Packers-Panthers Inactives: Jayden Reed, Christian Watson Out
GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers are going into a must-win game against the Carolina Panthers without a big chunk of their offensive firepower.
Not only is big-play receiver Christian Watson out for a third consecutive game with a hamstring injury, impressive rookie Jayden Reed is inactive, as well.
At least the backfield will be intact with the return of AJ Dillon. And, after a six-game absence, cornerback Jaire Alexander will be back in the lineup following a shoulder injury.
Reed didn’t practice all week due to a toe injury. It’s not just the toe, which was stepped on against Tampa Bay. It’s an accumulation of things. Before last week’s game against Tampa Bay, he was questionable with an ankle injury. The prior two weeks, before the games against the Giants and Chiefs, he was questionable with a chest injury.
Reed simply needs time to heal, but that runs into the Packers simply need to win this game to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Without Reed, who leads the team in receptions, yards and total touchdowns, and Watson, who has 14 total touchdowns in 23 career games, this will be the receiver corps:
Romeo Doubs: 52 catches, 567 yards (10.9 average), seven touchdowns.
Dontayvion Wicks: 31 receptions, 491 yards (15.8 average), one touchdown.
Malik Heath: 10 receptions, 103 yards (10.3 average), one touchdown.
Samori Toure: Seven receptions, 84 yards (12.0 average), zero touchdowns.
Bo Melton: One reception, 7 yards (7.0 average), zero touchdowns.
It would be argued that Watson, Reed and tight end Luke Musgrave are the team’s most explosive passing-game weapons. All three are out this week, with Musgrave just starting his comeback from a lacerated kidney.
Along with Watson and Reed, two other starters are out for the Packers: linebacker De’Vondre Campbell (neck) and safety Darnell Savage (shoulder).
Not only is Alexander active but so is safety Rudy Ford, who popped up on the injury report on Friday with a back injury and was listed as questionable.
As for Alexander, he’s played in only five of 14 games this season due to back and shoulder injuries. He hasn’t played since Nov. 5 against the Rams but is back in the lineup for his return to his hometown of Charlotte.
While the Panthers’ passing game is one of the worst in the league with Bryce Young, the Packers’ pass defense was bludgeoned last week by Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers.
At corner, it will be interesting to see if it will be Eric Stokes or Carrington Valentine opposite Alexander; at safety, it will be interesting to see if it will be Ford or rookie Anthony Johnson alongside Jonathan Owens.
Campbell raised a ruckus on social media this week when he said he no longer was going to play through injuries. He refused to discuss those comments this week, forcing everybody else to clean up the mess.
“Dre is a absolute warrior,” defensive coordinator Joe Barry said this week. “As a leader, as a guy in our locker room, as a guy in our defensive meeting room, in the linebacker room, I have the utmost respect for that guy and he has my 1,000 percent complete support. This is a violent game. Really, the last two years, he’s been dealing with a lot of things from a medical standpoint.
“I shared with you the story that he brought a guy in on Wednesday night when we were in Detroit [for Thanksgiving] to try to get his body right and he’s doing everything humanly possible to get back and to get healthy. From a respect and support level, De’Vondre Campbell has my utmost because, like I said, he’s an absolute warrior.”
The inactive list is rounded out by cornerback Robert Rochell, outside linebacker Brenton Cox and offensive tackle Caleb Jones.
