Christian Watson and Matthew Golden gave the Green Bay Packers the explosive one-two punch they had been seeking in Sunday’s 31-7 victory over the Chicago Bears, while the club continues to await the return of running back Josh Jacobs.
- Jayden Reed — out for the season with a neck injury suffered in Week 2.
- Josh Jacobs — expected back soon; no specific return date was provided.
Watson caught six passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns, while Golden matched him with six receptions and added 123 yards. It was the first time since 2021 that two Packers receivers topped 100 yards in the same game, following Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s performance against the Minnesota Vikings.
The production reinforced Green Bay’s effort to build its passing game around a smaller group of primary targets for quarterback Jordan Love. Reed had been expected to occupy a major role before his season-ending injury, but Watson and Golden have emerged as the central threats on the perimeter.
“It shows what the offense can be,” Love said after the Bears game. “Those are two dominant players. When we get going like that, they make plays and we can take advantage of what the defense gives us. Both are capable of doing great things.”
Watson is fifth in the NFL with 474 receiving yards and ranks second in receiving touchdowns with six, one behind Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Injuries limited Watson during portions of the previous two seasons, but he is now on pace for 1,600 receiving yards.
Golden has 24 catches for 397 yards. The former first-round pick has already exceeded his receiving-yard total from his rookie season and sits five receptions short of matching last year’s catch total. His current pace would put him close to 1,350 yards.
Green Bay has not produced two 1,000-yard receivers in the same season since Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb did it in 2014. Matt LaFleur, however, declined to look too far ahead after Sunday’s breakout performance.
“We’ll see,” LaFleur said. “You’re only as good as your last game. They were pretty good this week.”
Watson’s biggest play came in the third quarter, when he secured a 53-yard touchdown despite tight coverage from Bears safety Dillon Thieneman. Watson extended for the ball, absorbed contact as he went to the ground and maintained possession while sliding near the back of the end zone.
“When you watch it back, you might think the defensive back should have knocked it away or that it should have fallen incomplete,” Watson said. “Sometimes you find a way. I was tracking it, not trying to overthink it. Just go get it.”
Golden also won contested opportunities downfield, making a 36-yard reception in the third quarter and a 50-yard grab in the fourth. Both catches required him to elevate and adjust his body in the air.
Watson said the pair’s speed and route versatility can create favorable matchups elsewhere in the offense, particularly for tight end Tucker Kraft and Green Bay’s other skill players.
“It’s difficult to stop two players who can run every route and take the top off a defense,” Watson said. “If defenses try to take that away, it creates chances in other areas. We have Tucker Kraft and a lot of guys who can make plays.”
Safety Xavier McKinney, who sees Watson and Golden in practice, said their speed changes the challenge for opposing defensive backs. He also pointed to Love’s ability to consistently make difficult throws as a key part of the offense’s potential.
“You see the speed,” McKinney said. “The defensive backs on the other side feel it. With a quarterback like Jordan, I’ve watched what he can do for a couple of years. He can make those throws consistently. When C-Wat, M.G. and Tucker Kraft really get rolling, that’s going to be scary for any team.”
Love completed six passes that traveled at least 20 yards in the air against Chicago, more than he had completed over Green Bay’s first four games combined. The Packers recognize that kind of deep-ball efficiency is difficult to repeat every week, but McKinney believes the eventual return of Jacobs could further balance the offense.
Week Ahead
Green Bay expects Jacobs to return soon, according to McKinney, though the team did not provide a timetable. McKinney said the backs currently filling in have run hard and created extra yardage, helping open opportunities in the passing game while the Packers wait for Jacobs.
