Malik Taylor was the reason why the Green Bay Packers didn’t keep Jake Kumerow, and he could be the reason why the Packers don’t keep Devin Funchess.
The young receiver has stated a strong case for keeping his roster spot through two preseason games.
Taylor, who made the roster as the sixth receiver last summer, caught four passes for a team-high 66 yards against the New York Jets on Saturday, giving him nine catches for 116 yards this preseason.
It was a terrific performance from a young receiver trying to make a deep Packers roster for the second straight year.
Twice, Taylor caught passes over 20 yards on third down to extend scoring drives. Both catches had an above-average level of difficulty.
On the first, Taylor ranged from the left of the formation to the right sideline on a deep over route. He made a toe-tap catch in front of Jets linebacker C.J. Mosley along the sideline on a perfect ball from Kurt Benkert, who was rolling to his right under pressure, the completion good for 23 yards to spark the Packers’ first touchdown drive.
On the second catch, Taylor made a perfect adjustment to a back-shoulder throw down the field, spinning to make the catch in front of the cornerback for another gain of over 20 yards on third down. It was one of several conversions on a marathon 19-play touchdown drive in the second quarter.
Earlier on the same drive, Taylor picked up Benkert – who fell down on back-to-back plays to set up third-and-long – with a 9-yard catch, converting the first down. He got beyond the sticks, turned and made the on-time catch from Benkert, extending the drive.
Taylor’s final catch converted another third down, his fourth of the afternoon. Once again, he got beyond the sticks, turned to the quarterback and made a tough contested catch in front of the cornerback to convert.
Four catches, four first downs, four third-down conversions. This is how a young player at a logjam position can separate himself in the competition.
Funchess, who has also created a strong case for a roster spot, sat out the contest with a hamstring injury. Taylor, with only four receivers available for the game, made the most of his opportunity.
The big question over the next two weeks: how many receivers will the Packers keep? Taylor is going to be hard to cut. So will Funchess. Maybe the Packers keep seven, or maybe Funchess – a veteran with value outside of Green Bay – ends up becoming a logical player to trade.
