GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Before there was Jared Cook, the duo of Richard Rodgers and Justin Perillo manned the tight end position for the Green Bay Packers.
Now that Cook’s sprained right ankle will keep him out for at least a month, dating to his Sept. 25 injury, it's Rodgers and Perillo once again.
In some ways, nothing’s changed for quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers coaches, who had not fully integrated the free-agent tight end Cook into their offense just yet. In three games, Cook played 93 snaps and caught six passes for 53 yards without a touchdown. In those same three games, Richard Rodgers played 104 snaps and caught five passes for 56 yards and a touchdown.
Cook was supposed to provide a dynamic, down-the-seam threat the Packers haven’t possessed since Jermichael Finley was their tight end and current New York Giants head coach Ben McAdoo was Finley’s position coach.
“It was interesting to me when they signed him; I really couldn’t wait to see him on tape, to see how they’d use him down the middle of the field,” McAdoo said this week of Cook. “I know he’s a little bit nicked up right now, but when you have a tight end in that offense that can win down the field, it changes the whole ballgame.”
And now they don’t have him again.
Yet the Packers still plan to attack the middle of the field.
“That’s something we’ll have to get done with Richard and Justin,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.
General manager Ted Thompson broke from his aversion to free agency in large part because Cook could provide something Richard Rodgers couldn’t: a big tight end with speed and a Finley-like catching radius. Rodgers, however, didn’t stand pat. He tried to streamline his body, shedding more than 15 pounds thanks in part to giving up his favorite candy -- Red Vines licorice, in an effort to make more plays down the field.
Last season, Rodgers averaged just 8.8 yards per catch, and that included the 61-yard Hail Mary touchdown he caught to beat the Lions at Ford Field. In a small sample size this year, he’s up to 11.2.
“You don’t have to be a lot faster,” Rodgers said. “You don’t have to go from a 4.6 to a 4.2 [40-yard dash time], but just being quicker in and out of breaks, short-area quickness, getting on blocks faster.”
It’s easy to forget that Rodgers caught 58 passes last season or that Perillo played in 10 games, including the playoffs.
“Rich was taking a lot of reps as it was, and the thing is it’s going to open up opportunities for Justin,” Aaron Rodgers said. “I’ve been a big fan of his since his first day here. He does it the right way; he works really hard. He’s got a great approach to the game, he’s got a great preparation schedule, obviously because he’s out there and you don’t worry about him. He just catches the ball and makes plays. Excited about his opportunities and Richard. I have a ton of faith in him, and I know he’s going to step in there and do his job.”