Packers Send Puzzling Message About ‘Top Receiver’ After NFL Draft

The Green Bay Packers have assured former second-round wide receiver Jayden Reed about his role moving into 2025, raising some eyebrows in the process.

The Packers made significant upgrades to their receiving corps during this year’s draft. For the first time since 2002, they drafted a wide receiver in the first round when they took Texas standout Matthew Golden with the No. 23 overall pick. They also circled back to the position in the third round, selecting former TCU starter Savion Williams.

The Packers’ draft investments at wide receiver have raised questions about what they mean for the team’s returning receivers, though, including from Reed’s own camp.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Packers even felt compelled to have a meeting with Reed’s agent (possibly at Reed’s request) to “clarify” his status for the 2025 season.

“Packers GM Brian Gutekunst met last week with Jayden Reed’s agent Drew Rosenhaus to clarify the wide receiver’s status in Green Bay after the team drafted Matthew Golden and Savion Williams,” Schefter wrote Monday night on X.

“The team said it will not affect Reed’s status as its top receiver, per source.”

Has Jayden Reed Earned the Title of ‘Top Receiver?’

The Packers going out of their way to meet with Reed’s representation and assure them that he is still their “top receiver” heading into the 2025 season is a bit … puzzling.

In terms of production, Reed is the Packers’ top wide receiver. He has led the team in receptions and receiving yards in each of his first two seasons with the team, hitting a career-high 897 receiving yards during the 2024 campaign. He has also scored 17 total touchdowns (both rushing and receiving) since getting drafted in 2023’s second round.

That said, Reed also performed a few disappearing acts during the 2024 season.

Reed finished with four or fewer passing targets in more than half of last year’s regular-season games and tallied three or fewer receptions in 10 games. Based on Fox Sports’ statistical tracking, Reed also tied for the third-most dropped passes (nine) in the NFL, letting a troubling 12% of his 75 passing targets slip through his hands on the season.

Now, it is likely that Reed and/or his agent requested clarification from the Packers about his role moving forward. They might even have concerns about the playcalling that has, at times, seemed to forget about Reed and held him back from doing more.

Seeking “top receiver” validation from the team, however, does not reflect too well on a wide receiver who has — at a league level — not solidified himself as a true No. 1 target.

Matthew Golden Could Take Over as Packers’ Top Receiver

The Packers have reassured Reed about his so-called “status” as their top receiver, but their lip service does not mean that Golden will not seize the No. 1 role in 2025.

Golden caught 58 passes for 987 yards and nine touchdowns for Texas in 2024, but he also showed he is capable of taking over games with dominant performances — which is something the Packers have lacked from their receivers since Davante Adams departed.

In the 2024 SEC Championship Game, Golden hauled in eight catches for 162 yards to power the Longhorns into overtime; however, Georgia pulled out a three-point win. He had another explosive game in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals, catching seven passes for 149 yards and a touchdown in an overtime contest they won this time.

While the Longhorns eventually lost in the semifinal, Golden finished with more than 21 yards per reception (19 catches for 411 yards) across their four postseason games.

The Packers’ first-round investment in Golden suggests they believe he can be a similar threat to take over games for their offense as he was for the Longhorns, and it is hard to imagine any other receiver drawing more acclaim than him if he is successful in that.

It also favors him to have Christian Watson (who will likely miss the start of the season recovering from another knee injury) and Romeo Doubs heading into contract years.