The Green Bay Packers suspended third-year wide receiver Romeo Doubs for Sunday's Week 5 victory over the Los Angeles Rams. Dissatisfied with his role in the passing offense, Doubs made the decision to skip practices earlier in the week. The Packers responded by disciplining him.
Entering Sunday, Doubs ranked third on the team with 20 targets. Only Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks, with 22 apiece, had been receiving more attention from quarterbacks Jordan Love and Malik Willis. With five targets per game to start this campaign, Doubs is on pace for 85 targets.
Perhaps the relationship between Doubs and the Packers is irreparable. With the NFL trade deadline less than one month away, we've identified three potential landing spots for Doubs.
Buffalo Bills
After a perfect 3-0 start, the Buffalo Bills have been humbled two weeks in a row. Josh Allen's struggling squad followed up a blowout 35-10 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens with a last-second 23-20 loss to the Houston Texans. A lack of offense was a consistent theme in those shortcomings.
Rookie wideout Keon Coleman led the Bills in receiving yards on Sunday. He recorded one reception for 49 yards. Against the Ravens, no Bills receiver accumulated more than 62 receiving yards.
General manager Brandon Beane possesses just $3.7 million in effective cap space, according to Over The Cap, meaning his options to acquire help via trade are limited. Doubs remains on his affordable rookie contract as a former fourth-round selection and should appeal to a Bills offense that lacks proven production at receiver.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers have also suffered consecutive defeats after a 3-0 start and have fallen behind the Ravens in the AFC North. Despite their record, the Steelers have not fielded an effective passing attack. Following Sunday's primetime defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh ranks 26th in passing at 178.2 air yards per game.
Justin Fields completed 15 passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday, and current indications are that he'll remain the starter. The Steelers lack pass-catching weapons outside of George Pickens. They entered the season overly reliant on rookie third-round pick Roman Wilson, who has yet to make his debut. Doubs would immediately step into the No. 2 receiver role opposite Pickens.
Las Vegas Raiders
The 2-3 Las Vegas Raiders could be sellers at the deadline following Sunday's 34-18 blowout loss to their AFC West rival Denver Broncos. Head coach Antonio Pierce decided to make a quarterback change, replacing Gardner Minshew with Aidan O'Connell. The next big domino to fall is a Davante Adams trade, possibly to the New York Jets.
An eventual Adams trade will leave the Raiders without go-to playmakers in the passing game. General manager Tom Telesco is already thinking about the 2025 NFL Draft, where he should have an opportunity to draft his next quarterback. The Raiders should be stockpiling picks, but acquiring Doubs could be extremely cheap given his recent example of dissent. Doubs could be a long-term WR1 in Vegas for the next QB.
