Green Bay Packers receiver Randall Cobb has 'significant' groin injury and will be out for 'a while'
GREEN BAY, Wis. - The Green Bay Packers will not have receiver Randall Cobb during a key December stretch due to a groin injury he suffered against the Los Angeles Rams on Nov. 28.
Coach Matt LaFleur said that Cobb suffered “a pretty significant injury” and would be out for “a while.”
LaFleur did not say whether Cobb would need surgery, but if he can avoid it, it’s possible he could be back at some point this season or in the postseason. The Packers have not put Cobb on injured reserve, so they may either feel he can return or are waiting until he can see a specialist.
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The Packers listed the injury as a core muscle and will keep their fingers crossed that the injury isn’t as severe as what Allen Lazard and several other former Packers receivers and cornerbacks have suffered over the years. If the tear is big enough, it requires surgery, which is most often done by Philadelphia area surgeon William Meyer, who specializes in core muscle repairs.
Lazard missed six games with the injury last year after Meyer performed the surgery.
Either way, Cobb won’t play Sunday against the Chicago Bears, forcing LaFleur to do some shuffling to replace him when he lines up in the slot.
"It's really going to be everybody,” LaFleur said. “And that can change on a weekly basis. But we'll use Allen in there a little bit. We'll use ‘EQ’ (Equanimeous St. Brown), (he’s) been playing really well as of late, and not only on offense, but on special teams as well.
“And then we'll continue to move Davante (Adams) around and put him in there a little bit.”
Cobb ranks third on the team in receptions with 28 catches for 375 yards and five touchdowns. He has played in 47% of the offensive snaps in 12 games and serves as the team’s backup punt returner behind rookie Amari Rodgers.
Cobb’s best game of the year was against the Rams when he caught four passes for 95 yards and a touchdown. It was on the touchdown catch that he suffered the injury and left the game.
“That's unfortunate because I thought he's done such an amazing job,” LaFleur said Thursday. “When given the opportunity, I think a lot of this — we're talking about just his targets on third down alone — he was 8 of 10 when he got targeted in converting first downs.”
LaFleur said that Rodgers will be in the mix for replacing Cobb, but since he is a rookie and has not been part of the offense much this season, he won’t be the exclusive slot receiver. Rodgers was drafted in the third round to compete for the slot position, but after general manager Brian Gutekunst gave in to quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ demand to trade for Cobb, Rodgers became mostly a special teams player.
Gutekunst gave up a sixth-round pick for Cobb and is paying him $5.25 million this year. Cobb, 31, has missed 18 games over the past six years, including 14 since 2018.
“As far as Amari is concerned, I think he is still a young player, and he's still growing and he's going to get better,” LaFleur said. “We’ve got a lot of high expectations for him to continue to grow and develop. And, you know, I do think he'll get more opportunity.”