout the season, the Packers were forced to sign kickers to their roster before training camp to compete: veteran kicker Greg Joseph and rookie Jack Podlesny. Let’s see if Carlson can step up and improve after a very inconsistent rookie season.