Let’s continue our series breaking down every player on the Green Bay Packers’ roster with the receiver position. The position had a decent amount of turnover this offseason, after Romeo Doubs was lost in free agency and Dontayvion Wicks was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Who is left on the Packers’ depth chart, and what can we expect from them? Let’s take a look.
Christian Watson
After returning from a 2024 ACL tear, Christian Watson had a career year with the Packers in 2025. In his previous three years, Watson averaged
43.5 receiving yards per game. That jumped to 61.1 yards per game in 2025, despite Watson only being on the field for 10 of 17 games, mostly due to his ACL recovery.
Going into 2025, he should be Green Bay’s number one outside receiver option on the team. He’s also entering a contract season. Based on the money that Jameson Williams, Detroit’s #2, and Alec Piece signed for — two speedsters — Watson is likely going to sign in the ballpark of $28 million per year on his next extension.
Matthew Golden
Last year, rookie Matthew Golden split time between outside receiver and the slot (like Dontayvion Wicks) due to Jayden Reed’s series of injuries. We’ll get into Reed a little later, but it’s my assumption that Reed will be a full-time slot in 2026, which will give Golden more opportunities as an outside receiver.
There are a couple of interesting things going on with a Golden move to the outside.
First of all, Golden was often used as the motion man when he was an outside receiver. He rarely lined up outside, didn’t move, and ran a route. Frequently, the Packers would use him in motion and give him a full head of stream to run his routes, almost like a CFL or Arena Football receiver. The Miami Dolphins have previously done this with receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Secondly, we’ve rarely seen Watson, Golden and Reed on the field together. According to Next Gen Stats, this trio played just 14 snaps together in the entire 2025 season, mostly in obvious passing situations. So how do they fit together? We really don’t know.
Jayden Reed
For his entire career, Jayden Reed has been used almost exclusively as a slot-only receiver in Green Bay, which is why I think he’ll continue to fill that role moving forward. With that being said, the Packers generally used Reed as their designated “small” receiver (LaFleur generally likes to play receivers who are 6’0” or taller and 205 pounds or heavier on the outside). Green Bay now has two “small” receivers at the top of their receiver depth chart with Golden moving up the outside receiver pecking order.
Is it possible that Golden and Reed share roles more often in 2026? Will the Packers be more of a pass-first offense now that they don’t have ideal bodies to block on the perimeter of runs? I wouldn’t completely close the door on that, but I’m still starting with a baseline guess that Reed will be the full-time slot this year, based on the team’s prior actions.
Savion Williams
All of last year, rookie receiver Savion Williams dealt with a foot injury that kept him in a walking boot until game days. This plan worked for 12 games before Williams was ultimately shut down for the remainder of the season.
For the most part, Williams filled the role of kick returner and offensive gadget player as a rookie. As we noted last year, Williams was being fed the ball like an All-Pro receiver when he was on the field, even though his snaps were limited. Basically, if he was on the field, there was an extremely high chance that he was going to get the ball, usually on runs or screens.
You could argue that the losses of Doubs and Wicks have pushed Williams up from being WR6 last year to WR4 this year, making him the next man up if Watson, Golden or Reed are ever off the field. That’s a pretty big jump.
A good portion of the Packers’ success in 2026 could rely on whether Williams can make the transition from gadget player to true all-around receiver, as he puts his foot injury behind him.
Bo Melton
This time last year, Green Bay was transitioning Bo Melton to the cornerback position. Now, he’s back as a full-time receiver, after playing 0 defensive snaps during the 2025 regular season.
Melton should help push Savion Williams behind the starting receivers on the depth chart, but it is worth mentioning that Melton (5’11”, 189 pounds) isn’t the biggest body out there, either. LaFleur has never really dealt with a receiver room this small before, as he seems to prioritize perimeter blocking more than the average play-caller.
Only so many of these guys can be motion men or slot receivers. At some point, you’re going to have to run behind some combination of Golden, Reed and Melton. Whether or not LaFleur is comfortable with that reality has yet to be seen.
Skyy Moore
Hey, it’s another small (5’10”, 195 pound) receiver! This one can return, though.
While Skyy Moore has only caught five footballs over the last two seasons, he does have 39 punt returns and 38 kick returns to his name at the professional level. The Packers, notably, have been extremely poor in the punt return department over the past couple of seasons. At minimum, Moore should be able to help Green Bay there if he makes the team. Whether or not he wins the kick return job is more of a question, but the Packers have few reasonable punt returner options going into 2026.
Moore signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Packers this offseason, which included a $1 million signing bonus. If he makes the team in Week 1, his $1.2 million base salary will fully guarantee — as he’s a vested veteran. We’ve already seen Green Bay burn $1 million on Brandon McManus, who was released after the draft this year, in the 2026 offseason. Moore’s contract doesn’t ensure him a roster spot, but it probably gives him an inside track for a job.
J. Michael Sturdivant
On paper, J. Michael Studivant is more of a “LaFleur-like” receiver than Golden, Reed, Melton or Moore, which might end up helping him make the 53-man roster. The undrafted free agent signing measured in at 6’3” and 207 pounds at the combine, and he was able to run a 4.40-second 40-yard dash at the event, too.
On film, Sturdivant reminds me of a speedier Malik Heath, another former undrafted free agent who was able to play in Green Bay over three years based on his blocking ability. Sturdivant also added some special teams skills to his game as a senior with the Florida Gators, where he was the lead blocker on the kick return unit in 2025.
Sturdivant received $215,000 in guarantees to sign with the Packers, more than any of Green Bay’s undrafted rookies in 2025 and also more than Packers 2026 sixth-round pick kicker Trey Smack. It seems like the organization is a fan of Sturdivant, so keep an eye out for him this summer. I wouldn’t be shocked if he made the team.
Will Sheppard
Among the Packers’ returning practice squad receivers, I think Will Sheppard is first in the pecking order. He has some return ability, and Green Bay activated him as early as the Thanksgiving game against the Detroit Lions last year, though he never ended up taking a regular-season snap as an undrafted rookie.
Injuries from practice ended up costing Sheppard playing time down the stretch, while other receivers on the roster got opportunities.
Jakobie Keeney-James
Jakobie Keeney-James was promoted from the practice squad for the Packers’ Week 18 JV game against the Minnesota Vikings. In 48 offensive snaps, Keeney-James made two catches for 15 yards during Clayton Tune’s terrible 6 of 11 for 34 yards (with 4 sacks for 41 yards) performance. Keeney-James also returned two kickoffs in that game.
Isaiah Neyor
Our third 2025 undrafted free agent of this group is Isaiah Neyor, who didn’t get on the field during the regular season last year but did end up playing three offensive snaps in the Packers’ playoff loss to the Chicago Bears, including on the final offensive drive of the game. This is your reminder about how banged up Green Bay was toward the end of the season.
Brenden Rice
The newest addition to the receiver room is Jerry Rice’s son, Brenden, who is on his fifth NFL team after being drafted in the seventh round of the 2024 draft. The 24-year-old has previously spent time with the Los Angeles Chargers, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks and Las Vegas Raiders. He played in three games as a rookie with the Chargers, recording three snaps on offense and 10 on special teams.
