The Packers seem incredibly optimistic about first-round rookie wide receiver Matthew Golden’s upside.
Golden’s game-altering speed was on display during the NFL combine when he ran the 40-yard dash in a blazing 4.29 seconds, tops among receivers, and Green Bay is hopeful that it translates to Sundays.
Through a spring’s worth of OTA and minicamp practices and two-plus weeks of training camp, Packers quarterback Jordan Love sure sounds fired up about his newest receiver.
“Matthew Golden,” Love recently told ESPN’s This is Football. “I think he’s shown up since Day 1, and really shown his play style.”
That style seems built upon big plays, after the former University of Texas standout averaged 17 yards per reception while catching 58 passes for 987 yards and nine touchdowns in his final collegiate season.
Packers’ Jordan Love Fired Up About Matthew Golden
Initial returns are encouraging for Golden, Love, and the Packers.
“He came in really polished,” Love said, of Golden. “He’s been making plays since Day 1. He’s got very aggressive hands, he’s a smooth route runner, he’s got speed.”
Golden joins a crowded receiver room, with Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, fellow rookie Savion Williams, and the injured Christian Watson among the young weapons the Packers have surrounded Love with.
However, Love is confident in Golden’s ability to make an immediate impact.
“For him,” Love says. “He just needs to continue to understand the playbook and wrap his head around everything that we have in, because we have a very deep system.
“You can see when he knows what he’s doing, he’s feeling confident, he’s been playing lights out. He’s going to be a stud.”
Tork Mason/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
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