Green Bay Packers wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks was on the field often in place of injured wide receiver Christian Watson on Sunday against the Chicago Bears. Wicks had six receptions for 61 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-9 win over Chicago to get Green Bay to the postseason with a 9-8 record.
Jordan Love threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Wicks in the second quarter and also threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to him in the third quarter on Green Bay’s opening drive. He showed promise during his rookie season after being a fifth-round selection from Virginia.
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Wicks started training camp fighting for a roster spot and has proved himself over the course of the season. He never disappointed when on the field and always improved week-to-week. On the year, Wicks caught 39 passes for 581 yards receiving and four touchdowns, along with averaging 14.9 yards per catch.
He would get open often and quarterback Jordan Love targeted him 58 times this season. Wicks also had one rushing yard on one carry this season. Moving forward, he has earned the right to be the number three wide receiver. There has been high praise about him during his rookie season and will have more room to grow moving forward.
Dontayvion Wicks Solid Rookie Season Has Made Christian Watson Expendable This Offseason for the Green Bay Packers
With Wicks exceeding expectations this season, the Packers will have decisions to make with the roster for next season. They will not have the chance to pay all of the young wide receivers when it is time to give them contract extensions. Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks proved this season they belong for the long haul and so does Romeo Doubs.
All of them were available for most of the games this season and Christian Watson wasn’t. He only played in nine games this season and missed seven of them because of a hamstring injury. Watson is talented, but he is the most injury-prone.
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It feels like he is behind the game because he has missed the last several weeks and has not played since December 3 against the Kansas City Chiefs. It also feels like the offense doesn’t even miss him. It isn’t like quarterback Jordan Love is struggling without him. It seems like he is thriving without him.
Watson would have some trade value this offseason to a team that desperately needs a wide receiver. He caught 28 passes for 422 yards receiving and five touchdowns, along with averaging 15.1 yards per catch. Christian Watson was targeted 53 times this season by quarterback Jordan Love.
Love finished the season with 11 interceptions and was picked off five times when targeting Watson and six when targeting everyone else. Dontayvion Wicks has also had very good chemistry this season with Jordan Love and he will only continue to get better with his routing running and everything else in his skill set.
