Christian Watson is the Packers’ game-changing receiver, and his absence was noticeable at the conclusion of the season. He will miss the majority of the upcoming season, so how will the Packers replace him?
Christian Watson may not be the Green Bay Packers’ finest receiver, but he is clearly the most irreplaceable.
Set aside Josh Jacobs’ headline-grabbing claim that the Packers must add a No. 1 receiver this offseason. If nothing else, they must locate a big-play receiver this offseason.
Getting one will not be easy. It may not be impossible, but it is close, a reality that might have an influence on the Packers well beyond 2025 as Watson continues his long journey to ACL recovery.
Watson missed the Week 17 game against the Minnesota Vikings due to a knee injury. Watson returned during Week 18 against the Chicago Bears, but suffered a torn ACL. Obviously, he did not play against the Philadelphia Eagles during the playoffs.
What was the result? Three straight losses. After scoring at least 30 points in five straight games, the Packers scored 25 against the Vikings (three at halftime), 22 against the Bears (13 through three quarters), and 10 against the Eagles.
The Packers will need to find a big-play receiver, not just a fast receiver (Bo Melton is plenty fast with 4.34 speed in the 40), but a good receiver who is fast, as the top receivers available in free agency will not help much. Tee Higgins and the Cincinnati Bengals are working toward a long-term contract extension; Higgins is big but not particularly fast, with 4.54 speed, and according to PFF, he caught eight passes on balls thrown 20-plus yards downfield the previous two seasons. The Packers finished the regular season ranked fourth with 55 completions of longer than 20 yards, and they had just five of those.
In his eight seasons, Chris Godwin, who turns 29 this month, has averaged 12.5 yards per catch. He just suffered a season-ending ankle injury. Despite averaging less than 10 yards per grab, he reached 1,000 yards in 2022. None of his 62 receptions from the previous season came on passes that were thrown more than 20 yards downfield.
Amari Cooper, who turns 31 in June, was a non-factor in the playoffs after catching 20 passes in eight games with Josh Allen and the Bills. He grabbed 13 of 24 long passes in 2023 while playing for Cleveland, demonstrating his ability to spread the field.
The 31-year-old Stefon Diggs is recovering from an ACL tear. In eight 2024 games, he averaged 10.6 yards per reception. He only grabbed six out of twenty-four deep passes in 2023.
DeAndre Hopkins, who turns 33 in June, was a complete nonfactor in the playoffs despite catching 41 passes and averaging 10.7 yards per reception in 10 games with Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. In 16 games, he caught five deep passes, including three of nine with the Chiefs.According to PFF and The 33rd Team, those are the top five receivers available in free agency.
What about a possible trade involving former Packers standout Davante Adams? The 32-year-old had his fifth consecutive 1,000-yard season with the Jets, catching 7 of 15 deep throws in 11 games. In December, he caught a career-long 71 yards against the Jaguars.
Darius Slayton of the Giants and Demarcus Robinson of the Rams are two second-tier guys that might be of interest.
