Ahead of their pivotal matchup against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, the Green Bay Packers made a few changes to their 53-man roster on Saturday afternoon.
The most notable move was the activation of third-year wide receiver Jayden Reed from injured reserve, giving Green Bay’s offense another weapon for the stretch run. However, to make room for Reed on the 53-man, the Packers shockingly cut ties with third-year wideout Malik Heath.
According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, the Packers released the former undrafted free agent wide receiver. Some Packers fans were shocked to see the 25-year-old Heath let go, as he had made a name for himself over the years by excelling on special teams and being versatile enough to contribute wherever the team needed him on offense.
The 6-foot-2 wide receiver appeared in 11 games this season, compiling six receptions (seven targets) for 86 yards. Heath missed one game, which was in Week 11 against the New York Giants, due to a coach's decision. However, he was back on the field for Green Bay's last two games vs. the Vikings and Lions.
For a depth wide receiver like Heath, who doesn’t play often on offense, he could ill-afford to mess up, especially given the dearth of talent at WR for Green Bay. Fast forward a few weeks, and he is out of a job.
Malik Heath’s Return to Green Bay May Not Be Simple Following Release
That said, Heath’s Packers’ career is still hanging on by a thread. With Heath being released, he’s subject to waivers, allowing the other 31 teams to claim him.
If another team does not claim Heath, he could find his way back to Green Bay as a free agent via the practice squad. However, Andy Herman of Pack-A-Day Radio did a great job breaking down the obstacles standing in Heath’s way, which all come back to the overall WR talent.
The Packers currently have six wide receivers on their 53-man roster, and that doesn’t account for Bo Melton, who provides the team with some positional versatility as he can line up at CB.
And then on Green Bay’s practice squad, they have Isaiah Neyor, Will Sheppard, and Jakobie Keeney-James, who the Packers might be better off developing to see if they can find the next Malik Heath.
Therefore, when you look at the bigger picture, a quick return to Green Bay might not be in the cards for Heath, which was going to be the likely case anyway at the end of the season. Before he was released, Heath was scheduled to become a restricted free agent.
As a restricted free agent, the Packers could match any offer another team were to submit for him this upcoming offseason. However, it would be tough seeing another team actually put in an offer for a wide receiver with only 31 receptions for 308 yards and three touchdowns on his resume.
The other option the Packers could’ve considered was not tendering Heath in the offseason, which would have made him an unrestricted free agent.
Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how things play out for Heath over the next 24-48 hours. While some Packers fans would love to see him back on the team in some capacity, he might be off trying to latch on with a team that needs wide receiver help for the remaining weeks of the regular season.