Jimmy Graham: “I Never Lost This Much”

When Jimmy Graham landed in Wisconsin, Green Bay fans were in ecstasy. One of the best tight ends in the league chose to team up with Aaron Rodgers and attack the Super Bowl.

Or at least that is what he thought.

The 32-year old who was the tight end with the most touchdowns in the NFL last season, is experiencing a lot of troubles. Injuries, losses, and bad numbers.

“I’ve never lost this much, so it’s obviously not something I’m used to,” Graham said.

His impact on Packers game has been everything but visible, and his contribution on the offensive plays is the lowest in his career.

In 13 games he played so far, the 5-time Pro Bowl selection has 46 receptions for 549 yards and only 2 touchdowns. Though the first two categories are better than with the Seahawks, his executing figures deteriorated significantly.

As the season went by, Graham’s numbers were decreasing, and in five of the last seven contests, he had two or fewer catches. Still, he doesn’t mind that, because he only wants his team to win. On the other side, Graham does admit that his overall performances are not good at all.

“My numbers suck,” he told earlier today, and continued. “That’s not what it’s about. I just want to win games. If I have one catch for 2 yards and we win, I don’t care. But obviously it’s not great when you’re not helping us win, and that’s what I see.”

On November 15th, former Saint and Seahawk broke his thumb, and ever since he has been wearing a brace. Many of the players would skip games in order to recover faster, but Graham didn’t want to do that.

Now, that is a double-edged sword. And he felt it against all the opponents against he played. Sometimes you just can’t catch the ball properly, in other situations you can’t use the stiff-arm move as you would without it etc.

“You don’t want to shatter your thumb; that’s not great,” he said.

Unlike in his previous team, under coach Mike McCarthy, Graham had numerous obligations. He wasn’t offensive-minded as before, which he told to the reporters this Friday.

“Things are going fine. It’s just in this offense, the tight end does a lot of stuff,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of responsibilities — just not running routes and out here catching the ball like a receiver. That’s just how it is. I’m just trying to do my job and do what I’m told.”

This may be the biggest reason for his underachieving performances. In order to keep Aaron Rodgers safe, Graham was denied a chance to make more plays and be more dangerous for rival’s defenses.

A conservative style of Packers’ former head coach is known for killing the offensive instincts of many players. Over the course of times, the combination of pressure from the fans and big personal expectations on one side and the new, more defensive role on the other resulted in what appears to be the worst career in his 9-year long career.

https://twitter.com/GBPack2Fan/status/1073703453715820544

Will he have a second chance to improve the overall impression and have another shot at the Super Bowl side by side with Rodgers?

This is a huge enigma. In March this year, he signed a three-year deal worth $30 million, which could be interrupted this spring. Graham has a salary of $13 million this year, and his roster bonus is $5 million.

He should get it in March next year, but if the Packers decide against it, he could be released immediately. There are several more combinations for his release, and most of them are affecting salary cap figures in different ways.

The player, though, desires another chance. He stated that the Packers fans never saw his full potential and his true face.

“I’ve always dominated everywhere I’ve went. Obviously, I haven’t done that yet here. So it would be nice to get an opportunity to do it.”

We’ll see what happens in Wisconsin; everything should be clear by the end of the holidays.