Elite WR prospect offers Packers more than just a limited role if they finally end first-round drought at the position
This is an invite to reevaluate your concepts if you are skeptical about Emega Egbuka because he's primarily a slot receiver. Yes, he played the majority of his college snaps at Ohio State in the slot. But first, he can be much more than that. And second, even if he is in fact a primary […]
This is an invite to reevaluate your concepts if you are skeptical about Emega Egbuka because he's primarily a slot receiver. Yes, he played the majority of his college snaps at Ohio State in the slot. But first, he can be much more than that. And second, even if he is in fact a primary slot, he can still be a top target and a valuable selection for the Green Bay Packers in the first round next week—the team had him in for a top-30 pre-draft visit.
The Packers haven't drafted a first-round receiver since 2002, and that happened when Mike Sherman was a head coach and general manager at the same time. The tree with Ron Wolf, Ted Thompson, and Brian Gutekunst has never done it. Not in Green Bay, at least. John Schneider did it for the Seattle Seahawks, and Jaxon Smith-Njiba, guess what, is a primary slot as well.
Egbuka is much more than that
At Ohio State, Emeka Egbuka played most of his snaps inside. Last season, he played out wide in only 70 snaps, versus 343 in the slot. That proportion was more balanced in 2022 (276 in the slot, 122 out wide).
But it's not like he doesn't play well when he is outside. In those snaps, Egbuka had 2.78 yards per route run. That's better than full season numbers for Matthew Golden (2.1), Luther Burden (2.32), and Jayden Higgins (2.66), and close to Tetairoa McMillan (2.87). Those are the other four top wide receivers of this class by consensus.
He wasn't as efficient against man coverage by production numbers, but the combination of solid route running, contested catch ability, and football intelligence make him a chess piece all around the offense.
Slot is not necessarily a diminished role
Even after looking at all those numbers, you can still feel like Egbuka is better suited to play in the slot. Several NFL teams could feel the same way. However, even if that's the case, it's still possible to generate surplus value and top production from these players.
It's 2025. Most NFL offenses play in 11 personnel almost the entire time, and slot receivers (especially great ones) will be on the field all game.
Last year, five of the top 10 receivers in passer rating when targeted played at least 50% of their snaps in the slot: Jayden Reed (!), Amon-Ra St. Brown, Chris Godwin, Ladd McConkey, and DeVonta Smith.
McConkey, Godwin, St. Brown, and CeeDee Lamb were all in the top 15 in yards per route run as well. It's not only efficiency with easier targets, it's real effectiveness too.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, whom the Packers bypassed to select Lukas Van Ness in 2023, finished last season with 1,130 yards and six touchdowns, and that was splitting targets with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett.
Matt LaFleur's offense intricacies
First, you might think that Egbuka and Jayden Reed may be redundant pieces of an offensive structure. That's not exactly right. Even though both could be considered slot receivers, they are physically different and execute different roles.
Reed is shorter and smaller, especially productive with horizontal speed. Egbuka is more of a technician, exploiting defensive fragilities with his route running ability.
Egbuka might have been an afterthought sometimes because he played with Marvin Harrison Jr., Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jeremiah Smith, and Carnell Tate. But he's an offensive coach's dream, because he does every little thing correctly.
LaFleur's offense has one specific aspect that might make life easier for him. The Packers play with condensed sets a lot, just like this entire Kyle Shanahan/Sean McVay offensive tree. So even if Egbuka would be theoretically asked to play out wide, it would still be closer to the middle of the field than within a spread offense.
Wide receiver is a premium position for on-field impact and financial gain. And it's hard to project a player with higher chances of having immediate production than Egbuka. He offers much more than a limited role, and the Packers could add a transformative piece that is hard to find in the late phase of the first round.
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