Packers: Three questions facing Jimmy Graham in 2018

The top three questions facing Green Bay Packers tight end Jimmy Graham this season.

Jimmy Graham enters 2018 as one of the Green Bay Packers’ splashiest free agency signings in recent memory.

He’s expected to be the dynamic receiving tight end that is so crucial to the team’s offense.

Here are three questions facing Graham this year:

1. Can he rebound from a disappointing 2017?

Graham’s 2017 was, in most respects, the least productive season he’s had since his rookie year in 2010. He caught 57 passes for just 520 yards, with 9.1 yards per reception being easily the lowest number of his career. Additionally, his 59.4 percent catch rate was also a career worst.

On the bright side, Graham caught 10 touchdowns, his most since leaving New Orleans. Overall, though, it was a very disappointing season, as the historically explosive weapon averaged a paltry 32.5 yards per game.

So can Graham rebound with Aaron Rodgers throwing him the ball? Or, at 31 years of age, are his best days behind him?

The Packers evidently think that Graham has plenty of juice left, as they signed him to a three-year contract (there is a potential out after two seasons).

Graham does not have an extensive injury history, with his most serious affliction being a torn knee patella ligament that put him on injured reserve in late November 2015. Physically, he may be in a similar position as the soon-to-be-28-year-old Randall Cobb, who has lost a bit of burst due to age and lower body injuries but remains a dangerous playmaker when used properly.

So what are the proper ways to use Graham? And will the Packers employ those methods?