Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, and the front office spent all of the 2024 season denying the team's need to add to their wide receiver room. The organization's top brass said that they didn't believe in the idea of a WR1 and thought that they could find success in the passing game through a more egalitarian approach. When the 2025 offseason came around, however, the Packers had to make significant additions to the WR corps after their original plan failed.
With that in mind, they used two of their first three picks in the draft on wide receivers and signed Mecole Hardman in free agency. This naturally bolstered the pass-catching rotation and gave Packers fans renewed hope for the offense. More than any other player, however, it has been rookie sensation Matthew Golden proving to have the potential to be the true difference maker.
Rookie WR Matthew Golden Is Already a Revelation for the Packers
Golden was Green Bay's first pick in the draft and the 23rd-overall selection. Not counting Travis Hunter, he was the third wide receiver selected in the draft, behind Tetairoa McMillan and Emeka Egbuka. So, it's perhaps not surprising that the former Texas star has been an offseason standout. Yet, a rookie immediately looking like a star is certainly not a guarantee based on plenty of recent examples.
Quarterback Jordan Love has already boasted about Golden, and fellow WR Romeo Doubs has called the rookie "a stud". LaFleur has heaped praise on him throughout OTAs, and Packers watchers have noted that he has been Love's primary target during seven-on-sevens, 11-on-11s, and other drills.
The Packers now have an embarrassment of riches in the wide receiver room. So much so that at least one of Hardman, Bo Melton, and Malik Heath will have to be cut before the season.
Regardless of how the rest of the rotation shakes out in Green Bay, Golden has been everything the team has been looking for so far. Packers fans hope that remains the case when they host the Detroit Lions at Lambeau Field in Week 1.