He easily had the best camp.
His athleticism jumped off the page and his catching ability was on full display.
He was the first wide receiver to be taken in the first round by the Packers in 23 years.
Of course, I’m talking about Matthew Golden. The University of Texas standout had 58 catches for 987 yards and nine touchdowns last year. He also returned 14 kickoffs.
Golden stuck out right away because of his ability to run sticky routes. It’s almost as if there’s a railroad track under his feet because he effortlessly makes breakneck turns, which leaves his defender in the dust.
“We get to some of those third downs when people are trying to mug us up and you need someone to get open fast, he can do that,” said Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst after making the pick.
Now I know, you don’t want to put the cart before the horse — especially in preseason. The defenses are playing vanilla and don’t want to show anything. But at the same time, there’s a reason why Golden has earned the nickname “Bullet.”
But it’s not just his legs that have caught the eye of the Packers in camp.
“He’s got some of the most natural hands I’ve been around in my whole career,” said Packers coach Matt LaFleur.
Some people have already started to compare Golden to Greg Jennings, which is a lot because Golden hasn’t played in a game that matters yet.
The Packers have had plenty of solid receivers over the years. But Golden has all the tools. He’s fast, he’s got the hands, he has a great attitude and has that thirst to get better. That’s exactly what the Packers want and it might be why we will spot Jordan Love chuckling to himself when he sees Golden all by himself.
The thing the Packers needed was someone that could consistently get open on their own. Granted, LaFleur does a good job of scheming guys open with motion and play-action, but when the Packers need a catch in a big spot, they are going to need a wideout to beat their man.
“Man, I think he’s shown up since Day 1 and just really shown his play style, shown what he’s all about," said Packers quarterback Jordan Love. “He came in really polished and has been making plays since Day 1. He’s got very aggressive hands, he’s a smooth route runner, he’s got speed. So I think for him, it’s just continuing to understand the playbook and wrap his head around everything we have in.”
Now, does that mean that Golden will be WR1?
With this wide receiver group, it truly doesn’t matter.