The latest buzz in Green Bay has surrounded Driver’s future with the Packers. As it stands, his restructured contract consists of a $2.5 million one-year deal and a $500,000 roster bonus due in early June. Unfortunately, even with this deal, there is no guarantee that he won’t be cut before the season begins.
Further speculation looms as McCarthy suggests the possibility of six receivers, as opposed to the typical five. Hopefully, this is a good sign for those supporting Driver’s continued career with the team. Although keeping six receivers will cause cuts elsewhere, this seems to be the wiser option. The more, the merrier, for now.
It seems very unlikely that Driver would be dropped at this point. Unless he has an unusually poor performance leading up to the regular season or an injury, they would be hard-pressed to rationalize a cut. He remains adamant about staying the course with the Packers, and is still an asset to the team. Some view last season’s performance as a “low” for Driver, with many other receivers performing significantly better.
I think last season being viewed as a low is a bit of a stretch, and fails to factor in other aspects. With players like Nelson and Finley (just to name a couple) making great strides on the receiving end, it’s not possible for everyone to top the leaderboard. Driver’s performance continues to have elements of consistency. No, last year was not a 1,000 yard season for him. But, his number of TDs is not drastically different from seasons with 1,000+ receiving yards. I would take a player with 100 yards and 10 TDs over the guy with 1,000 yards and 4 TDs any day. Scoring wins games. So, throw out a better reason than coming in 5th.
The bottom line is that there are a lot of talented and younger players, who often get more playing time. This is part of development, with veteran players eventually handing off the torch. Driver has enough self-awareness to know if and how he continues to fit in with the Packers. I foresee a few more Lambeau Leaps in his future.
