Packers Aced Receiver Transition; Did They Do It Again?

After sticking with the status quo in the 2024 draft, Gutekunst in 2025 drafted Matthew Golden in the first round and Savion Williams in the third round.

Added together, the Packers will move into this season with Watson, Reed and Golden as the primary receivers for the upcoming season and beyond.

• Watson’s extension keeps him contractually tied to the Packers through 2030. Details have not been made public, but he received a $31 million signing bonus.

It’s important to note, as Breer did, that $18.5 million of the hyped total of $110.5 million is “tied up in incentives related to Pro Bowls, catches, receiving yards and touchdowns. The base value of the deal: $97.5 million over the next five years.”

• Reed’s extension keeps him under contract through 2029. Along with a $16.75 million signing bonus, he has base salaries of $1.23 million in 2026, $1.3 million in 2027, $9.05 million in 2028 and $10.05 million in 2029. There are a total of $5.85 million in per-game roster bonuses in 2027, 2028 and 2029, so Reed will have to stay healthy to maximize his earnings.

• Golden’s rookie contract will keep him with the Packers through the 2028 season, with the fifth-year option perhaps extending that through 2029.

• Williams’ rookie contract runs through 2028.

That’s three seasons for that group to potentially develop into a fearsome receiver foursome.

Between the old group of Watson, Doubs, Reed and Wicks, Gutekunst made the right decisions on who to keep and who to let go. Doubs’ suspension in 2024 made it practically a foregone conclusion that the Packers would keep Watson over Doubs. Reed personifies the “we” not “me” approach at receiver.

“It’s really just a blessing from my standpoint, but it doesn’t change the way I work,” he said last week. “I honestly think it has more to me being a good teammate than even being the player I am. I think I’m a better teammate. If you look at the tape, I’m always around the ball, I’m always picking my teammates up.

“I think that’s one of the biggest reasons why I’m at this point with this organization. So, it’s just the little things, man. That’s kind of how I look at it.”

Time will tell whether doling out big money for Watson and Reed was the right decision.

Last season, for instance, a 32-year-old Adams played 635 snaps for the Rams. His median season is about 790 snaps. In four seasons, Watson’s never played more than 555 snaps with an average of 482. Reed played 578 snaps as a rookie and 685 in 2024, but last year’s foot and collarbone surgeries limited him to 170. His three-year average is 478.

Golden, of course, had a quiet rookie season. Some of that was his place on a veteran-laden depth chart. Some of that was his own injuries. In 452 snaps in 14 games, he caught 29 passes and scored zero touchdowns.

The Packers not only are counting on a leaner receiver corps being a meaner receiver corps for Jordan Love, but that they’ll stay healthy and provide game-winning production with increased snaps and targets.

“Losing Rome, losing Wicks, wish those guys nothing but the best in their new journey on a new team,” Love said last week. “It’s always tough. You never want to see guys go, especially guys that were such impactful players like those two, but we’ve still got a very deep receiver room.

“We’ve got Christian, we’ve got J. Reed, we’ve got M.G., guys who are all going to continue to keep building, keep taking those steps. So, we’ve still got a great room and it’s just about getting back to work right now, building the foundation and setting ourselves up for when we get back to training camp.”