Jayden Reed catches 1/19 in slot receiver role

Reports have varied as to whether Reed suffered a neck injury or a back injury. Today, the Packers’ head coach clarified that Reed indeed suffered a neck injury. According to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, Reed is back in Green Bay and is going through a series of tests. Reed is not practicing right now, and it sounds like it could be quite a while before that changes. Hopefully, he can resume playing next year at the very latest.

Schefter clarifies this as a back injury after it was initially updated by the Packers as a neck injury. Neither of those designations are promising signs for him. Reed’s absence, should it continue into this week, would strengthen fantasy floors for Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, and Tucker Kraft. The Packers used a platoon of players to replace Reed, lead by Skyy Moore.

This is an encouraging first update on the Packers’ injured wide receiver. Reed will stay overnight at the hospital for further testing and observation, according to the team. Reed suffered a neck injury early in the Packers’ Week 2 game against the Jets and was taken to the locker room on a stretcher. Hopefully, the positive reports continue rolling in.

Golden ran a route on 32 of the team’s 34 dropbacks and was the target on a few deep passes that led to pass interference penalties. This was not an efficient passing day for the Packers’ offense, but it was nice to see Golden be such a huge part of it. With Jayden Reed (neck) getting hurt in this game and Tucker Kraft still not seemingly playing at 100 percent, Golden is the clear second target in this offense. He could be in for a big game against the Falcons in Week 3.

On just the second play of the game, Reed was tackled on a screen pass and was twisted around. There didn’t appear to be any direct contact to his head, but he went limp when he hit the ground in a scary scene. He was placed on a spine board, taken off the field on a cart, and immediately ruled out for the remainder of the game. After the game, we should learn more about the nature of his injury.

Per usual, Reed was relegated to three-receiver sets. He ran 27 routes out of 11-personnel and saw three routes from all other looks combined. What wasn’t usual was Matthew Golden’s involvement. Golden struggled to get on the field as a rookie and wasn’t awfully effective when he was out there. In Week 1, Golden led the team in routes (40) and had a team-best 12 targets. Christian Watson also exploded with 147 yards and a pair of touchdowns. If both players are in line for breakout seasons, Reed may be stuck in a low-value role for fantasy managers. He profiles as a WR4 for his Week 2 game against the Jets.

As expected, Golden ran the bulk of the routes from an outside alignment and was much more involved compared to his rookie season. Christian Watson stole the show with 147 yards and two scores, but Golden comfortably led the team in targets. Four of his targets came on the Packers’ final drive while they were down by 17 points, but even his numbers before that were impressive. As the training camp reports indicated, Golden made massive strides during the offseason. Golden might not be the team’s target-leader every week, but he’s in the WR3 mix for the Packers’ Week 2 date with the Jets.

Prior reports indicated that the Packers’ coaching staff realized that their frequent wide receiver rotation was rubbing their stars the wrong way, prompting a positional personnel churn this offseason. LaFleur’s comments confirm the Packers’ starting wide receiver trio is going to play a lot, and fantasy managers should take note. Watson played extremely well in his recent from an ACL tear last year. If that play carries over, he is a shoo-in WR2 with substantial upside. Golden could be in for a Year 2 leap, and Reed could reliably return FLEX value, or better, if his snap share is high enough.

Although a potential, albeit brief, matchup against Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers is intriguing, the Packers’ wide receiver rotation is the real reason to tune in. Packers WR Christian Watson should be the team’s top target earner this season, and Love said WR Matthew Golden is set to assume X-receiver duties. Will slot WR Jayden Reed get to take snaps in two-receiver sets? That is to be determined.

Golden was held out of practice for a couple days with a toe issue. He was spotted running with the Green Bay first team offense on Tuesday. The Packers seem intent to use Golden in an every-down role rather than the rotational role he had during his disappointing 2025 rookie campaign. The speedy Golden, who has drawn praise from Jordan Love this offseason, should profile as a high-variance weekly fantasy option in 12-team formats.