Green Bay Packers: The NFC North All-Avoid Fantasy Football Team
5. Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers
There are quite few things to like about the one-time college quarterback, who theoretically should still have the best years of his career ahead of him at 26 years old.
For one, Cobb is a clutch player that has performed in big games and earned the trust of Aaron Rodgers.
When healthy, the 5-foot-10 slot receiver still possesses the quickness to separate from defenders underneath along with the toughness to put his body on the line in the effort of gaining first downs.
But while many expected Cobb to bounce back from a sub-par and injury-riddled 2015 campaign, the former first-round pick took a back seat to No. 2 man Davante Adams in the hierarchy of passing options last season.
His weekly targets dwindled from 8.06 to 6.4 while his yards-per-reception totals have experienced a two-year slide from 14.1 in 2014 to 10.5 and 10.2 respectively over the past two years.
Just as concerning is Cobb’s inability to avoid injury and maintain an elevated level of play.
As a sub-6-foot pass catcher that doesn’t clear the 200-pound mark, No. 18 isn’t built to withstand the violent poundings administered by safeties and linebackers across the middle.
Though Cobb has valiantly suited up for 41 of 48 games over the past three seasons, the instances of the Kentucky product slowly getting up from a hard tackle and even missing plays as a result have been steadily increasing.
The additions of Martellus Bennett and Lance Kendricks to the tight end corps, moreover, could easily eat into the 7th-year pro’s workload considering that they will run the majority of their routes inside.
And based on Geronimo Allison’s auspicious start to his pro career, one would have to anticipate the 6-foot-3 vertical threat also seeing more snaps and earning a bigger share of the target pie at the expense of Cobb.
Green Bay’s No. 3 receiver should supply a few scattered prodigious outings, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to predict when those will take place, as his star seems to be dimming in the Dairy State.