Surprising young wide receiver is turning heads for the Packers

Juwann Winfree, Packers
USA Today Images

The Green Bay Packers have a lot of talent at the wide receiver position, although the national media seemingly doesn’t believe that to be the case. Despite all of the outcry to bring in more talent for Aaron Rodgers to work with, the franchise is very happy with their wide receiver room.

Davante Adams is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL, Allen Lazard and Marques Valdes-Scantling are both capable of making plays, and the Packers are very high on third-round pick Amari Rodgers. However, there is another wideout who has been turning heads for Green Bay so far this offseason.

While many fans may have no clue who Juwann Winfree is, they could be finding out in the very near future. ESPN’s Rob Demovsky called Winfree the biggest surprise from the Packers’ minicamp.

The former sixth-round pick of the Broncos in 2019 has played in five career NFL games (three for Denver, two for Green Bay last year as a practice-squad elevation) but has never caught a pass. He caught plenty of them throughout OTAs and minicamp this spring, and while the Packers’ top four receivers appear set — Davante Adams, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Allen Lazard and rookie Amari Rodgers — Winfree looks like he’ll make a strong run at a spot in the rotation.

Standing in at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, Winfree couples great size with great speed and athleticism. He could end up being a secret weapon for the Packers. However, he still has an uphill battle to win a roster spot.

Just because we’re talking about him turning heads now, that doesn’t mean that he will continue to do so in training camp and preseason action. But, he is certainly a name to keep a close eye on for the roster bubble.

Whether the Packers have Aaron Rodgers or Jordan Love under center in Week 1, they need a good group of five wideouts to roll with. Winfree will be competing directly with Equanimeous St. Brown for the final wide receiver spot. At this point in time, it appears that Winfree could be the front-runner to win that spot.

Only time will tell whether or not he can keep up his impressive performance, but Juwann Winfree is making a name for himself. The Packers like what they see, and we can’t wait to watch him play in preseason action.