NFC Notes: Lions, Packers, Christian Watson

Lions

Lions WR D.J. Chark is set to face the Jaguars, his former team, and says he is treating it like any other game.

“I’ve missed six games, so at this point, every game is circled on the calendar,” Chark said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “I just want to get out there and show myself what I can do. I’m happy that I could get back in time to play in this game, but yeah, for me, every game’s the same. It’s the season’s coming to an end, we have a chance to push further, we’ll see how that goes, but I want to go out there and showcase my talent and help this team win ’cause we can.”

“It’d be good to see those guys and be able to compete against them,” Chark added. “I’m proud of how that team is much better than what [they were] the past few years. Similar situation to here as far as competing and being in games, so I think it’ll be a good game. It’ll be fun.”

Christian Watson

Packers’ rookie WR Christian Watson said that Aaron Rodgers informed him that he won the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Month honors for November. 

“I hadn’t checked my phone or anything,” Watson said, via ProFootballTalk. “Twelve congratulated me before I knew. He kind of — I don’t want to say spoiled it — but he let me know, so that was a cool interaction. He congratulated me for that.”

Watson added that he is still “a long ways” from how he wants to be playing. 

“I’m still a long ways from where I want to be,” Watson said. “I’m going to keep on pushing to strive to be the best version of myself. There’s no plateau in terms of my work and my preparation going forward, no contentment with where I am. I’m still on the rise.”

Watson mentioned that he has a lot of pride in his speed and is eager to use his mobility against defenders. 

“It’s something I’ve been doing all my life,” Watson said. “I take a lot of pride in my speed. When I see somebody I think I can outrun — which is pretty much everybody — I’m going to do my best to utilize my speed.”

Packers

2022 started out as the year of the blockbuster trade, and the Packers’ decision to trade away WR Davante Adams for first and second-round picks was one of the biggest moves of the offseason. It’s hard to say it’s worked out for Green Bay. 

“For the Packers, that did not work,” an NFL personnel exec told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. “For Rodgers‘ peace of mind, you keep [Adams]. Green Bay perhaps didn’t realize what their identity was, which is Rodgers to Davante. That was the offense when they needed a play.”

Things fell apart because the Packers dragged their feet on extending Adams, then when they came around on the money side, Adams had moved on to the idea of playing in Las Vegas with his college quarterback Derek Carr.

“Bringing Adams back just feels like something Green Bay should have worked out, though Rodgers‘ indecision about his future must have played a factor for the team and maybe even Adams,” an NFC scouting exec added.