Marcedes Lewis’ career has morphed from productive receiver to powerful blocker. In Year 16, the Green Bay Packers’ beloved tight end has blocked on about two-thirds of his 140 snaps through five games.
On Sunday at Cincinnati, he caught two passes for 34 yards. One of them, a 14-yarder early in the second quarter that set up Green Bay’s first touchdown, was captured by the NFL’s social media team and sent to Lewis for him to share via Twitter.
“That view, it’s just one of those moments,” Lewis said on Thursday. “You have no idea who’s shooting what from what angle, but just the field-level view, it was a dope view.”
Later, Lewis made one of the big plays of the victory. Given his heavy usage as a blocker and Davante Adams’ heavy usage as a receiver, the second-and-10 screen in overtime caught the Bengals off-guard. The 20-yard gain helped position the Packers for the game-winning field goal.
“I don’t expect anything,” Lewis said when asked what that play meant to him. “For me, it’s about being accountable whenever my number is called, whether it’s a run play or a pass play. I’ve been fortunate enough whenever my number is called in the pass game and the ball’s coming my way within my area, I make a play and make the most out of that play. So, when he called it, I knew it was going to be one of those plays that I’ll remember for a long time – even before I got to the line of scrimmage – just based on how they were playing that formation that we came out in. Did my normal deal, Aaron got the ball to me and the rest was really history. When I’m going with a full head of steam, guys for the most part closing their eyes, anyway, because they’re not trying to tackle me. Standard operating procedure for me.”
Lewis’ retweet of the first-half catch has received more than 2,500 likes. Chances are, the NFL’s social media staff won’t be sending Lewis any clips of his blocking. That’s OK, though. Those that matter to Lewis – his coaches, teammates and peers – are the ones who embrace Lewis’ blocking, toughness and leadership. None of those things get “likes” on social media but they do help teams get wins.
“I feel like the people that appreciate my blocking are the people that know ball for real,” he said. “The average naked eye, they get lost and they’re looking for the ball. After every game, the coaches will come up to me and compliment me on just playing the tight end position how it’s supposed to be played. That’s enough for me.”
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