The Green Bay Packers offense was under an intense microscope from even before the start of organized team activities. Of course, that is because Brian Gutekunst and the organization decided to trade future Hall of Famer and four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets and finally make Jordan Love their starting quarterback. Additionally, they let both of their veteran wide receivers, Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, walk in free agency. Both joined Rodgers on the Jets.
Love was left with a pass catching group made up of four second-year wide receivers (Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Samori Toure, and Bo Melton), four rookie wide receivers (Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Grant DuBose, and Malik Heath), and three rookie tight ends (Luke Musgrave, Tucker Kraft, and Ben Sims). Astonishingly, all of these players, with the exceptions of DuBose and Toure, caught at least one touchdown pass this season.
Even though the Packers got off to a 2-5 start, their season was salvaged by going 7-3 in their final 10 games. Over the last few weeks of the season, different wide receivers stepped up to have big games, helping to lead the team into the NFC Playoffs.
While no Packers pass catcher finished the season with 1,000+ yards rushing, one NFL analyst does not think that will be the case next year. In fact, he predicts they will have two.
NFL Analyst Predicts the Green Bay Packers Will Have 2 1,000-Yard Wide Receivers in 2024
Wm. Glasheen USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
The Packers’ receiving yards leaders for the 2023 NFL season were as follows:
- Jayden Reed- 793 yards
- Romeo Doubs- 674 yards
- Dontayvion Wicks- 581 yards
- Christian Watson- 422 yards
- Tucker Kraft- 355 yards
- Luke Musgrave- 352 yards
- Aaron Jones- 233 yards
- AJ Dillon- 223 yards
- Bo Melton- 218 yards
- Malik Heath- 125 yards
- Samori Toure- 78 yards
- Josiah Deguara- 65 yards
- Patrick Taylor- 49 yards
- Emanuel Wilson- 23 yards
- Ben Sims- 21 yards
As seen above, no one on the Packers roster even had 800 yards receiving. However, some of them, like Christian Watson, missed time (sometimes significant time) with injuries. Others, like Bo Melton, did not come on the scene until very late in the season.
The point is that with a full season under their belt with Love as their quarterback, almost everyone who returns next season is going to see their production increase.
What is amazing about this group is that any one of four or five of them are capable of a 1,000-yard season. Connor Orr of Sports Illustrated believes that two of them will:
“Jayden Reed and Romeo Doubs will both be vying for All-Pro votes next year. While I’m ultra careful about immediately projecting the ascending Packers to pick up where they left off, there are so many candidates on this team to reach the milestone. Maybe it is Reed and Doubs. Maybe it’s Doubs and Christian Watson. Maybe it’s Watson and Reed. Maybe it’s Watson and Luke Musgrave. This is really just a fun way of saying that Jordan Love is going to rip it up next year.”
As Orr points out, the immense talent and depth of the Packers’ pass catching group means one thing: Jordan Love is going to have a really good season next year.
Which Green Bay Packers Wide Receivers Will Reach 1,000 Yards in 2024?
As Orr notes above, there is a wide variety of players on the Packers roster that could log a 1,000 yard season in 2024. However, I think that the two with the best chances are Jayden Reed and Christian Watson.
Reed set the Packers rookie record for receptions in a season by a rookie. He had 64 catches; the previous record was 55 by Sterling Sharpe (who belongs in the Hall of Fame) in 1988. With 793 receiving yards in 16 games, it is logical to assume that those numbers will only increase with a year under his belt.
Christian Watson was limited to just nine games this season due to hamstring injuries. In those nine games, he logged 422 receiving yards and five touchdowns. It also should be noted than in a good portion of the games that he did play, he was not fully healthy and the Packers young offense was still finding its footing. Give him a healthy season and an offense that is no longer going through growing pains, and I guarantee he will be the wide receiver one the Packers and their fans envisioned he would be when they drafted him.
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