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This move was never in doubt. The Green Bay Packers are retaining Allen Lazard for the 2021 season, as the team has reportedly exercised an exclusive-rights free agent tender on the wide receiver.
Ken Ingalls first reported the news on Twitter early Tuesday morning.
A key player for the Packers over the past two seasons, Lazard posted at least 30 receptions, 450 receiving yards, and three touchdowns in each of the 2019 and 2020 seasons. In fact, Lazard’s total production in 2020 was almost identical to that of 2019, but came in six fewer games, as he missed six contests due to a core muscle injury. Lazard added seven receptions for 158 yards and a touchdown in the Packers’ two playoff contests this January.
At 6-foot-5 and around 230 pounds, Lazard has become a key component of the Packers’ offense, helping to move the chains on third downs and becoming a dangerous play-action receiving weapon. He also is a willing and talented blocker as a receiver, a critical factor for a receiver in the Packers’ offense under Matt LaFleur.
Lazard will return for 2021 on an $850,000 salary, the league minimum for a player with two accrued seasons of NFL experience.
Also returning is outside linebacker Randy Ramsey, as Tom Silverstein reported the news on Monday evening. Ramsey spent most of the 2020 season as the fourth man in the Packers’ outside linebacker rotation behind the Smith Brothers and Rashan Gary. Ramsey signed with the Packers as a free agent after the 2019 NFL Draft and spent all of his first professional season on the practice squad. His tender comes in at $780,000, the league minimum for a one-year veteran.
These moves complete the Packers’ exclusive-rights free agent decisions, as reports emerged earlier on Monday that they had also tendered wide receiver Malik Taylor and offensive tackle Yosh Nijman.