On Friday, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed began practicing with the team after undergoing surgery to fix both a foot and a collarbone issue. Within 21 days of that date, the Packers have the make
the decision of whether or not to call up Reed from the injured reserve, where he is currently, to the 53-man roster.
While Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has dodged the question about whether Reed will play on Thanksgiving, which is reportedly around the timeline of when the team was expecting Reed to return to action, one man made a proclamation on Tuesday: Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell.
Here was Campbell’s opening statement in his Tuesday press conference, which includes a prediction about Reed’s status:
“OK, Green Bay. Here we go. We’ve got three days. They’re playing good football. They’re winning. Finding ways to win, really good defense, a potent offense. (Packers Head Coach) Coach (Matt) LaFleur’s done a good job out there. I mean those guys are – they’ve been playing at a high level, and they’ve got a good roster. (Packers DL Micah) Parsons and (Packers DL Rashan) Gary coming off the edge, (Packers DL Devonte) Wyatt in the middle and (Packers DL Colby) Wooden. The backers – I know (Packers LB) Quay (Walker)’s hurt right now but (Packers LB Edgerrin) Cooper’s coming on. And (Packers CB Keisean Nixon) Nix got hurt last week but he’s been playing at a high level. (Packers S Xavier) McKinney’s a good safety. I mean they’ve just got a really good defense. (Packers Defensive Coordinator Jeff) Hafley’s got them humming, scheme is difficult. Those guys rally, they run, they hit. It’s disruptive, they make you earn everything you get. And then offensively, it starts with (Packers QB Jordan) Love. I mean he’s just dynamic, gives his guys a chance, plays with poise, processes defense pressure quickly, sees the field very well and gives his guys a chance to make the play. And we’ll see if (Packers RB Josh) Jacobs plays – probably will. So, we know what kind of back he is. He’s a hell of a back. O-line’s playing good together. And then these receivers – they’ve got a whole crew of receivers out there. (Packers WR Christian) Watson, (Packers WR Jayden) Reed is probably going to be back. He’s a dynamic receiver. We’ll have some big play threat down the field, speed and (Packers WR Romeo) Doubs. So, it’s a good crew. It’s a really good team. But we’re looking forward to this. We’re looking forward to this a lot. And short week, our place, Thanksgiving and division rivalry and here we go, man.”
So, at least one person thinks that Reed is going to suit up for the Packers on Thursday. We’ll just have to see if Campbell’s call is correct.
Prior to his injury in Week 2, Reed had played 21 slot snaps to just 4 outside receiver snaps for Green Bay this season. The expectation is that Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson will remain the Packers’ starting outside receivers this year, while Reed plays the slot, when they’re all healthy. This should place 2025 first-round pick Matthew Golden and third-year Dontayvion Wicks in firm backup roles, as hybrid outside and slot players.
It is worth noting, though, that the Packers only played one-third of their offensive snaps with three receivers on the field last Sunday. Maybe that changes when Reed and Golden are back in the mix, but the team has been playing much heavier offensive personnel over the last couple of weeks to try to get their run game going in the post-Tucker Kraft world.
