The Green Bay Packers got some bad news after their 27-18 win over the Washington Commanders. Wide receiver Jayden Reed suffered a broken collarbone while making a catch in the end zone. The injury will require surgery. Reed is expected to miss approximately two months. If that timetable holds true, he won’t return to the field until mid-November. So, the Packers receiving depth will be tested, but the team seems well equipped to handle this situation.
Reed led the Packers in catches in each of the last two seasons. He did that despite playing only 56 percent of the offensive snaps in 2023 and 63 percent in 2024. Reed operates primarily out of the slot.
The Packers have some alternatives when looking to replace Reed’s productivity. The team still has five active wide receivers on the current roster. Romeo Doubs and Matthew Golden will likely continue to start, and both could see more playing time without Reed in the lineup. Doubs has been a steady productive player thus far this season.
Golden appears to still be learning and adjusting to the NFL game. He did not catch any passes against the Commanders and still needs to learn how to consistently get open against NFL defenses. The talent and work ethic are there, but could the loss of Reed for the next two months force him to try to accelerate the learning curve? The Packers also could shift Golden to the slot to replace Reed in that specific role and then move a different receiver to the boundary.
The same can be said for Savion Williams. Like Golden, head coach Matt LaFleur is trying to get the third-round pick out of TCU the football in different ways. Right now, Williams has been running jet sweeps or end arounds. He also officially has one catch, but it was closer to a running play in design and execution. Again, Williams will need time to be ready to play a larger role in the offense this season and may not be ready right now to contribute much more than what he’s already doing.
Dontayvion Wicks could step in and assume a larger role in the offense. Wicks currently leads all the team’s wideouts with six catches through two games. While it remains a small sample size, the Virginia alum has not dropped a pass in either of the first two games. Dropped passes were a big issue for Wicks last season when pro-football-reference.com credited him with nine.
Malik Heath may also step up and see more game action. Heath wasn’t seeing many snaps on offense before the injury to Reed. Against Washington, he came up with an impressive 37-yard catch that was initially ruled out of bounds. That was overturned after replay clearly showed Heath did an acrobatic job of getting both his feet in bounds.
Heath has experience and knows the offense. He also has good size and blocking ability, two things the Packers like to see from their wide receivers. It is likely Heath will see more snaps as long as Reed remains sidelined, although how many more will depend on his performance.
The Packers also could look to their practice squad for help. Veteran Mecole Hardman remains would be a good candidate to step in for Reed. First, Hardman has extensive experience in the NFL, having already played six seasons, mostly with the Chiefs. He’s also been a part of three Super Bowl winning teams and can return both kickoffs and punts.
Hardman also has usually operated out of the slot during his time in Kansas City and could easily step in and take reps there with the Packers. He should be familiar with the offense after spending all of training camp and the preseason with the team. He had a rough first preseason game but looked better after that when called upon.
The Packers could simply elevate Hardman from the practice squad next Sunday in Cleveland, but they do run the risk of another team signing him off the practice squad if a need arises at wide receiver on their roster.
Also available on the practice squad right now are Will Sheppard and Isaiah Neyor. Neither has NFL experience or fits the typical size of a slot receiver, but both had strong performances in training camp and could be elevated for a game or two if necessary.
Of course, the other unknown here is how soon Christian Watson will return from the PUP list. He still needs to sit out at least two more games, but if he returns for Week 5, it may make more sense for the Packers to elevate a player for the next two games and just insert Watson into the lineup when he’s ready. If he’s going to miss substantially more time than that, placing another wide receiver on the 53-man roster would make a lot more sense.
The Packers may also utilize their tight ends more in the passing game. Tucker Kraft was the team’s top target against Washington and Luke Musgrave is capable of getting downfield.
The old adage in the NFL when injuries hit is “next man up.” We’ll see who the next man up for the Packers will be at wide receiver and how well they perform. At least the way the current roster is structured, the team has some different options to consider.