The Green Bay Packers drafted Savion Williams in the third round a year ago because of all the different roles he had at TCU. Williams’ rookie year underwhelmed, but his opportunities were few and far between. If the Packers want to make a run at another Swiss Army knife for the offense, Navy’s Eli Heidenreich fits the bill.
Heidenreich put a bow on his college career at Navy by becoming the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards. In three years with the Midshipmen, Heidenreich accumulated 1,994 receiving yards on 109 receptions. His 18.5 yards per reception led the American Conference this past year. His 16 receiving touchdowns the past three seasons were also a school record for a career.
Wide receiver was also just one element of his game. Heidenreich also piled up 1,157 rushing yards in those three years on 169 attempts. In the run game, he was used heavily in the option attack and on jet sweeps.
Heidenreich won’t ever feature as an outside receiver in the NFL. Therefore, as someone projected to be an end-of-the-draft pick or an undrafted free agent, scratching out any role right away won’t be easy. However, Heidenreich possesses traits that could lead to his development as a slot receiver and an option out of the backfield as a blocker and pass catcher.
As for playing big in big moments? Nothing compares to the Army-Navy game. In his last showing in THE game, Heidenreich was on the receiving end of an eight-yard touchdown reception on a fourth-and-goal. Navy trailed 16-10 late in the fourth and took the lead after Heidenreich’s score. Earlier in the drive, when Navy had it at the one-yard line, Heidenreich dove on a loose ball that Navy’s quarterback fumbled.
He played the dual role of both savior and hero in the Navy’s 17-16 win. Quarterback Blake Horvath highlighted him after the game as having the biggest impact.
Talk about an all-time Navy legend, right? We’re going to be talking about Eli Heidenreich for years and years and years. To cap off his career with that play to win this game, I don’t think a player could ask for a cooler career than what he’s done, to break all these records and then to win the Army-Navy game his senior year. It’s amazing.
Green Bay wouldn’t have to use an early pick on Eli Heidenreich; there’s a chance it won’t need to use a pick at all. Brian Gutekunst constantly harps on bringing in high-character players, and it doesn’t get more high-quality than someone who played at Navy. Heidenreich’s ability to flourish in different roles doesn’t hurt either. It’s something Lance Zierlein of NFL.com led with in his draft profile.
Versatile and productive, Heidenreich possesses good size and toughness as either a runner or slot receiver on the next level. Most of his run production came on jet sweeps from Navy’s option attack, but he appears to lack the acceleration to outpace NFL pursuit as a wide runner. He has good vision and is a physical finisher. He’s short-limbed with a limited catch radius, but he hangs on tight when it hits his hands. Teams will like the mentality, but he might lack the necessary athleticism to uncover on routes or elude tacklers with the ball in his hands.
Is another weapon on offense a pressing need for the Packers? Probably not. Has that stopped Green Bay before? No.
Last year, the Packers entered the offseason knowing they had Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, and Dontayvion Wicks all back at wide receiver. They still went out and drafted wide receiver Matthew Golden in the first round and Savion Williams in the third. Heidenreich won’t require that capital. And reinforcements could be necessary, with the Packers losing Doubs this offseason, plus Watson, Reed, and Wicks all currently on expiring deals following 2026.
Heidenreich wouldn’t need to be a savior for the Packers, or even an immediate-impact player. Instead, he’d be a fun development project to slide around during training camp and the preseason to see where he best fits in an NFL offense. Is it likely whoever snags Heidenreich has him on the final roster coming out of the summer? That’s up for debate. Still, the fact that he did so many things at an extremely high level in college bodes well for his chances to stick around somewhere.
Matt LaFleur loves motion in his offense and players he can plug into different roles. Reed and Williams are two perfect examples of that. If you ask LaFleur, he’d say you can never have too many weapons on offense, and Jordan Love would likely have a similar answer. The more the merrier!
If Eli Heidenreich is on the board when the seventh round rolls around, why not take the shot and see what comes of it? The cost won’t be high, and the payoff could be sweet.