Leaner, Meaner Packers Receiver Corps Begins Quest for Answers at OTAs

Last season, the Green Bay Packers had too many mouths to feed on offense. Entering this season, are there enough mouths, or will the football offerings cooked up by Matt LaFleur and Jordan Love have to be scraped into the waste basket?

Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks weren’t stars, but they were reliable performers. Now, following the free-agent departure of Doubs and the trade of Wicks, the Packers have neither depth nor star power.

Can Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and Matthew Golden thrive in a less-is-more approach to the passing game? Can depth be created where there is none? The path to answering those questions will begin during OTAs next week.

Part 3 of our OTA previews, coming on the heels of the quarterbacks and running backs, focuses on the receivers.

Packers Receiver Depth Chart: Starters

Christian Watson: In 10 games following a successful comeback from a torn ACL, Watson caught 35 passes for 611 yards and six touchdowns. He just missed his career highs in catches (41), yards (620) and touchdowns (seven). Of the 108 receivers targeted at least 34 times (two per game), he was fourth in yards per target and fifth in yards per catch. A contract extension, presumably, awaits.

Green Bay Packers receivers Christian Watson (9) and Jayden Reed celebrate after Watson scored a touchdown against the Bears. | Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jayden Reed: Reed got his contract extension even after a broken collarbone sidelined him for 10 games. He went from 64 receptions for 793 yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie and 55 receptions for 857 yards and six touchdowns in 2024 to 19 catches for 207 yards and one touchdown in 2025. His yards per game went from 50.4 in 2024 to 29.6 in 2025 and his yards per catch plunged from 15.6 to 10.9.

Matthew Golden: After a solid four-game stretch, the first-round pick caught 11 passes for 112 yards during the final 11 games of the season. He played in eight of those games and gained six first downs. The Packers said good-bye to Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks this offseason, a bet that Golden’s big playoff game is a sign of what’s to come.

Packers Receiver Depth Chart: Backups

Savion Williams: A third-round pick last year, Williams didn’t have a prayer due to the combination of the experienced players ahead of him and the foot injury he tried to play through. In 12 games, he had 10 catches for 78 yards and 11 carries for 37 yards.

Skyy Moore: A second-round pick by the Chiefs in 2022, Moore caught 22 passes as a rookie and 21 in 2023 but zero in six games in 2024. He was traded to the 49ers during training camp last year and caught five passes in 17 games but was one of three returners who finished in the top 10 in kickoff- and punt-return average.

Jakobie Keeney-James: Keeney-James went undrafted in 2025 and spent most of his rookie season on Green Bay’s practice squad. He played 48 snaps in his NFL debut against the Vikings in Week 18 and caught two passes for 15 yards.

Will Sheppard: Sheppard went undrafted in 2025 and spent his rookie season on Green Bay’s practice squad without playing in a game. He’s got excellent size (6-foot-2 3/4) but below-average speed (4.59).

Isaiah Neyor: Neyor went undrafted in 2025 and joined the Packers during training camp. He spent the season on the practice squad and did not play in a game. He’s an elite size-speed prospect at 6-foot-4 1/4 with 4.40 speed.

J. Michael Sturdivant: Sturdivant went undrafted this year after playing at Cal, UCLA and Florida. He’s got a promising combination of size (6-foot-2 7/8) and speed (4.40). His sister is a Cowboys cheerleader. “She beat me to the NFL,” he joked.

Brenden Rice: Rice was a seventh-round pick by the Chargers in 2024 and was signed by the Packers last week. He has not caught a pass in a game. He’s got excellent size (6-foot-2 3/8) and above-average athleticism (4.50 40). His father is the legendary Jerry Rice.

What We Know: Christian Watson is “No. 1”

Green Bay Packers receiver Christian Watson (9) runs the ball in for a touchdown against the Chicago Bears. | Sarah Kloepping/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Packers don’t have the textbook definition of a No. 1 receiver and might never with the way that coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Jordan Love prefer to operate. Hence, the Packers haven’t had a 1,000-yard receiver since Davante Adams in 2021. They haven’t even had a 900-yard receiver during that span. Romeo Doubs led the way last year with 724.

Taking Christian Watson’s 10-game production and putting it over 17 games, you come up with about 60 receptions for 1,040 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Watson is an elite size-speed threat with an elite mentality. After some early-career drops, his hands are a strength.

“He’s such a great playmaker for us,” offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said. “I’m really excited about having him healthy going into the offseason. The one thing about Christian is he’s so valuable as a leader, too. Working with MG, working with Savion, all these young guys, he’s just such a good resource for them with his experience in his game.”

What We Don’t Know: Almost Everything

The Packers probably were overloaded at receiver last season. Now, they’re in danger of being undermanned.

Can Christian Watson stay healthy and be a go-to player for a full season? Can Jayden Reed bounce back and be that player he was in 2024, when he was third in the NFL in yards per target? Was Golden’s breakout game in the playoffs a jumping-off point to greatness or merely a good game by a good player?

Injuries happen. Reed’s career high for playing time was 63.2 percent. Watson’s was 51.2 percent. Golden missed three games last year and played 43.0 percent. Is there any real, reliable depth?

Not now, and that must change before Week 1.

“I always go into every single year and I tell Matt (LaFleur), ‘We need 10 good receivers to start the year,’” passing game coordinator Jason Vrable said. “You never know how injuries are going to occur, but you also have to be able to develop guys throughout the year. So, numbers-wise, to me, I want the deepest room in the whole NFL.”

The Great Unknown: Savion Williams

Green Bay Packers receiver Savion Williams needs to take a big step forward in Year 2. | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

What’s not to like about Savion Williams? At 6-foot-4 and 222 pounds with 4.48 speed in the 40, Williams during his senior season at TCU caught 60 passes for 611 yards and carried the ball 51 times for 322 yards. The ways he can be used are limited only by a coach’s creativity.

He was a nonfactor as a rookie, though. He got a schemed touch or two most games, but his effectiveness was limited by a foot injury. While he had a critical 33-yard catch on the decisive drive against the Giants, he otherwise did nothing to move the needle. Williams’ other nine targets were caught 16 yards behind the line of scrimmage.

Ready or not, he must be a bigger factor on offense. Without Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks, he’ll get plenty of opportunities to be the top backup – or more.

“It’s going to be really fun to watch him go out there and play,” offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said. “He’s such a big, fast, physical player that I’m excited about watching him play this offseason and then going into camp and everything like that. I hope we see some great things from him.”

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