Aaron Rodgers remains bullish on Green Bay Packers' WRs

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Aaron Rodgers sounded happier with his squad on Monday, saying that the Green Bay Packers offense is "clicking closer" to where it "should be trending."

Rodgers' comments came a week after he claimed that Green Bay's younger receivers have to be "way more consistent."

For instance, Rodgers said that he sees veteran receiver Sammy Watkins making mental strides.

"I feel like there's been a few guys who've made a jump mentally as we've gotten into the second and third week of camp, Sammy [Watkins] being one of them," Rodgers said. "I feel like he's been playing faster and making more precise decisions. But again, you've got to have realistic expectations for all our guys, not just the young players."

Watkins, 29, is one of the new faces at receiver for the Packers after the team traded Pro-Bowler Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders in March. Christian Watson, whom the Packers traded up to select with the No. 34 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and Romeo Doubs are among the other new faces. 

Doubs in particular has caught Rodgers' eye.

"Now Doubs has done a lot of really nice things, but I think the standard for him is not going to be maybe the standard for a normal rookie we've had here in the past, especially in the past four or five years, because he's going to be expected to play based on his performance so far in camp," Rodgers said. "So we've got to hold him to a standard that I know he's capable of reaching. But he cares about it. He's a great kid. He's made some instinctual plays that you just can't really coach."

The Packers will also look to Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb and Amari Rodgers for production on the outside. Lazard is the team's longest-tenured receiver, coming off a career-high eight touchdown receptions in 2021. Cobb is in his second stint with Green Bay, bringing nine years of experience in catching passes from Rodgers to the table. Amari Rodgers, a third-round selection in 2021, had just four receptions in his rookie season.

Rodgers is entering his 15th season as Green Bay's quarterback. He finished last season with 4,115 passing yards, 37 passing touchdowns, four interceptions and an NFL-best 111.9 quarterback rating, completing 68.9% of his passes. Rodgers has won back-to-back NFL MVP Awards.

Green Bay rounds out its preseason on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs on Aug. 25.