Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love tossed a touchdown pass to rookie receiver Romeo Doubs on Tuesday, creating the latest big play in a long line of big plays made by the Packers’ fourth-round pick through the first six practices of camp.
It was a tough catch. According to reporters at practice, Doubs was covered tightly by Rico Gafford in the corner of the end zone and had to fight through contact and still get two feet in bounds to complete the play, which he did.
Love said Doubs just continues to make tough plays look easy.
“Just the way he’s catching the ball. He’s making those contested catches, and those tough plays, he’s making them look easy. And it’s not easy to do,” Love said after practice Tuesday.
Doubs really opened eyes early in training camp by skying over Eric Stokes to make a difficult catch. On Tuesday, Doubs beat Stokes for another big completion during a 1-on-1 period between receivers and cornerbacks.
Veteran receiver Randall Cobb said Doubs’ ability to win on contested catches is a special trait.
“The biggest piece is just his ability with the 50-50 ball,” Cobb said last week. “When it’s thrown up and it’s between him and the DB to make a play. That’s one thing you can’t coach. You can’t really teach that. You either have it or you don’t, and he has it. That’s special.”
Contested catches might suggest a player struggles to consistently get separation and is then forced to make plays in traffic. Or it’s a sign that a quarterback trusts a receiver to make a play regardless of the coverage or situation. Either way, Doubs is finishing plays when given the chance so far at Packers training camp.
Can Doubs become the next James Jones for Aaron Rodgers (and possibly Love in the future)? At the height of his powers, Jones was a contested-catch expert, often making improbable catches in tight spaces at every level of the field. The consistency of that ability helped Jones gain the trust of Rodgers over time. Doubs, who is of similar size and athletic ability, appears to be following the same path to start his rookie season.