Christian Watson

This makes sense given how late in the season the injury occurred. It's likely that Watson starts the year on the PUP list and, depending on how his recovery is going, eventually gets a 21-day window opened for his return in the first or second month of the season. Asked if the Packers were going to pursue another wideout in Watson's absence, GM Brian Gutekunst said "[If] that makes some sense for us, we'll certainly look to do that, but we're also looking for these guys to continue to grow and hopefully grow into that space." It seems more likely that the Packers will continue with Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed as their main receivers while giving Dontayvion Wicks another shot outside based on that quote.

WR will not need surgery on his injured shoulder Jayden Reed says he won t need surgery on his shoulder. Thank God for that. (Packers.com - Wes Hodkiewicz fun) FF Today's Take: Reed figures to be a polarizing player in upcoming fantasy drafts. His star quickly ascended after going 64-793-8 as a rookie, but his usage dipped in a big way over the second half of this season as Green Bay became more of a run-heavy team. The primary reason why he could be a polarizing figure is because Christian Watson's knee injury will likely sideline him for most of the 2025 season, which should allow Reed more opportunities. Watson's absence alone may be enough to get Reed back into the high-end WR3 conversation.

Wicks also drew a 24-yard pass interference penalty in the third quarter, but was most notably the receiver targeted on Jordan Love's first interception. Darius Slay did a better job of running Wicks' route than Wicks did. Wicks finished the year third amongst Packers receivers in snaps, but mainly owes that to the fact that Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson dealt with injuries or maladies that forced a healthy Wicks into the lineup. After exploding on to the scene in Week 4 with a 5/78/2 line on 13 targets, Wicks did not go over 49 yards again for the rest of the season and peaked at seven targets. He likely starts the 2025 offseason, the third year on his four-year rookie deal, as a starter for the Packers due to Watson's ACL injury. But nothing we've seen from Wicks so far would lead us to believe the Packers have developed a star-in-the-making, and if the Packers target a receiver in the draft to be a long-term Romeo Doubs replacement, that receiver would likely come for Wicks' snaps first. It's makes for a precarious standing entering the offseason for Wicks, but there's a possibility we'll be touting him as a sleeper pick in August if Green Bay runs it back as constructed.

S Evan Williams (quad) is also active, leaving the Pack reasonably healthy for this colossal contest. Inactive for Green Bay are QB Sean Clifford, WR Christian Watson, DB Zayne Anderson, OL Andre Dillard and TE Ben Sims.

The illness kept Doubs sidelined in Week 18 but the Packers get their X-wide receiver back in time for the playoffs. Doubs should could handle a sizable workload with Christian Watson (ACL) now out for the year. Doubs practiced in full all week.