Green Bay Packers wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks has had what can only be described as a terrible start to the 2024 season.
The numbers certainly paint a scary picture of a second-year winger struggling with stern issues.
Entering Week 10, Wicks had caught just 16 of 43 targets for a catch percentage of 37.2. That ranks last among all NFL players who have scored at least 30 targets this season. Unsurprisingly, Wicks is averaging just 4.5 yards per target and has a 27.8 receiving success rate – both the lowest marks among players with at least 30 targets.
How bad is it? Wicks is on track to become the first wide receiver since John Ross in 2018 to catch less than 40 percent of his targets and average less than 5.0 yards per target on the season.
According to ESPN Research, Wicks has eight tackles in the NFL. His “Catch Rate Above Expectations” is -23.2, which is by far the worst among players with at least 25 targets. According to Next Gen Stats, his Received EPA is -16.9, which highlights how much Wicks has hurt the Packers in terms of scoring this season.
Pro Football Focus observed Wicks with six drops, but his 27.3 drop percentage leads all players with at least 20 targets. Wicks is 0-for-9 on what PFF calls “contested catches,” making him the only player with at least eight contested catches and zero catches.
These numbers are just a fancy way of saying that Wicks is failing to complete catches at an alarming rate and is bringing down the entire Packers offense.
Can Wicks turn their season around after the bye?
Coach Matt LaFleur said the Packers – who are among the league leaders in drops this season – didn’t always employ proper catching technique and didn’t employ “aggressive” enough hands. He also said he still has confidence in Wicks based on what he’s seen in training over the last two years.
Wicks continues to open at a rapid pace. He scored just two of 61 targets last season, so the Packers know he can finish games. It’s possible that in the second half of the season the dropout problem will start to even out and Wicks will become a more reliable weapon.
The Packers haven’t played consistently in the passing game until mid-2024. Part of the problem was two injuries to Jordan Love, who is not playing at the same level until the end of 2023. But Wicks couldn’t The ending of the game is another huge part of the puzzle. It won’t be a surprise if the Packers’ passing game starts to pick up steam if Love manages to recover bye and Wicks finds a way to shake off his second-year slump in the second half of 2024.
