The Green Bay Packers had a rough go of it in 2017. A clavicle injury to star quarterback Aaron Rodgers torpedoed a promising start, giving way to an erratic Brett Hundley and an increasingly frustrating offense.
If Packers fans felt the pain of Rodgers not being able to take the field, just imagine the anguish for anyone playing fantasy football last season.
Aaron Rodgers going down meant the end of Green Bay’s playoff hopes, but if you spent an early draft pick on Rodgers in fantasy leagues, that injury may have meant for a long and ugly season in the fantasy realm as well.
It didn’t just stop at Rodgers, though.
With their fearless leader off the field, the Packers passed the ball less and when they did Hundley didn’t always deliver amazing results. Jordy Nelson and other players suffered greatly from it – so much to the point where Nelson was even cut during the offseason.
While that was undoubtedly brutal, most fantasy gamers will go back to the well in 2018, with the man known as A-Rod back again as the consensus #1 quarterback in fantasy circles.
The return of Rodgers is good for the Packers and good for football in general. Because of this one star player, Packers fans can bet on the 2018 NFL season being a successful one.
It’s also amazing news for fantasy football.
Everyone knows Rodgers is a stud, but how much does he impact the rest of the Packers in terms of fantasy value? To put it simply, quite a bit.
Suffice to say, you’ll want to go out of your way to snag these five Packers players in fantasy football drafts this year:
Davante Adams – Wide Receiver
Adams is the most obvious Packers player to draft in fantasy football after Aaron Rodgers. He managed to remain productive even after Rodgers went down, somehow finishing as fantasy’s 12th best wide receiver.
That just shows you how much Adams has improved with Green Bay and now that the team handed him a fat contract, he has nothing to worry about other than improving his chemistry with Rodgers.
Said chemistry was already rock solid, too, so Adams will enter 2018 as a legit threat to crack the top-10 at his position.
The only problem is with a fantasy average draft position (ADP) or 6th among wide receivers, you may have to use an early pick to get him.
Jimmy Graham – Tight End
Like most Packers fans, I want some Green Bay players on my fantasy squad so I can both cheer on my favorite NFL team and also benefit from them at the same time.
I just don’t want to pay a premium for that right.
Drafting Jimmy Graham should allow you to get the best of both worlds, as you might be selecting a top-5 fantasy tight end, but the price doesn’t really reflect it.
It’s probably true that Graham isn’t quite the explosive athlete he was once was, but he’s still the most talented Packers tight end since Jermichael Finley and there’s little doubt the guy will be a factor in the red-zone.
Graham wasn’t ever properly utilized while in Seattle, yet he still found a way to rack up 10 scores in 2017 and finish as the 4th best tight end in fantasy football.
Considering Rodgers excels in the red-zone and hasn’t ever had a tight end of this caliber, the upside is clear to see. The best part? You can wait on drafting a tight end and snag this top-five lock in round five or later in most fantasy football drafts.
Aaron Jones – Running Back
While Rodgers clearly impacts the passing game more than anything else, I do think his presence could help a maturing rushing attack get even better in 2018.
One guy that is going to go overlooked is Aaron Jones, who was probably Green Bay’s most talented runner last year and should be in for a huge role in his second year as a pro.
Due to a two-game suspension to start the year, though, many fantasy managers will balk at his current ADP or be too scared by a potential running back by committee approach.
Green Bay is a threat to divide their carries evenly, but Jones may end up leading the way when it comes to early down and goal-line work when it’s all said and done.
Either way, the risk here is minimal, as you’re just taking a shot on Jones’ upside in round eight or later in most leagues.
Ty Montgomery – Running Back
While Jones is my favorite Packers running back to target in fantasy football drafts this year, I think Ty Montgomery offers sneaky value.
Montgomery was a fantasy bust last year, as Green Bay miscast him as a feature back. He quickly broke down due to a heavy workload and I have to think head coach Mike McCarthy uses him a bit more judiciously in 2018.
That should equate to a healthy amount of carries, while trying to focus on Montgomery’s quickness in space. That makes him more of a value in PPR (points per reception) leagues, but due to his upside in Green Bay’s system, his current 9th round ADP is just way too low.
The beauty here is Aaron Jones is out for the first two weeks, so it’s not that crazy to envision Montgomery taking on that huge role he got initially last year and running with it.
Randall Cobb – Wide Receiver
The exit of Jordy Nelson opens up a lot of targets – specifically in the short area passing game and the red-zone.
Jimmy Graham and Davante Adams are going to feast in the scoring department, but I have to think Cobb gets a lot of chances to thrive as a possession guy in 2018.
Cobb has regressed ever since a monster 2014 campaign, but it’s not crazy to think he could thrive with a bigger role. At just 27 years old, Cobb is still technically in his prime and considering he’s in a contract year, should be motivated to put up big numbers so he can land one more huge contract.
I’m not too worried about the risk involved, seeing as Cobb has mostly a slew of rookies to compete with and can be had as late as round 8 in most fantasy football drafts.
Overall, the point here is the return of Aaron Rodgers is a pretty big deal.
Rodgers is very much in the discussion to be the first fantasy passer off of draft boards and his sheer presence makes everyone around him worth owning.
That doesn’t make anyone listed here locks, but if you want Packers players with a shot at huge fantasy seasons, these are the guys you’re going to want to target.