‘Pieces Are in Place’ for Packers to ‘Win It All,’ But These 6 Must Deliver

If these six young players develop into true standouts, the Green Bay Packers could challenge for the Super Bowl, SI.com’s Albert Breer says.

Green Bay Packers receiver Christian Watson (9) runs after the catch against the Chicago Bears. | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

Call it the calm before the storm.

Green Bay Packers training camp will begin in one month, and there are reasons to be incredibly optimistic about a team with some obvious questions.

At Sports Illustrated, Albert Breer took a quick-hitting look at every team headed into summer break. He is bullish on the Packers’ upside.

“I put the Packers alongside the Seahawks last year, as a team that could win it all if a bunch of young players elevated from good to great. I feel the same way this year,” he wrote.

The Packers boast a “talented roster,” Breer said. He went on to list six productive young players who must “take their games to another level.” Here they are, and why it’s possible they’ll do just that to help the team get back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2010.

Christian Watson: Coming off a torn ACL, Watson played the best football of his career last season. Of the 78 receivers who were targeted at least 50 times, Watson rewarded his quarterbacks with the third-best passer rating. He was second in yards per catch, sixth in success rate and 14th in drop percentage.

If Watson can continue on that path for a full 17-game season and with the promise of added targets as part of a leaner-and-meaner receiver corps, he could be the field-tilting receiver needed to lead the offense to a huge season.

“It really comes down to mindset,” he said. “I think that just approaching it the right way in terms of knowing that there’s a lot of things I can still continue to get better at, continue to hone in on. Obviously, the best way I’m able to go out there and go out on the field is to play fast and play free. I feel like that helps the team come together and everything, too. I’m just excited to see where everything’s going this offseason.”

Matthew Golden: Last year, Golden was the Packers’ long-awaited first-round receiver and the fourth player at the position off the board. In the draft class, Golden finished ninth with 29 catches, eighth with 361 yards and seventh with 25.8 yards per game. A total of 17 drafted rookie receivers scored a touchdown; Golden was not among them.

His quiet season was an imperfect storm. He was a rookie, and the Packers typically bring their rookies along slowly. Golden battled injuries at midseason, which sidelined him for a few games and limited him in others. Eventually, Watson and Jayden Reed returned from their injuries, leading to Golden getting lost in the shuffle.

The playoffs, of course, were a different story. Golden caught four passes for 84 yards and one touchdown. Of the 10 drafted rookie receivers to play in a playoff game, Golden was the only one to score a touchdown.

“It happened how it was supposed to where I ended up scoring,” he said of his rookie season. “We didn’t get the win. That’s, obviously, something we wanted but to build off last year, that was everything I was looking forward to. I’m looking forward to this year and I got the mindset to attack everything as it comes.”

Jordan Morgan: Morgan will play a huge role in the success or failure of this year’s team. After two years in a utility role, he’ll finally play left tackle – the position he was drafted to play in the first round in 2024.

Morgan, who was dinged before the draft because of his short arms, will enter the regular season having played left tackle in one game in his professional career. This will be a critical training camp and preseason to get him ready.

Lukas Van Ness: Van Ness was one of the stars of the offseason, for whatever that’s worth. In three seasons, the 13th overall pick of the 2023 draft has just 8.5 sacks. By any definition, he’s been a major disappointment.

Will this year be different? The Packers desperately need the answer to be a resounding yes. Knowing that Micah Parsons would miss the start of the season, the trade of Rashan Gary was an all-in bet that Van Ness will finally have a breakout season. That bet could determine the fate of the season.

Of the 110 edge defenders with at least 150 pass-rushing opportunities last season (Van Ness had 151), he ranked a solid 28th in pass-rush win rate.

Devonte Wyatt: A first-round pick in 2022, Wyatt had 5.5 sacks in 17 games in 2023, five sacks in 14 games in 2024 and four sacks in 10 games in 2025. Wyatt ranked 12th out of 91 in pass-rush win rate among defensive tackles with at least 220 pass-rushing opportunities last year, 10th out of 87 in 2024 and sixth out of 94 in 2023.

That is a consistent pressure presence.

Armed with a new tag-team partner, proven pass rusher Javon Hargrave, and a new defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, who has a history of unleashing his defensive tackles, Wyatt could be poised for a dominant season.

Edgerrin Cooper: After a rookie season filled with sacks and tackles for losses, there were sky-high expectations for Cooper entering last season. It didn’t happen. While he racked up 118 tackles and forced two fumbles, he went from 3.5 sacks to 0.5 and 13 tackles for losses to four.

“I don’t want to be slept on no more or any of that,” he said, adding later: “I feel like my second year had a little slump early in the season, but it happens. It’s about how you respond. I felt like I did a good job responding, played decent ball at the end of the season. I’m just ready to elevate.”

Armed with Jordan Love, the Packers remain a high-upside team with the horses to go far.

“A lot of pieces are in place,” Breer summarized, so long as Micah Parsons and Tucker Kraft are impact players upon the return of last year’s ACL injuries.

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