So far, Allen Lazard‘s career has been tied in lockstep with new Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Lazard spent his first five years in Green Bay catching passes from Rodgers. Then, in anticipation of a trade that would send Rodgers to the Jets, Lazard headed to New York as a free agent. With Rodgers now in Pittsburgh, there’s certainly a door open that could reunite Lazard with Rodgers, once again. 
Originally signing with the Jaguars after going undrafted out of Iowa State in 2018, Lazard failed to make Jacksonville’s 53-man roster but signed to the team’s practice squad. Late in December of his rookie year, though, Green Bay signed him off the Jaguars’ p-squad as they saw a number of injuries to their own receiving corps. While he didn’t contribute much that season, he found his home of the next four years.
While Lazard was never a favorite target of Rodgers in Green Bay — a role rightly reserved for Davante Adams — he had a consistent role in the offense. In his second and third seasons, he contributed an average of 34 receptions for 464 yards and three touchdowns. He became more of a redzone target in 2021, logging 40 catches for 513 yards and a career-high eight touchdowns, before putting up a career year in 2022 with 60 catches, 788 yards, and six touchdowns.
Later rumors would indicate that following that final season in Green Bay, Lazard and Rodgers often spoke of playing in New York together. In fact, Lazard took the initiative to reach out to the Jets about the free agent deal he would eventually sign. Lazard’s first year in New York became essentially a wasted season, though, when Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon in the season opener. With Zach Wilson, Trevor Siemian, and Tim Boyle throwing to him, he only logged 23 receptions for 311 yards and a single touchdown. He improved last year, with Rodgers back on the field, but returned to his average totals with 37 catches for 530 yards and six touchdowns.
With Rodgers no longer in New York, Lazard’s current role seems uncertain. Adams departed from New York this offseason, seemingly giving Lazard a shot to be WR2. Unfortunately, according Rich Cimini of ESPN, Lazard is losing the WR2 battle to free agent addition Josh Reynolds. Per Cimini, Reynolds is the “clear-cut favorite” to land the job.
There was a time at which it seemed Lazard was certainly not long for New York. Early in the offseason, rumors came out that the Jets were likely to release him in the offseason, and a couple weeks later, the team gave him permission to seek a trade. Ultimately, the team opted to retain Lazard’s services, restructuring his contract to solidify the deal.
Despite this renewed commitment, Rodgers’ Pittsburgh signing immediately reignited rumors of a trade that would send Lazard to the Steelers. Given that cutting or trading Lazard before June 1 would’ve resulted in $6.55MM of dead money with him still taking up $1.94MM in cap space, it starts to make sense that Lazard has been kept around to this point, but a post-June 1 trade would now leave New York with only $2.18MM in dead money while relieving $2.43MM in cap space.
Cimini still thinks that it would be unlikely that the Jets would trade Lazard away. If they do, though — and Cimini notes here that that’s “a big if” — New York likely wouldn’t do so until the end of the preseason. The Jets have a lot of new pieces in their offense, and they’ll need to make sure they’re comfortable with their depth at wide receiver before agreeing to send Lazard away.